Changes in the world
of work
The pace of change. The nature of the changes we have seen in
the world of work over the last twenty years have been the subject of some
debate. Ideas such as the demise of the ‘job for life’ and the rise of the ‘boundaryless
career’ have been much discussed but the consensus which has emerged lately
seems to indicate that average job tenure has not changed significantly in the
last generation, and that bounded careers are as common and desirable in many
fields as they ever were. One thing which does seem to have been widely
accepted is the notion that change within the workplace is inevitable and the
pace of this change is considerably faster than it once was. This I imagine will continue, and individuals
as a consequence will need to develop the skills to manage and take advantage of
these changes in order to be employable throughout their working lives. Qualities
such as resilience, adaptability and a commitment to lifelong learning therefore
need to be fostered and guidance practitioners can and should play a part in
encouraging and engendering these attributes.
Older workers. The aging population and challenges with pension
provision mean that workers are having to delay their
retirement and are working, either through choice or necessity until well into
their 60s or 70s. Despite legislation outlawing discrimination on the grounds
of age, research and practice indicate that older workers find it more challenging
to secure appropriate work and career practitioners in the coming decades
should be specifically equipped to support this cohort of potential clients.
Agency of the individual. One change which has been noted in
the psychological contract between workers and employers is that the
responsibility for career management now seems to rely on the individual more
than on the employer. Increasingly we are seeing that individual workers need
to take control of their professional training, put themselves forward for the
opportunities they want and craft their own jobs to raise their levels of job
satisfaction. Career practitioners increasingly will be working with
individuals in organisations to help them develop career management skills.
Meaning . An interesting development which we have seen
recently and which to my mind looks set to continue is an increased focus on
meaning in work. This is related to the blurring of work and non-work
identities and links with the new focus on career as identity which I highlight
below. Clients are increasingly looking for work which allows them to ‘be
themselves’ and through which they can develop a life purpose. A focus on
vocation and meaning in work will become more central to career practitioners
work in the future.
Developments in
career theory
Career as identity The prevailing paradigm of
career theory is in constant flux, but the one theme which seems to be emerging
most strongly at the moment (to my mind at least) is the notion of identity.
This links closely to the emerging value placed on meaning in work which I
mentioned above. Guidance practitioners
will no longer be encouraging clients to ask ‘Which jobs are going to suit me
best?’ but rather ‘In which environments can I become who I want to be?’.
Career theories are emerging which can support guidance counsellors as they
help their clients to address these issues of identity. This ties in with an
increased understanding of the holistic nature of careers and career choices
seen in recent literature.
Individualisation Career research seems to be going away from a
‘one size fits all’ approach and encouraging practitioners to get their clients
to define their own terms. A focus on cross cultural practice acknowledges the
different experiences of particular client groups, and an emphasis on guidance
as a mechanism for promoting social justice highlights the experiences of
different sections within our society. An emerging practical emphasis on narrative
approaches to guidance provides practitioners with a mechanism for exploring
clients’ experiences as individuals and I believe this individualised approach
to guidance will prevail in the years to come.
Changes in Guidance
Practice
Diversification Guidance practitioners in the future will need
to practice in diverse ways. First, service provision is likely to diversify.
In the UK, each school and each University now has its own model for practice
with practitioners working variously with groups, one to ones and via
technology, and practitioners specialising as guidance practitioners,
counsellors, teachers, trainers, coaches or consultants. Some practitioners are
becoming more generalist and others, more specialist.
Our client body is diversifying too. Twenty years ago, most
practice in the UK focused on first career choices of school and university
leavers. We are now increasingly seeing clients at all stages of their careers, and (as I mentioned
above) in future there will be more older workers who may seek support.
Empirical evidence too is leading us to consider working with children in
primary school (ages 5 upwards).
The theoretical approaches which guidance practitioners will
be using will diversify, as we learn from other disciplines. Approaches such as
solution focusing counselling, motivational interviewing and coaching will become
more mainstream.
Labour market and occupational information Our traditional role
as information broker, providing insights into various aspects of the world of
work will become less important as the internet and social media become the
information providers of choice. Career practitioners instead will need to work
with clients to hone their research skills, ensuring that they can manage, synthesise
and analyse the vast quantities of information so easily accessible to them
now.
Technology As an adjunct to face to face work, career
practitioners are going to need to learn to capitalise on the opportunities available
to us through new technologies including social media and online learning.
