Career Investigation Report

1.0 Introduction

The Australian labor market has over the years continued to experience an employment growth that is stronger than expected that has allowed the unemployment rate to remain at 5% (Ponomareva & Sheen, 2018). As such, the Australian economy has met the full employment definition of the Reserve Bank. The Australian labor market is clearly robust with most of the employment coming from full-time employment. However, according to Rodgers (2017) part-time employment continues to offer considerable source of employment to the majority of the Australian residents. However, even though the rate of unemployment is considerably low at 5%, the Australian labour market is faced with the challenge of underemployment. Underemployment refers to the condition whereby people are employed at jobs that are inadequate according to their skills and training or employed at less than regular or full-time jobs, or where people are employed in jobs less their economic needs (Barnichon & Zylberberg, 2019). Despite the promising state of the Australian labour market, a majority of the Austrian workers are underpaid, which historically has resulted in more people seeking more working hours. The purpose of this report is to evaluate the career opportunities and threats that are available for me as a graduate seeking to enter the Australian market.

2.0 Career opportunities and threats in the manufacturing industry

After graduation, as I seek to enter the Australian labour market, the target industry will be the manufacturing industry where I will be seeking to join as a production manager. My intention to seek a managerial position in the Australian manufacturing sector is informed by the fact that I have the academic qualification and skills suitable for the position, and also my passion for working in the manufacturing sector.

2.1 Opportunities

The Australian manufacturing industry is one of the largest sources of full-time employment in the country. In February 2019, the Australian manufacturing industry was estimated to have 85.5% of the employees in full-time employment.  In December 2018, there were 869,000 estimated jobs in the manufacturing sector, out of these estimated jobs, approximately 858,000 were filled while 11,000 positions remained unfilled (Langcake, 2019). It is an indication that there is a shortage in the skilled workforce in the Australian workforce to fill the available employment opportunities. It is expected that as the economy continues to grow, and the manufacturing sector continues to expand, even though steadily, the employment opportunities in the sector will continue to increase. According to Toner (2018), the Australian manufacturing industry contributes approximately 6.05% of the country’s GDP, making it one of the largest contributors to the Australian GDP. Moreover, it ranked as one of the country’s fastest-growing industries.  As such, Australian manufacturing offers a wide range of employment opportunities that a graduate seeking to enter the Australian market can exploit.

The Australian manufacturing sector continues to expand as new players enter the market. The entrance of new players to the industry has the effect of increasing labour competition within the sector (Gretton & Fisher, 2017). As such, there is the possibility that employee in the manufacturing sector will be better compensated as companies operating in the sector seek to reduce labour turnover. Moreover, new entrants into the industry create employment opportunities in the sector. As such, the expansion of the manufacturing sector creates more employment opportunities for graduates seeking to enter the Australian market.

2.2 Threats

The Australian economy has been experiencing various challenges over the last few years. The economic growth in the country seems to have stagnated, thereby negatively affecting different industries. The manufacturing industry is one of the industries that have been significantly affected by the downfall of the economy. The impact of the decline in the economic growth in Austria presents various threats to the employment opportunities in the manufacturing sector (McDonald, 2016). As such, some of the employment threats in the Australian manufacturing sector include a decline in full-time employment opportunities. There is the possibility that full-time employment opportunities will decline in the coming years in favour of part-time employment. Another threat is that of underemployment. Like other industries in the country, the Australian manufacturing industry will be faced with the threat of underemployment

The manufacturing sector continues to embrace technology and innovation as some of the strategies to reduce the cost of production. Most of the operations that are being automated are those that were traditionally performed by humans. The introduction of new technology and innovative strategies continue to pose a threat to the employment opportunity in the sector (Stein, 2018). However, a majority of the jobs that are being affected by the adoption of technology in the manufacturing sector are the entry job levels but not senior levels. Thus, middle level and top-level jobs are not significantly affected.

