Much has been said in recent years about the stagnation of our workforces, with just 18% of employees saying they’d be open to an internal career move. The impetus has been placed on people to take greater ownership of their careers and pursue development opportunities, but mobility and growth are only achievable when organisations lay the correct foundations.
Opportunities must first exist; employees then need sight of said opportunities; and most importantly, they need to feel empowered to explore them. But when less than 1 in 3 people say suitable career development help is available to them, and teams continue to stagnate or even shrink, is it any wonder that employees aren’t developing at the pace expected of them?
A lack of investment in both early and later careers is compounding the issue
Even though work experience can reduce the odds of young people becoming NEET by 80%, only 58% of KS4 pupils complete any work experience. Young people are then left feeling that higher education is their only option, but their degrees aren’t helping them get a foot in the door either:
- Entry-level hiring has fallen by 14% since 2019
- Unemployment among post-graduates under the age of 29 has risen to 3.7%
With the government and organisations continuing to underinvest in early-career development, we’re left with a far narrower future talent pool and career demographic.
On top of this, research has found that around two-thirds of those polled consider 55 to be the age at which people become less desirable as an employee – a statistic that worryingly echoes the sentiment of Totaljobs’ 2024 research where 46% of recruiters said they believe a 57-year-old candidate would be “too old” to hire.
You might think that such misguided ageism would be a thing of the past, but it appears to be playing a very active role in the world of work. Many businesses who had previously invested in returnships – designed to help people who had taken a career break re-enter the world of work – are now ditching the initiatives to become more risk-averse amid increasing economic uncertainty.
As organisations turn their backs on both junior and senior professionals at the same time, where does this leave the remaining workforce?
We’re asking employees to accelerate their development but have left the brakes on
With young people unable to get into the world of work and later career professionals increasingly being overlooked or neglected, those in the middle are finding themselves overstretched and feeling stuck, at the exact moment they should be perfectly positioned to propel their careers forward.
- Without any junior professionals joining their team, mid-career employees are unable to free up time for development by delegating down or take on managerial/leadership responsibilities to learn new skills.
- At the same time, the pool of senior colleagues is shrinking, leaving mid-career professionals with fewer opportunities to acquire expertise and learn from those more experienced than them.
In the end, organisations are left with employees who lack the opportunity and insight needed to effectively develop in their careers – resulting in widening skill gaps and long-term stagnation.
Taking the right steps to support your workforce
While it could be said that today’s volatile and uncertain world of work has somewhat necessitated this more risk-averse approach to talent from employers, it’s safe to say that it isn’t sustainable. At some point, businesses will again realise just how crucial the expertise of senior professionals and the potential of emerging talent is to their long-term success.
But until then, business leaders need to ensure they’re effectively supporting their existing employees to be the best version of themselves.
Psychometric assessments: Provide data and insights that inform strategic talent investments and support tailored development plans. In understanding the strengths, gaps and ambitions of their employees, business leaders can more effectively identify suitable opportunities for growth and mobilise talent accordingly – whether it be a stretch project, cross-functional team or a more permanent internal move.
Coaching driven career support: With managers who are likely feeling extremely stretched, and individual contributors who are perhaps wondering what development looks like when teams aren’t expanding, career support grounded in coaching is a powerful enabler of growth. Managers can learn the skills to conduct effective career conversations and support career development within their teams, while employees discover how to take greater ownership of their careers and align their goals with the organisation.
Deciding to pause investment in talent acquisition for a time is fine and part of running a sustainable business; but pausing investment in your people is never okay.
Making sure to provide comprehensive career support, even during uncertain and challenging times, is crucial to ensuring employees retain a sense of meaning and belonging in their work. Only then can organisations hope to generate the loyalty and stability they need to tide them over until they’re ready to leverage the skills and qualities possessed by both younger and older professionals.
To find out more about how Right Management can help you mobilise and develop your people effectively, get in touch with us today.