Indian employees switch jobs to advance career

Lakshmangarh, Rajasthan: An overwhelming number of Indian employees feel that they must leave their existing organisations for advancing in their careers,

a study said.

"India, as a matter of fact, is ranked the highest at 56 percent where a majority of the employees feel they have to leave their organisation to advance to a higher job," a Towers Watson's Global Workforce Study, said.

India at 56 percent is ahead of the U.S. at 43 percent, UK at 41 percent, Brazil at 39 percent, China at 38 percent and Germany at 37 percent, the study said.

"The top management in India Inc needs to review the career advancement programmes for their employees if they have to retain talent in what promises to be a prolonged growth phase of the business cycle," Towers Watson India's Managing Director, Dhritiman Chakrabarti, said.

Towers Watson conducted the global workforce study in India between November 2009 to January 2010.

It surveyed employees in the 25-35 years age-group, predominantly male, having less than five years work experience, in mid-management levels of medium-sized organisations with employees between 1,000 and 4,999, a statement issued here said.

The survey observed seven principal elements that defined career advancement.

These were making more money, acquiring skills to perform better, achieving higher status/recognition, advancing to senior leadership role, acquiring skills to be eligible for other jobs, moving up a well-defined career path and making lateral career moves, it said.

"Making more money was globally the number one element that defined career advancement except in the UK where acquiring skills to perform better topped the list," the study said.

Another interesting aspect, the study noted, was that increasingly more employees in India are taking an opportunistic attitude and are open to job shifts to advance their careers. While 32 percent of employees surveyed globally said they would work for one organisation, this number was much lower in India and China.

"Only 25 percent Indians and 23 percent of Chinese employees listed working for one organisation as their preferred career model," the study said. On the other hand, 44 percent of Indians and 39 percent of Chinese listed following opportunities as they arose as their preferred career model as opposed to a global average of 33 percent, it said.

"This trend in China and India is symptomatic of growing economies and the optimism it generates. Employees here are more bullish about the future and are willing to follow opportunities as they arise," it said.

To retain talent, India Inc will have to increasingly engage its employees in every aspect-be it competitive pay, learning opportunities, challenging work, career advancement opportunities or being an employer of choice," Chakrabarti said.

Network your way to the first job

Lakshmangarh, Rajasthan: As a fresh graduate looking for your first job, you would not want to leave any avenue unexplored that could help you land a job. Campus placement cells, job sites, newspapers are all good means that help you look for fresher jobs. However, there is one more way, which may not be as popular but it is as effective as any other means. It is networking. Networking is sometimes the best way to land your first job. In fact, at all stages of your career, especially as you move higher up the corporate ladder, you would realize that there is nothing better than networking to make a job switch. Now, the question is what is networking and how does it help one get the first job.

Networking primarily means to develop a wide ranging list of contacts. These could be your friends, your seniors, people you met at parties, or people you meet on social networking sites online. You can use this list of contacts to your advantage while looking for your first job effectively. Your college seniors and industry experts would be quite instrumental in informing you about job leads, pitching in a word for you with the employer, giving you career you advice and giving you information about a particular company or industry. It is through your network that you can meet more people and expand the list of contacts.

However, a good and effective network is not built overnight. It has to be worked at. You will not get in touch with all hot shots in one day and you have to start from your immediate circle. So, start building your network with family, neighbors and friends. Then move on to their acquaintances, their friends and their networks. You can't be quiet and introvert if you want to build a good network. Socialize, talk to people, and get to know more, be helpful towards others, attend events and show eagerness to know others. Talk to your seniors and teachers. Seek introductions and don't hesitate to get yourself introduced. With these practices, you can look forward to making a good network that will help you get your first job.

Networking is not about bombarding people with job enquiries. It has to be gradual, regular and developed with effort. If you try and contact everybody you know only when you start your job search and start asking about job openings, people might get peeved. The ideal way is to keep in touch regularly. Once you make a good rapport, job offers will come to you even without your asking. You have to build alliances that would come in handy when you are on a look out for your first job. And it could be anybody.

Networking is also beneficial because many jobs are not advertised. They are filled by word-of-mouth references and through acquaintances. Thus, you can come to know about these jobs for freshers only through insiders. And a recruiter will always prefer to hire somebody who comes through a reference as it is the first level check for the recruiter. Thus, if you have networked well and go through an internal reference, your chances of getting your first job multiply manifold. But remember one thing that networking is not about making cold calls and nagging people with job requests. This will only end up irking them and spoil your prospects. Rather, be subtle and judicious in your approach.

These days, networking online is also a very good option. However, on the net, you have to be careful about who you are networking with. There are many social and professional networking sites. You can start with your college seniors and request them to introduce you to their acquaintances. You must showcase your accomplishments in your online profile to establish your credibility. After all, nobody would want to network with you and inform you about job openings if your profile is not worth it. Once you have a decent network, be sure to communicate with them regularly. Be as much ready to help as you are eager to seek their help. Also, prepare a strong resume and circulate it within your network. Talk to your alliances on issues other than job hunting. These are the lateral means of establishing a good relationship that will eventually help you get your first job.