 3.0 career opportunities in the telecommunication industry

The other industry that I would be interested in as I seek to join the Australian market is the Australian telecommunication industry as the industry consultant. The decision is informed by the fact that I feel I have the competencies to provide consultancy services in the telecommunication industry. The telecommunication industry is a viable option for me as it has been experiencing tremendous growth over the years. Moreover, the industry is not saturated like other sectors and therefore, it may be easier getting an employment opportunity in this sector. Also, the Australian telecommunication industry is considered as one of the most competitive market globally (Langdale, 2015). It is estimated that mobile subscription in Australia will continue to experience exponential growth between the year 2019 and 2023. Moreover, there is a concern with the decline in the subscriber payments, which have resulted in reduced profitability for the telecommunication companies in the country (Papandrea, 2017). As such, the opportunities and threats in the Australian telecommunication industry are worth exploring. Therefore, as an industry consultant, I will be in a better position to provide insight to the key players on the strategies that should be adopted by the telecommunication companies to overcome the challenges that they are currently facing. Also, I will be able to provide insight into the strategies that the telecommunication companies should adopt to take advantage of the available opportunities and enhance their competitiveness.

4.0 creative job-seeking strategies

It is estimated that approximately two-thirds of all employment opportunities are never advertised and that a majority of the employers with job opportunities especially at the top levels prefer recruiting people who are committed and proactive enough to seek them out rather than waiting for an advertised position (Jackson & Michelson, 2015). Also, it is important to note that even when a position is advertised it is likely that other graduates will see the advertised position and therefore, the competition will be high thus reducing the chances of getting the opportunity. Therefore, it is important that a graduate seeks to device creative strategies to seek employment opportunities and thus create their own opportunities. Some of the creative job-seeking strategies include;

4.1 social networking

Social networking is one of the creative job seeking a strategy that I would employ when seeking employment in the manufacturing sector as a production manager and also when seeking consultancy employment in the telecommunication industry. Social networking refers to the practice of deliberately expanding one’s social or business contacts by making connections with people through various social platforms (Harris & Rae, 2011). As such, I would seek to increase my social as well as business contacts through the use of social media, attending social events, and seeking to engage placement professionals in the relevant industries. The objective of social networking is to ensure I have as much information as possible about various opening in the industry because these social and business contacts might be having useful information about the available job opening. Also, through interaction with the social and business contacts, I can be able to convince them of my skills and the value I would bring to the organization if they offered me with the job opportunity.

4.2 speculative focused applications

Another strategy that I would use when seeking employment opportunities either in the manufacturing sector or the telecommunication industry is to make a speculative but focused application. This technique allows a graduate to send his curriculum vitae and job application letter to the organizations that the graduate may consider to have the employment opportunities he is seeking (Hamner, 2007). However, the applications should be focused in the sense that the graduate should first identify the specific organizations that he would be willing to work with and ascertain if he has the necessary skills for the applied position. As such, the job seeker should not make application blindly without considering his skills and competencies so as to maximize his chances of getting the job.

5.0 Intercultural threats

During recruitment and also in the workplace, there is always the possibility that the graduate will be faced with intercultural threats. Intercultural threats are those risks that arise as a result of workforce diversity in the workplace, which could be as a result of a different culture, religious beliefs, values, and norms. Intercultural threats are usually caused partly by the amount of interaction with people of other cultures. Some of the intercultural threats a graduate is likely to face include;

5.1 acceptance and respect

One of the major intercultural threats in the workplace relates to acceptance and respect.  Usually, an organization with a strong organizational culture that supports diversity should encourage acceptance and respect of all employees in the organization regardless of their cultural, religious, or beliefs differences (Lahti & Valo, 2017). However, some organization culture does not support diversity. Therefore, a graduate may find other employees as not very accepting and lack respect because of differences in cultural, religious, norms, values or beliefs. Lack of acceptance and respect in the workplace could result in conflicts which could also negatively impact on the employee motivation and morale as well as the overall organization productivity (Lahti & Valo, 2017). On the other hand, acceptance and respect in the organization will result in a greater sense of collaboration, increased motivation and overall productivity. However, a graduate, when seeking employment, should be cognizant of the possibility of facing acceptance and respect threat either during recruitment or in the workplace.

