"Engineering Management Thought of the Week" Jeff Glass

Dear MEMP Students;

No doubt the current state of the U.S. economy is creating some anxiety
for many of you. Every new Wall Street Journal or BusinessWeek seems to
have more bad news. So I want to take this opportunity to suggest some
alternative ways of viewing the current situation that support this as
an opportunity rather than only a crisis. Call me an optimist, but I
believe there are some perspectives that you may not have considered
with respect to this current climate:

1) Chaos is Opportunity – keep in mind that during any crisis and during
chaotic times, the opportunities abound. Although they may not be in
traditional areas or career paths, I believe the number actually
increases. Room for innovation, out-of-the-box thinking, and new ways of
approaching situations all increase. The equation is simple; higher risk
often implies higher reward. I was having dinner in New York with two
colleagues from JP Morgan this past weekend. One was in their Treasury
Services area and one in their Securities Services area, primarily
related to credit allocation. Whereas the person in securities was
providing bad news to clients each day regarding credit terms, the
employee in the treasury group had never seen a greater influx of funds
and was finding the opportunity for growth in their position tremendous.
Look for unusual opportunities during these chaotic times. Do not look
in the typical places. Do not forget about overseas economies.

2) Learn, Learn, Learn – There is no better way to learn about economic
conditions and their impact on managerial decisions than living through
it. You should all be voracious readers of authors who are analyzing the
economy and its impact on companies. The complexities and set of
circumstances that have lead to the present situation are certainly
unique, but many aspects we have lived through before. In fact, those
people that learn from these past experiences are those that are not
only surviving the current environment, but seizing new opportunities at
the same time. If you study the current situation and utilize it as part
of your learning at such an early stage in your career, you will find
numerous benefits for many years to come.

3) Good Timing – Although many of you may be feeling that this economy
will negatively impact your career, I would propose that the timing
could be a lot worse. Consider people who have recently retired or
recently committed to large financial outlays such as home ownership or
raising a family and compare them to most of your situations. Not only
do you have the opportunity consider how to launch a career within this
environment rather than being stuck with a specific career path already,
but you also have many years to make up for any set backs that the
current situation brings. Even more importantly however, is the fact
that you begin your career with a very important understanding of
business and economic fundamentals and risks (assuming you are following
the previous point). Many young employees who have not witnessed serious
downturns in the economy have entirely unrealistic and naïve
expectations about business and market conditions.

4) The Future – The current climate is certainly severe, but economies
have survived worse. From the Great Depression in the U.S. to the real
estate and stock market crisis more recently in Japan. Do not take this
situation lightly, but conditions will improve. Think about where you
want to be when they do. Consider how what you have learned about this
crisis changes your perspective on your career. Consider your own
personal risk profile and aspirations combined with what you have
learned by observing the current crisis and use these to guide you as
you make future decisions. Your career success will be determined by the
value you bring to an organization. Thoughtful consideration of the
current climate and how companies should utilize this information going
forward will make you a more valuable employee.