November 13, 2008
I am president of the NSW Young Water Professionals (YWPs) in Australia. The YWPS are a specialist interest group within the Australian Water Association (AWA). We encourage AWA members under 35 years of age to register. Nationally our membership represents around 13% of total AWA membership. This is a fair indicator of the percentage of water professionals under 35 in the broader Australian water industry, and the story is similar in developed nations across the world.
In Australia we are expecting 20-30% of water engineers (and closer to 50% of operations staff) to retire in the next 5-10 years. The next generation of water industry professionals just doesn’t exist.
Firms are reluctant to train the large number of graduates required to replace them, because training is costly in the short term, and because retention is so difficult they are unlikely to reap the full benefit. To lapse into eco-speak, there is a definite market failure present here…training young professionals results in positive externalities and so training tends to be under delivered by a free market.
However the user-pays philosophy is so ingrained that industry bodies find it difficult to look past it and see what has to be done.
This is of course great news for young water professionals globally. Your professional future is assured…but you might find yourself doing the work of three people…if you aren’t already!
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Posted by Andrew
May 16, 2007
Professionals I talk to almost always underestimate the difficulty of finding a job when they return home after working overseas. I worked outside my home country of Australia for seven years. Three years before I came back to Australia I started planning my return. Two months before, I flew over to Australia for interviews. I quit my job overseas after I had secured my job in Australia.
A few rules.
1. Always, always secure a job at home before you leave your job overseas. This may be a long process so leave plenty of time, and be prepared to make at least one trip home exclusively for interviewing. You wouldn’t believe how many successful professionals I have met who have gone through long periods of unemployment when they come home without a job.
2. Make sure you maintain your professional connections at home while working overseas. This includes those who are working as expatriates. You have to be busily networking and making a space for yourself years in advance of when you come back.
3. Take a hit. Be prepared to make some sacrifices in terms of money and seniority to make the transition, particularly if you are in a hurry.
4. Be prepared for an emotionally rocky time after you get back. Things will not settle down for at least a year after you get back if you have spent time overseas.
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Posted by Andrew
April 26, 2007
My purpose for starting this blog is to share what I hope are useful insights into career, professional branding, and the nature of value in the professional world.
I hope the content is useful to anyone who is anywhere on their journey through their careers.
Andrew
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Posted by Andrew
