Issue link: https://iconnect007.uberflip.com/i/1078362
FEBRUARY 2019 I SMT007 MAGAZINE 27 McNabb: Exactly. Even if you're brilliant, I'm talking to you and 400 of your peers, so we become aggregators of insight. We bring that insight to our clients, changing their search pa- rameters and goals in many instances. It's a fascinating process. Then, we approach the top performers who are in that post-accomplish- ment letdown and make them aware because these are things they don't think about. You get so busy being competent in your job that it's easy to become complacent about your career. Johnson: That makes sense, but there's one other factor—the unemployment rate is par- ticularly low. McNabb: Absolutely. Johnson: In electronics manufacturing, we have this succession gap, which means we also have a knowledge gap. Manufacturers need to hire people and are starting to think tactically rather than a long-term career, and there's a very small talent pool. McNabb: Yes, there is structural unemployment where there are more jobs for a specific skill set than there are people who have those skills. Johnson: As a recruiter, what would be your suggestion to the HR department at a manufac- turing facility? How do they cope? How do they get themselves so that their facility stays viable and they don't have to close just because they can't get anybody to run the shop while they wait for the millennials to get there? McNabb: They need to identify a tier-one tal- ent pool and tier-two talent pool. They need to McNabb: Yes. So, what's happening in today's world? A lot of people are saying, "I just solved this important problem for my current com- pany," and many top performers experience a post-accomplishment letdown. They had all the resources and attention—it was exciting work—but now they're going back to checking code? Instead, what many of them do is say, "There's an infinite number of companies out there who need to solve this problem. I don't need job security; I have career security." Johnson: Skills security. McNabb: Yes. "I have skills security, and I'm going to jump from company to company fol- lowing my personal highest and best use." Ba- sically, anything other than that highest and best use would create less value. "I'm worth $75 per hour doing this new thing and I'm on- ly worth $40 per hour doing anything else!" Johnson: How does that fit into more of a man- ufacturing floor sort of environment? McNabb: Let me give you a quick example. One of our search consultants works with leadership professionals within manufacturing processes that include rolled sheet aluminum within the United States; that's his entire marketplace. When plasma cutting first came out, he found a project manager who had successfully installed the plasma cutting, but started feeling a letdown because his job was exciting the last month and his old tasks seemed boring by comparison. Our consultant approached the companies that ought to install plasma cutting. Rather than saying "I'm a recruiter and I'd like to have some of your business," he said, "Many of the top companies are switching to plasma cutting for these reasons. Where do you folks stand in that process?" And that's another interesting shift that has happened. More of the managers and companies around the world are looking to the recruiter for insight into what's changing in the marketplace, more than anything else. Johnson: You are in a place to watch a larger sample set. You get so busy being competent in your job that it's easy to become complacent about your career.