隨著歐洲的新冠肺炎病情延續到2021年，這個病情不但讓我們的生活受到很多阻礙，很多國家為了保住人民生命和醫療體系而犧牲了經濟，導致越來越多的公司關閉。官方數字顯示，歐洲經濟是受災最嚴重地區之一，在2020年已經萎縮˙了7.4%。不過最慘的是英國。目前英國統計約有340萬病例，是歐洲之冠，再加上面臨退出歐盟（Brexit），還有新冠肺炎變種等等，對英國的打擊大於所有歐盟國家。根據英國新聞日報(The Guardian），這是英國三百年以來最差的經濟表現。
另外，就算有大型規模的疫苗接種, 很多專家還是警告大家生活不會很快恢復正常。由於歐洲的失業率創下歷史新高，各種各類的公司不是申請破產就是大量裁員，只能說，情況非常不理想。
那這也意味著什麼呢? 抓緊你的工作!？
雖然失業率統計數據是很高(我相信還有更多人將會失去他們的工作)，但是在黑暗籠罩中，我也看到了另一面光明。我發現在我的人際圈內，不但有很多人換工作, 還越換越好，許多人甚至升到更高的職位。
他們的秘密是什麼? 他們怎麼辦到的? 我忍不住我的好奇心，特地請教其中一些人，希望可以了解他們的心路歷程，從這中間可以看看能不能學習到什麼。
以下是整理出的共通點。
行業還是有差
毫無疑問，有些行業，例如服務業或者是旅遊業，會比其他的行業更受到病情的影響。另一方面，科技產業自從疫情開始以來成長率是最高的。我所有訪問的人都沒有進入所謂萎縮的行業。原因很簡單，要麼就是覺得「不安全」（因為情況不穩定），再來就是「沒有機會」（因為很多公司可能現在都在裁員）。
除了一位女士，她在知名的國際連鎖酒店當行銷經理.。去年 2020三月份，英國第一次封鎖國家的時候，她也參加帶薪強制休假計畫[ Furlough Scheme] ，當時她跟我說，這個補助結束後她可能會失業。果然沒猜錯，到了九月的時候，她被通知她的工作不保。不過她運用了行業法規跟公司重新談判，還成功把她的工作（還有她部門的）救回來。當然她也知道她的情況是特例，不過她非常熱愛這個行業所以決定等到疫情穩定後再做決定。
了解你的價值去追尋高技能工作
「高技能工作」不是任何人都能做的工作，需要特定的技能跟經驗。在我訪問的人中，所有的人都去爭取高技能工作。其中一位女士跟我說，這除了能幫助你從人群中「拖穎而出」，並且減少競爭者。另一位女士則說，你要了解你對公司的價值還要懂得要守住你的價值，而且不要怕拒絕一個工作。她說，在新冠肺炎期間，跟公司談判薪水雖然是一件很恐怖的事，但是如果你妄自菲薄，賤價出售自己對你和公司都沒有好處。還有一位先生，在英國最大的音樂製作公司之一得到了音樂業務工程師的工作。他告訴我，他能夠拿到這個職位是因為他擁有音樂工程碩士學位，具備出色的技術才能，讓他能夠脫穎而出。他也有音樂室錄音的工作經驗，在這個公司裡算是比較罕有的技術，讓他可以呈現出他的價值。
靠人脈，走後門
這個大概是最重要的一步，也是進公司最需要的門檻。幾乎所有的人都說他們跟得到的工作其實都有一些關係，不管是透過公司內部升遷或者利用人脈。這也意味著很多的工作沒有對外開放。有位小姐跟我說，經過幾次利用「正常」軌道面試了幾家公司，可是到頭來這些公司決定提拔內部人員，不雇用外部人，整個過程讓她覺得非常失望。這也說明了，有公司內部消息是非常重要的。
文化契合
好幾個人就特別提出這一點。尤其以現在的時機，公司非常需要的是能夠跟他們一起合作打拼來渡過難關的人員。另外，因為現在有很多人在家工作，新人很難跟同事們碰面來建立關係，所以能快速融入公司文化與團隊的能力變得非常重要。
你的未來有多長?
不管如何，公司還是希望採用一個長期穩定的員工，希望在他們身上投資的心血不會浪費。有一位國際公司的女經理跟我說，最近因為招募一個助手收到了幾千封的履歷表。其中一封履歷表來自一個飛機駕駛員。雖然她了解為什麼這位機師會投履歷表，也同情他的情況，可是她無法錄取這個人。最主要的原因是她覺得這位機師的心並不在她的公司，一旦情況恢復 [正常] 這位機師一定會離職回去航空公司。現在有這麼多人失業，她需要認真考慮她錄取的人跟他在公司的未來。
最後感想
跟這些人討論後讓我覺得市場並沒有那麼可悲，反而看到了一絲絲的希望。我相信很多人會覺得這些人可能是例外，不是常態。但是仔細想想，不論國家或者背景，他們有很多值得學習的態度和行為，幫助他們得以面對現在惡劣的情況。你如果正在考慮任何的跳槽或改變，以上的心得絕對是可以參考的。
English Version
Leaving your job? Job Search? In the middle the middle of the pandemic? Success stories in Europe, what are their secrets?
