Summary:
According to Carlson (2002), the workforce environment has changed dramatically over the past fifty years. In the 20th century, many individuals would work at a single employer for their entire working life. In the 21st century, it is common for someone to work for many different employers throughout their working life quite possibly entirely different careers. In the 20th century, an employee worked his or her way up the corporate ladder learning various technical skills as they progressed, ultimately ending up in management. In the 21st century, a worker will jump from employer to employer picking up various skills from each and will use them make them more marketable to future employers.
In the 20th century, a manager was expected to know all aspects of the department they were working in. In the 21st century, managers are hired for their ability to manage people, not for their specific knowledge of an industry.
Paraphrase:
In the 20th century, most people worked in the same career for their entire lives. Companies rewarded good workers with a “job for life” and would take care of them when they retired. The employee would start at an entry-level position and work their way up the corporate ladder (Carlson, 2002, para. 1).
Managers and supervisors, in the 20th century, started their careers in entry-level positions and acquire additional skills as they grew with the company (Carlson, 2002, para. 2).
This differs in the 21st century where a person may have as many as eight different employers during their working years. A person might work in completely different trades. A person will learn different skills from their different employers in hopes of making themselves more marketable to new companies with better career opportunities. People might also find themselves working for competing employers using the skills they acquired from previous employers (Carlson, 2002, para.
3).
Nowadays, managers are hired more for their talent at motivating staff and achieving goals rather than their technical knowledge of an industry. In fact, managers often come from entirely different industries and have little technical knowledge of the new company’s industry (Carlson, 2002, para. 4). .