5.2 accommodation of beliefs

Another intercultural threat at the workplace relates to the accommodation of beliefs. These beliefs may include political, spiritual or cultural beliefs. An organization will a strong organizational culture will support the diversity of beliefs and employees are, therefore, likely to respect each other beliefs. Also, it is critical in the organization that an employee should not try to impose his beliefs on others, but rather there should be a culture of respect where each person’s beliefs are respected (Stephan & Stephan, 2017). However, that is not always the case. Therefore, a graduate seeking employment should be aware of the possibility of the threat that their beliefs may not be accepted either during recruitment or at the workplace.

6.0 Recommendations

To increase employability and as I prepare to join the Australian job markets, the following recommendations are crucial. First, the Australian job market has various employment opportunities in different industries. However, to increase the chances of employability, it is important that I identify the industry where my skills and competencies are more suited. Second, it is important to identify different creative job-seeking strategies. As earlier highlighted, most of the employers do not advertise employment opportunities. Thus, identifying creative job-seeking strategies will significantly increase my employability. Lastly, there are various intercultural threats that as a job seeker, I am likely to face either during recruitment or at the workplace. As such, it is important that I develop appropriate coping strategies to address such threats.

7.0 Conclusion

The Australian job market has many opportunities that a graduate can seek to exploit. However, to increase the chances of employability, the job seekers should analyze different industries and understand the industry that his skills and competencies are most suited. After the identification of the most suitable industry, the jobseeker should develop creative strategies that he will use to seek employment opportunities. The success of the jobseeker in the Australian market will largely depend on the aggressiveness of the jobseeker to identify employment opportunities and application of appropriate job seeking strategies.

8.0 References

Barnichon, R., & Zylberberg, Y. (2019). Underemployment and the trickle-down of unemployment. American Economic Journal: Macroeconomics, 11(2), 40-78.

Gretton, P., & Fisher, B. (2017). Productivity growth and Australian manufacturing industry. Australian Government Pub. Service.

Hamner, D. (2007). Broadening opportunities for job seekers: Strategies to effectively provide assistive technology in One-Stop centers. Work, 28(1), 85-93.

Harris, L., & Rae, A. (2011). Building a personal brand through social networking. Journal of Business Strategy.

Jackson, D., & Michelson, G. (2015). Factors influencing the employment of Australian PhD graduates. Studies in Higher Education, 40(9), 1660-1678.

Lahti, M., & Valo, M. (2017). Intercultural Workplace Threats. Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Communication.

Langcake, S. (2019). Conditions in the Australian manufacturing sector. RBA Bulletin, June, 27-33.

Langdale, J. (2015). Competition in the Australian telecommunications industry? The Davidson inquiry. Australian Quarterly, 54(2), 176-186.

McDonald, J. T. (2016). The determinants of firm profitability in Australian manufacturing. Economic Record, 75(2), 115-126.

Papandrea, F. (2017). Bundling in the Australian telecommunications industry. Australian Economic Review, 36(1), 41-54.

Ponomareva, N., & Sheen, J. (2018). Australian labor market dynamics across the ages. Economic Modelling, 35, 453-463.

Refa

Rodgers, J. R. (2017). Hourly wages of full-time and part-time employees in Australia.

Stein, J. A. (2018). Conversations in the Shadows of Australian Manufacturing.

Stephan, W. G., & Stephan, C. W. (2017). Intergroup threat theory. The international encyclopedia of intercultural communication, 1-12.

Toner, P. (2018). Manufacturing industry in the Australian economy: its role and significance.. Journal of Australian Political Economy, The, (45), 18.

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