I’m 39 years old and have faced redundancy three times in the last eight years. It’s been eye-opening to realize that layoffs have been a part of corporate life for decades, but they’re only now making headlines as tech companies announce them publicly. In my experience, larger corporations, especially Fortune 100 companies, have been quietly laying off employees for a long time, sometimes in groups, sometimes individually, but it seems to happen regularly. I’ve come to understand the corporate structure as a pyramid, where there are many entry-level positions at the bottom, fewer middle management roles, and only a handful of top executives. If you can’t climb the ladder, you risk being cut. I believe this reality should be made clear to young graduates entering these companies; they need to know that they aren’t signing up for a guaranteed 40-year career path. Advancement in corporate roles depends on various factors, such as cultural fit, networking skills, and even aspects like ethnicity and gender. It’s disheartening to realize that not everyone can become a leader, and not all companies provide roles for individual contributors at every level of experience. I feel somewhat cheated because when I entered my career, I was unaware of these dynamics. I was confident in my abilities and assumed I would continue to grow. Now, discussions about having multiple income streams and side hustles are prevalent, and the notion that 48 is the new retirement age is unsettling. Meanwhile, professions like doctors, lawyers, and accountants seem to be less affected by these trends. I excelled in school and felt proud to start my career with a large financial services company, but experiencing my first redundancy was a humbling moment.
Loading comments…
Comments