Is it just me, or does it seem like today's society and workforce has a complete lack of care for customer service? It's sad that the only way to get results seems to be to post a negative comment on someone's Facebook or Twitter page. THEN, companies are real quick to respond. What ever happened to providing excellent customer service so issues don't arise and people resort to negative comments? Is it a result of today's generational workforce?
I had lunch with a business friend of mine the other day and we had an at length discussion about today's workforce. We both agreed that we were very much concerned about where things would be in 10 - 15 years. No one seems to really care anymore. No one seems to take ownership or accountability. Of course, I am not speaking of every single person, but it does seem to be a large number. Even more specifically, as much as I hate to admit it, it is my generation where it is most prevalent.
So what is the thinking of today's generation? If I could put it into a short description (in my own words of course) it would be "What can this company do for me?" Where exactly did this come from? When did things shift from the philosophy of what can YOU do for this company? If you do good, then you should be rewarded. Today's generation is a generation of entitlement. People feel as if they are entitled to high salaries, great benefits, big offices, flex time, vacation time, advancement, etc. The philosophy of those values being earned versus entitled seems to be completely gone.
I'll try and give the Matt Schuster philosophy on the issues and concerns in today's workforce. Take it for what it's worth. Some people may not agree with me, others will, some may think I'm just rambling. Either way, this is just a personal review on the issues that I have seen in my own experience in running a company. It seems as if many of these core issues are even taught in college these days. I know they were "taught" to me. This is part of the reason I had so large of a struggle accepting what college tried to teach me as the proper way. So what exactly are the largest issues? The short list is: accountability, reliability, loyalty, and motivation.
Accountability: This one is easy. I briefly touched on the subject above. No one want's to be accountable for their actions. No one wants to take responsibility. If somethings goes wrong, everyone just wants to point their finger and say it was not their fault. What is so wrong with owning up to something. We all make mistakes. Companies know and understand this. Their hope is that when you make mistakes, you learn from them, grow, and do everything to not let those mistakes happen again. It makes you look much worse as an employee to just point your finger and place the blame elsewhere. I promise you, own up, you will be much more respected by your bosses and peers if you do.
Reliability: Maybe it's just me, but if the company says to be there at 8:30, if it is 8:30 on the dot, then YOU ARE LATE. Even worse, walking in at 8:35 with a Starbucks cup of coffee in your hand. That shows that you knew you were late, but you still made the choice to stop at Starbucks. This is a major pet peeve of mine. If your company opens at 8:30, be there at 8:15. Or even better, be there at 8:00. Be checked in, computer on, and ready to work at 8:30. Trust me, bosses notice it, your peers notice it, and upper management certainly notices it. What is 15 minutes worth? If it means advancement in a company, then 15 minutes has a dollar sign attached to it. The whole time concept not only shows reliability, it shows ownership in what you do. It shows that you care about your job and want the best for the company. If you are habitually late, how can you expect that company to send you on jobs or tasks that are not supervised? How can they expect that you will show up on time if you can't even be on time under supervision? It's so simple, yet such a large problem in corporate culture today. Why is it even an issue? So it's simple ... be early!
Loyalty: Think about the number of jobs that you have had? I have close friends that are 28 years old, started working when they were 21, and have had 10 jobs already. What does that say to a company about your loyalty? Sure, you may think that it looks good on your resume, but I personally feel that it does not. To me, it looks much better to show that you have been with fewer companies for longer periods of time and a long list of companies with short periods of time. One word ... loyalty. It shows that you are committed to the betterment of a company. Long lists of jobs only show that you are committed to self betterment. It's the "what can this company do for me" mentality. Here's a little hint ... no company operates on that philosophy. So why show them that you do? If you stick around with one company, and are dedicated to that company, advancement will come.
Motivation: Ultimately, all of the topics above fall under this category. No one seems to be self-motivated anymore. Everyone seems to be just doing their job, not making a career out of what they do. I have news for you, if you act like that, the company will just treat your position as a job and not as a long term career. Show some motivation. Show that you care about the company. Show that you care about growing yourself FOR the company. Working in this mindset will put you on a career minded track. With that, the company will follow and treat you like you are on the career track. You will no longer be considered disposable, you'll be considered as PART of the company. When the company starts seeing you in that perspective, great things will come.
So there you have it. If this blog seemed like a rant, well it partially was. I see many people that perfectly fit the examples above every single day. I am constantly asked by friends for advice, to review resumes, give them a good word, etc., etc. etc. My advice is simple. If you show the skills above, your resume doesn't matter. If you exhibit the skills above, you will go far on your own.
Make today yours. Enjoy!
