Tweet: A new employer every 3-5 years, a new job every 5-7 years, and a new career every 10-or so years is the only way you can sustain your employability if you want to keep working to your retirement age and beyond!
Until the dotcom world came of age (in full swing by 2000) most people stayed at their employer for 10-20 years. Many often stayed beyond their useful work-life, only to realize that they were on the company’s next RIF list. This zeitgeist of today’s uncertain job tenure is further exacerbated by the constant industry consolidation, mergers and acquisitions (M&As), and PE firms scooping up publicly traded companies to go private with the hope of quickly increasing their market cap with approaches that often result in more human carnage than in shoring up a company’s stock price.
So, what is one to do to keep employed with some assurance of job security?
The sad part of this saga is that although employers have changed their game drastically through these merciless shenanigans and caused countless employees to lose their jobs—even ruining their careers, creating an uncertain job environment for everyone, the employed have not yet responded to this shift in kind—with even modicum of temerity to show that this is a game for both sides to play with equal ferocity. In fact, their collective response to this employment evolution has now left them even more vulnerable, emboldening today’s employers to play their game with even greater impunity; this employment game has become increasingly one sided for an everyday player.
If all of these observations sound too abstract and irrelevant to you consider the following:
- For three years your boss has promised that coveted promotion and a higher title because of your singular dedication to the job and your unfailing performance. A month before that was to happen your boss is fired and the new boss comes in and tells you that you are not a good fit for this role and he wants to fire you.
- The CEO publically commended you for your recent turnaround of a bad situation and for protecting a major account from defecting. Your company is suddenly merged with a new parent and they no longer need you.
- After complaining for years and bringing to your boss’ attention that your current salary is way below the market point you are given a 2.5% raise and you realize that your colleagues at competing companies are making nearly twice as much as you now do.
- After six rounds of grueling interviews for a VP role you are told that the next step would be a job offer with the details about your compensation and a start date. You go home whistling with a bottle of Champaign to celebrate with your family. Sadly, you never hear back from the company despite your repeated calls.
- You work hard, sacrificing your family life to get past the 10-year vesting period. A few months short of that you are suddenly laid-off, causing you to lose all that equity you had worked so hard to make it yours, as it happened to me personally some 30 years back and as I see it happening to many of my clients today.
These are just a few, everyday samples of what routinely happens at companies, especially in the US today. How do I know this? This is when prospects and clients call me to seek my help. Other countries have similar problems, too, (I’ve clients in 23 countries, so I know). Thus, no one is immune from these employment indignities.
So, what is the game that employees can now engage in to counter this trend and to keep their careers in control so that both sides are playing on a level playing field?
Here are some of my suggestions:
Change employer every 3-5 years: Until the dotcom bubble (circa 2000) staying at one company was considered an asset and good for your résumé. This was true for companies not just in high-tech, but also in traditional manufacturing and service industries. In the past changing jobs every few years used to look bad on one’s résumé. It told hiring managers and recruiters that you can’t hold down a steady job, can’t get along with your colleagues, or that you are chasing a mirage!
If you want to now play a game that puts you in a different light recognize that the stigma of job hopping is becoming antiquated, especially for those who want to learn, develop, and advance in their careers. Of course, the caveat here is that you change those employers strategically and on your terms.
In today’s zeitgeist there are many reasons for changing employers every few years without changing your role. Workers—especially technology workers—who stay in their company for longer than two years are said to get paid as much as 50% less. “Job hoppers,” on the other hand are perceived as having steeper learning curve, are higher performers, and are even more engaged than their ageing counterparts because they care about making a good impression in the short period they plan to stay at their next employer.
A typical three-year (or so) employer stint can be broken down in three equal parts: First year, get yourself oriented and learn where you can contribute the most to build your career momentum quickly in your new role; second year, start delivering on your plan, continuing on that steep curve; by the third year you start refreshing your résumé and start contacting your colleagues at competing companies and see what is available. You stay vigilant and make your move when conditions are right without worrying too much about its optics and side effects. It requires a strong emotional immune system to look out for your own career welfare and you can build such immunity by operationalizing this routine. Try it!
Change jobs every 5-7 years: When we talk about changing jobs I am focused on taking on a new avatar: If you are a product development professional, try to explore product management roles; If you are a software engineer try getting into project or program management; if you are an account manager try moving to customer success roles. The transitions stated here are called job adjacencies. So, when you are in one role in this list the next role is often something that you come in contact with in your everyday routine. So, try understanding how these adjacent jobs can help you move up to build a strong career track.
Change careers every 10-or so years: As you build your capacity for changing employers, jobs, and roles you’ll begin to realize that changing your career is the next logical step in how you can stay on top of the changing job market. As technology evolves new opportunities are created and if you can get on the ground floor of these opportunities as these technologies are taking hold to become mainstream you have an edge in how you can market yourself with some preparation fortified by taking courses, getting certifications, and doing some work on your own to show that you can become proficient in that nascent field by combining your new skill with some evidence of your success in that space. With MOOC and other online resources this is now the new way for you to get yourself equipped with emerging skills.
All of this may sound deceptively easy as you read this; it is not. Why? Because of a combination of two factors inherent in our thinking: Complacency and Inertia. When we are doing well in our job—even in our career—we often become complacent and ignore the dangers lurking around the corners because we cannot see them. Worse, yet, even when we see them we go into denial. The same is true with our inertia, which makes us shy away from taking proactive measures to preemptively make changes when you do not need to. And, if you think that making a proactive change is hard, try becoming irrelevant and see how hard that is to deal with, both physically and emotionally!
So, none of what I’ve prescribed here is either simple or easy. I know that first hand, as during my 50 years of working I’ve changed four careers and now I’m in my fifth (in five different industries). This is why anyone who wants to keep working on their own terms must do it for themselves using this prescription or some variation of it.
Good luck!