CAREER STRATEGY
The limits of loyalty
November 1, 2009>> A FinancialThreats.com Opinion: Your parents
may have found it pays to be loyal to their employer.
That was then. Now all loyalty is strictly conditional.
Thousands of decades-old companies, big and small,
have already gone bankrupt; more are on the way.
Even apart from the recession, things are too loose, too fragile, too fast-moving to plan on working for the same company for a decade or more. Instead, think bigger. As you plan your career, be less concerned about what your current employer wants and more concerned about what your industry wants—and rewards. Take this kind of thinking down to specific skills. If you’re a software engineer, for example, and you learn that the market wants people with experience in Web applications, find a way to get that experience, even if it means taking night courses.
This approach will also affect the kind of the
kind of training and experience you try to get from
your current employer. It could even lead to leaving
your company for a lower salary if you think the
new job will set you on a better career path. Helpful
websites include: www.careercounseling.com and www.careerplanner.com
Self-defense: Keep up to date with what your industry wants. Then do whatever you have to do to get that kind of experience. Realize that your future lies with your industry, not just your current employer.
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