Competition and competitiveness are scaling new heights everyday. With benchmarks and records broken (only to reach a higher level) in every industry and profession, the new age individual seeking opportunities, is only stepping into an increasingly diverse environment. The question of equipping oneself to diversity and competition is yet to be answered with one single formula.

Recent news in the Economic Times of India featured an article on the dwindling entry level compensation packages for IT professionals, dipping phenomenally by 20%. The 5-3.5 lakh range dipped to 3.5-1.75 lakh range. Clearly, this may be the cascading effect of the economic downturn or the abundance of human resources available. Now, it becomes a compelling need for a job seeker to stay abreast of competition, therefore learning and developing his skill sets play a huge role in out beating competition.

This reminds us of the saying “Get better or get beaten” by Jack Welch, the man behind the GE transformation. This hardcore believer of ‘change that is constant’ was able to see global competition before it actually arrived, and worked constantly on enabling the organization to adapt to the changing global scenario. His message was simple and clear – ‘foresee, equip and accept change.’ A professional who trains or learns a new skill, or the latest in technology increases his/her probability of becoming an ideal candidate for the hiring company, or is better equipped to handle change or move to another segment when the manpower demand for the current segment dips. Acquiring knowledge, learning and training on a new skill not only adds value to the individual, but helps in discovering and redefining one’s boundary and capabilities every time a new skill is learnt or sharpened. This constant training and learning can only result in the significant increase in the size of one’s opportunity platter.

Shirley Shivkumar

Sources: Economic Times of India

Jack Welch – ‘Get better or get beaten’