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This article is wrong. Why is it wrong? It talks about fulfilling work and a great boss as if it's the ONLY thing that employees look for. BY common sense what

This article is wrong. Why is it wrong? It talks about fulfilling work and a great boss as if it's the ONLY thing that employees look for. BY common sense what employees look for is a huge multitude of factors combined together part of which includes "Free lunches, more vacation time, latte machines --- and don't forget a ping pong table." It is stupid to discard all of these things as inconsequential when the employee himself states that these are things he wants. Engaging work is ONLY one factor out of many things that Employees declare that they want. What this article is trying and failing to address is the fact that most employees become dissatisfied with their work EVEN when employers try to satisfy all these needs and wants. It hints at the fact that there is something that the employee wants that he isn't fully aware of. What is this thing that he wants? Simple. The answer is: Career Growth. As humans our needs and wants are unlimited. It doesn't matter how many needs and wants are satisfied, the employee will eventually want more. Employees are looking for a continuous improvement in their well-being keyword being "continuous." The company that provides the employee with the fastest rate of unlimited growth is the company that retains the employee. The reality is, nothing can satisfy an employee if his wants and needs are unlimited. We all fight for this plateau of ultimate satisfaction that we will never reach. If you want to retain employees you must give employees the constant illusion that they are making progress towards this nonexistent plateau.

vinceguidry 11y ago
Not all jobs can offer growth. It's in everybody's best interests if you just move on from such jobs once you outgrow them. I spent two and a half years at my current job maintaining a legacy codebase. I looked for, and explored, growth opportunities at that job. In the end, I had to find them myself. Nobody at the company could really put in the effort it would have taken to keep me fulfilled, so I did it myself. I did lots of reading, experimenting, diving deep into fundamentals. I am a much, much better programmer than I was when I started the job. The company did not give that to me, it couldn't have given it to me. I eventually convinced the company to move off of the old legacy platform, that it was holding them back. I wanted to build them a new platform, but they decided to go with Magento. They're giving me a pretty sweet severance deal while I go out looking for a job. I firmly believe that anybody can grow at any job. It's nice when the company can help you do that, but your own growth is your responsibility, and nobody else's.
- crimsonalucard 11y ago
  >I firmly believe that anybody can grow at any job. It's nice when the company can help you do that, but your own growth is your responsibility, and nobody else's. I'm not talking about personal growth. I'm talking about growth in benefits, like salary or working environment. People leave companies or learn new skills to get more benefits. The company needs to provide better benefits, continuously, or the employee leaves. Simply buying a ping pong table or giving an employee "engaging work" isn't enough.
  - vinceguidry 11y ago
    > The company needs to provide better benefits, continuously, or the employee leaves. This smacks of entitlement. The employee won't necessarily leave, there are many reasons why they wouldn't. There's a whole world of jobs out there that aren't tech, these fields don't have the luxury of an expanding industry propping up salaries, providing a social ladder. Even in tech, I don't see anything wrong with the decision to keep the same compensation, and turn over staff every few years. This only contributes to a thriving job market, and means more opportunity for people at the bottom to make their way into the field. More people coming in at the bottom means more demand for services, meaning more opportunity at the top for organizing and directing. It would be wonderful to have the benefits of industry growth along with the security of one job for life, but we don't live in that world.
    - afterburner 11y ago
      "keep the same compensation" Not even inflation? Sounds like you're driving the benefits down. Or at least want to.
      - vinceguidry 11y ago
        That's the nature of a growth-fueled economy. Everybody has to keep up, or they fall behind. The same work, the same roles, get less valuable over time.
maxxxxx 11y ago
I think plenty of people are content with a secure job with OK pay, interesting work, enough vacation and be treated as adults with respect. They don't want ultimate satisfaction. That goal is very attainable. I have never heard people demanding a ping pong table.
- crimsonalucard 11y ago
  People who haven't attained "ultimate satisfaction" aren't ultimately satisfied. Who is someone that isn't ultimately satisfied?: A person that is ultimately unsatisfied. Thus you are referring to people who are unsatisfied, ultimately speaking. I agree, to be unsatisfied is a goal that is very attainable. Many people stay in certain job roles because they made a compromise: job security over satisfaction.

vinceguidry 11y ago

Not all jobs can offer growth. It's in everybody's best interests if you just move on from such jobs once you outgrow them. I spent two and a half years at my current job maintaining a legacy codebase. I looked for, and explored, growth opportunities at that job. In the end, I had to find them myself. Nobody at the company could really put in the effort it would have taken to keep me fulfilled, so I did it myself. I did lots of reading, experimenting, diving deep into fundamentals. I am a much, much better programmer than I was when I started the job. The company did not give that to me, it couldn't have given it to me. I eventually convinced the company to move off of the old legacy platform, that it was holding them back. I wanted to build them a new platform, but they decided to go with Magento. They're giving me a pretty sweet severance deal while I go out looking for a job. I firmly believe that anybody can grow at any job. It's nice when the company can help you do that, but your own growth is your responsibility, and nobody else's.

crimsonalucard 11y ago
>I firmly believe that anybody can grow at any job. It's nice when the company can help you do that, but your own growth is your responsibility, and nobody else's. I'm not talking about personal growth. I'm talking about growth in benefits, like salary or working environment. People leave companies or learn new skills to get more benefits. The company needs to provide better benefits, continuously, or the employee leaves. Simply buying a ping pong table or giving an employee "engaging work" isn't enough.
- vinceguidry 11y ago
  > The company needs to provide better benefits, continuously, or the employee leaves. This smacks of entitlement. The employee won't necessarily leave, there are many reasons why they wouldn't. There's a whole world of jobs out there that aren't tech, these fields don't have the luxury of an expanding industry propping up salaries, providing a social ladder. Even in tech, I don't see anything wrong with the decision to keep the same compensation, and turn over staff every few years. This only contributes to a thriving job market, and means more opportunity for people at the bottom to make their way into the field. More people coming in at the bottom means more demand for services, meaning more opportunity at the top for organizing and directing. It would be wonderful to have the benefits of industry growth along with the security of one job for life, but we don't live in that world.
  - afterburner 11y ago
    "keep the same compensation" Not even inflation? Sounds like you're driving the benefits down. Or at least want to.
    - vinceguidry 11y ago
      That's the nature of a growth-fueled economy. Everybody has to keep up, or they fall behind. The same work, the same roles, get less valuable over time.

maxxxxx 11y ago

I think plenty of people are content with a secure job with OK pay, interesting work, enough vacation and be treated as adults with respect. They don't want ultimate satisfaction. That goal is very attainable. I have never heard people demanding a ping pong table.

crimsonalucard 11y ago
People who haven't attained "ultimate satisfaction" aren't ultimately satisfied. Who is someone that isn't ultimately satisfied?: A person that is ultimately unsatisfied. Thus you are referring to people who are unsatisfied, ultimately speaking. I agree, to be unsatisfied is a goal that is very attainable. Many people stay in certain job roles because they made a compromise: job security over satisfaction.