The quality of the talent pool and their dedication to the work ethic is at the lowest point I can remember in 25 years. (Longer than some of you have been breathing) I think that there are a multitude of reasons and I’d like to hear what you have to say. But first here are my observations.

Employers value loyalty but do not practice a value based system. Achievement, excellence, dedication, innovation are solid reasons to reward an employee with a raise, a promotion or at least a nice note, hand signed NOT emailed. When a business has to cut costs the young tender ones are the first to go. Without a value system that rewards achievement the youth are sucked out of the business leaving older high priced staff and too many damn managers! Shameful. Companies of all sizes cheat the system with permanent freelancers who don’t get benefits. This saves about 28% plus most freelancers do not get overtime no matter how many hours they work in a week. Politically protected incompetence, and fiefdoms of mediocrity proliferate our business environment.

Oddly there are also many who work more hours than any generation. Taking their work on the train, vacations and weekends but why? Is it dedication or fear?

Employees value loyalty but are loath to trust the company they work for. I believe the majority of employees want to do a great job but they feel isolated, ignored and often exasperated by the decisions of their employers. As the workplace becomes more stressed management seems to take on a bunker mentality instead of reaching out and including the staff in the process of improving the companies performance. Being inclusive is risky for a manager who does not have self-confidence opening the possibility of being outshined by a more talented colleague. How dare a person advance with good ideas?

Students right out of college are looking to enter the workforce with high salaries not by clawing their way to the top one step at a time. The concept of growth and development seems to be at times replaced by an almost defiant expectation of entitlement. Has anyone seen real mentorship lately?

So with all of these observations one thing is clear. Everyone needs to take a good look at where they work and assess their performance. If you are at a good company reward them with your loyalty and dedication. If you are in a position of responsibility take stock in how your company treats its employees and remember what goes around, comes around. Everyone can help improve this situation unless they plan to wait till someone else goes first.