As the pandemic in Europe continues into 2021, Covid-19 had not only caused disruption to our daily lives but the uncertainties and the lockdowns have forced many businesses into a closure or restructure. Data have shown that the global economy had shrunk in 2020 and Europe, being one of the hardest hit, had contracted by around 7.4% in 2020 (Source: Statista).
The situation affected the UK harder than other European countries, this was fuelled by Brexit and a new variant of COVID-19. According to The Guardian, Britain is said to have the worst economic performance in more than 300 years. Even with the mass vaccination, many experts are still warning that things ‘won’t’ get back to normal as quickly as we hope. As the unemployment figures hit an all time high, with companies of all types and sizes either filing for bankruptcies or firing people, the situation here is looking pretty grim.
What does this mean for most of us? Hold tight to your jobs!?
Behind all that gloom and doom, I soon learnt that, although the statistics stacked up with more unemployed people (and more on the verge of losing their job) than job availabilities, that this wasn’t always the case. In my circle of connections, instead, I saw the opposite trend. People changed their jobs, in fact, many even managed to move to more senior roles.
What is their secret? How did they do it? I was so envious of their success that I decided to speak to some of them to learn more about their journeys so that, hopefully I could do the same myself.
Below are the common themes which I have identified.
1. Industry still makes a big difference
Without a doubt, certain sectors (i.e. hospitality, retail) are more affected by the pandemic than others. On the other hand, sectors like, for example, technology have probably seen the biggest growth since the pandemic started. None I spoke to entered into any of the severely impacted industries, either it was deemed as ‘too unsafe’ (due to the uncertainty of the situation) or there were no available opportunities (most of these companies had to downsize anyway).
One lady worked as a marketing manager at one of the largest hotel chains in the world and was put on the furlough scheme during the first lockdown in march 2020. At the time, she told me that she was not optimistic and expected to lose her job. As predicted, as the furlough scheme was coming to an end in September 2020, she was informed of the job loss. However, she was able to use the industry regulation to her advantage and managed to negotiate for herself and save her (and her team’s) job. She admitted that she is an exception rather than the norm but she loves this industry and have decided to wait until things gets better.
2. Understand your Value and Go for highly skilled jobs
Highly Skilled roles are jobs that require specific skills and experience which could not be done by just anyone. Every person that I spoke to went for highly skilled roles. One person told me that it was all about “standing out from the crowd” and “decreasing competition”. Another lady told me that it was about knowing what you can offer and the value you can create for the company. It is important not to be afraid to say ‘no’ and never under sell yourself. She said that, although it was scary to negotiate in the middle of a pandemic, but selling yourself short doesn’t benefit yourself nor the company. Another person secured a role as a Music Sales Technician in one of the largest music production companies in the UK. He told me that he got the role because he was able to differentiate himself by offering not only his technical competency (as he holds a Master’s degrees in Music Engineering) but also his extensive experience working in a music studio which was a rare skill for the company.
3. Backdoor opportunities through Networking or internal Promotions
This is probably the most important part of the whole process. What can be called the “foot in the door” opportunity. This is where the majority of the people had some form of relationship with the companies that they now work at, either through an internal promotion or a personal introduction by someone in their networks. This means that a lot of the roles were not always ‘open’ to the public or recruiters. One lady even told me that, after several attempts at going through the ‘standard’ recruitment route, after the initial interviews, these companies ended up promoting internal staff rather than taking external people - which made the process quiet frustrating. This goes to show the importance of having the company’s intel.
4. Culture Fit
A few people really emphasised this point. Especially in the current climate, companies are looking for people that can work with them as a team and can get through this tough time together. With a lot of remote working in place, many people would now start working without even physically meeting the team. Therefore, the ability to engage and adapt to the company culture quickly is even more critical than before.
5. Longevity
Even in a pandemic, many companies still want to hire people for the long-term as the on-boarding and training process for a new member of staff still requires time and effort from the company. One lady, who was a senior manager in a global company, told me that she had received thousands of job applications for a junior role, including a CV from a flight pilot. She said that, although she understood and sympathised with the situation for the pilot, she could not consider his application. Her reasons were, “his heart is in the wrong place”, once things are ‘back to normal’, he would most likely quit the job and go back to his old job, therefore they will not be able to keep him for the long term. With so many people unemployed, she wants to choose people that she can really see as a good fit for the future of her team.
Final Thoughts
It isn’t all gloom and doom in the job market, I feel there is a light at the end of the tunnel. I understand that it can be argued that these people might be the exception rather than the norm, and this is probably true. However, regardless of the culture background, I do think there are learnings and insights which we can take away to improve ourselves, such as the attitudes and behaviours which prepare them for the rainy days. For anyone who is thinking about making a change, I hope you were able to find some valuable take aways.
