SWE - Fall 2007 - (Page 84) POINT OF VIEW Cross-generational Views on Work and Career BY WALTER MCFALL, SWE EDITORIAL BOARD I t has been a few years since I retired from my life as a principal recruitment coordinator for one of the Department of Energy National Laboratories. I was responsibile for recruiting new employees and assisting individuals joining my organization. These people were building careers in science and engineering research, whether they were transitioning from academic studies to the workplace or leaving another institution or organization to join ours. Consequently, I worked with people whose ages and experience covered a wide range, allowing me to observe a variety of attitudes concerning work. At the same time, it always felt strange when my own children would share that they were about to make an employment or career change. I felt this way not because of what I did professionally or because I am their father, though those were factors. Their decisions seemed strange because each had what I perceived to be a very good job with a solid employer. From my perspective, why would they leave that for the uncertainty of a new position elsewhere? I had certainly shared my philosophy and parental wisdom about workplace change. What hadn’t they understood? When I was a youngster, my mom advised me to find a good job with a good employer and to maintain it. My mother was coming into young adulthood during the Great Depression so I understand the source of her wisdom and perspective. As I look back at my adult workplace history, I followed her advice exactly. y daughter, however, is quick to point out that although I remained with one employer, I changed careers two or three times. I disagree with her position because research is research, whether applied engineering or basic materials science, and I did both. My career change was going from research to middle management in human resource administration. After completing her undergraduate work in communications, my daughter worked in public relations for a large hospital, a health-industry leader noted for minimizing a certain type of medical procedure. She earned accolades as their spokesperson and became very interested and active as a volunteer in a related matter. She was advised to get more experience working with teenagers, since she exhibited hidden talents in dealing with them in a socio-medical manner. So she taught middle school as a computer laboratory instructor, which motivated her to return to graduate school. She received a master’s degree in sociology, which led to positions as development officer for a couple of nonprofit organizations. She is currently pursuing real estate after her last nonprofit organization was forced to close. She is very resourceful and keeps in touch with colleagues in the nonprofit area in support of women’s health issues. Obviously, her career path has been nothing like mine. M 84 SWE FALL 2007
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