Essay Example on Shirley's Journey: A Young Mother's Re-Entry to the Job Market

Introduction

Shirley is a young mother, who has not been working for at least five years. However, life factors beyond her control have forced her to spring back and desire to re-join the workforce that she left years ago. It is a tough decision, with so much at stake to put into the scales. She has to contend with forces within and beyond her control, before regaining entry into the job market. Shirley needs help, and that is why she decides to pop-in at the career centre. Her case is a familiar one among young parents, who are splitting between parental care for kids and their careers. It is clear that had Shirley’s husband kept his job; she would not be in the market looking for one. However, she has to adjust to the new reality that they need an income in the family, and it is only possible through getting a new job. A career coach approaching her case must ensure that the past work experience and the existing family situation of Shirley to give the best recommendations going forward. She must also be willing to be flexible and adaptable for the best outcome.

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Theoretical Conceptualization

Different scholars have idealized and theorized career development in different ways. The theories are principal reference points for career guidance professionals in handling various cases. Shirley is in what one would call a catch-twenty-two situation. External environment factors have changed her current situation. John Krumboltz’s theory of planned happenstance idealizes her current position. Her husband’s job loss caught her by surprise; it was not something that was in a plan. According to Krumboltz, this could be the springboard to a fantastic career path. This way, the situation should be taken as a new opportunity for Shirley. She needs to view it positively, and that positivity should pave the way forward.

The Happenstance Theory focuses on stimulating learning (Krumboltz, 2008). This theory is contrary to Holland’s Code theory – Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional (RIASEC) – whose focus is matching an individual’s characteristics to occupational characteristics (Armstrong et al., 2008). The case of Shirley needs an approach of the happenstance theory more than it could be handled with Holland’s code; however, it can also play a significant part in finding the right career path. It is a circumstance that has occurred without any preplanning. The RIASEC approach usually helps in cases where one is trying to build a career from an academic angle. Therefore, the career coach provides guidance depending on the character and personality inclination of the mentee.

Strategy Recommendations

Whichever decision that Shirley has to make, it shall be influenced by more factors than her desire to work and provide an income for her family. On the one hand, are her two young boys who need her care; on the other hand, is her husband who feels that she should continue caring for their children. Her mind is set that she needs a job, and she needs to get that soon. However, there needs a critical analysis of her background before any progress is made in seeking a career path.

Understanding the Background

As a start, Shirley must understand that the process of getting a job after five years of being a stay-at-home mother is not easy. The job market is looking for people who have been progressing in skills and knowledge, especially in professional fields. Therefore, she may have to look away from her desired career. Shirley has to look beyond the traditional approaches of job search and engage in a market that has evolved over the years. It is a host of decisions that she has to make, and it has to begin at home.

Tony, Shirley’s husband, is not in agreement with her desire to start working. Therefore, the first thing to do with Shirley is to agree on modalities back at home. She has to brainstorm with her husband on the approach to take, and if at all, her family unit will stand the test posed by the new challenge. She should not approach her husband in abstract, preferably with concrete alternatives that they should discuss. Re-joining the job market may not be just a matter of a 9 am to 5 pm job. The market has evolved, and there are different modes of employment, and each has its demands. After discussing with her husband and having an agreement on the way forward, Shirley has to make personal choices.

Shirley should register in her mind that her life of five years is just about to be altered, and there is a sacrifice that comes with such alteration. Krumboltz’s theory would advise her to be optimistic getting into the market, and at the same time, warn her of the developments that have occurred while she was away. The most natural choice for anyone would be re-entering the career they left in the first place. Therefore, as a career coach, that is the direction one would love to take in offering guidance to the client. There is now a direction on where Shirley desires to be working. With that direction, it is easier to come up with practical recommendations for Shirley.

Direction and Recommendations

Next is a comparison of the skillset possessed by Shirley and the current market demands. After five years, there must be several changes that have occurred in the market. She needs to step up to the pace of the market. Therefore, she has to learn the new skills and demands of the industry. The Happenstance Theory implores career advice seekers to be curious in exploring new opportunities (Krumboltz, 2008). Shirley was an accounts clerk before she quit, which means that her career was in accounting. It is one of the most dynamic jobs where the rules keep changing, and the presentation of accounts gets tweaked with developing technologies. For instance, she could have been used to the older International Accounting Standards (IAS) that was replaced by International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS). Therefore, she should be ready to learn new skills as she gets down to job hunting. She will be more prepared for any assignment with a new skill.

Learning and skill development may not be a matter of getting into a physical classroom. Shirley may commit a couple of hours every day and enrol for an online class to gain a few skills. Before she enlists, she should converse with people active in the industry to understand the existing dynamic of work. She needs to understand the real situation in actual practice and prepare adequately for the challenge ahead. Krumboltz, in Happenstance Theory, would also advise that Shirley tries to create an effective network with people in the profession (Krumboltz, 2008). With such a network, opportunities are easier to find because of referrals and recommendations. According to Holland’s Code, she has to be realistic about her chances in the market and choose a favourable approach to regaining entry (Armstrong et al., 2008).

Re-entering the market entirely and finding a perfect job may not be an easy call for Shirley. Therefore, she must be adaptable. Being an accountant in an office again would be ideal, but it is not always that people get ideal situations. Thus, Shirley should be open to the possibility of working as a freelancer, still in the accounting discipline. Technology has allowed people to find jobs online and deploy their skills in such employment. Shirley can consider creating an online profile to market her skills, both to online employers and those seeking employees for their physical offices. With platforms like LinkedIn, she has the chance of selling her brand online.

Another alternative available for Shirley is career diversification. She must not stick to what she has always done, which is accounting. In line with Holland theory, Shirley’s career is conventional. However, she may go a step further and use the conventions of her career to be enterprising, another of Holland’s codes (Armstrong et al., 2008). Through this, she would probably become a financial consultant. With this, she does not need to have a physical office or wake up every morning to drive to work. She can fully start such with an online profile. She can search for clients online, definitely low-cost ones, before thinking of expending her consultancy further. With this alternative, she shall have struck two birds with one stone. She will be in control of her job and her family life.

Every part of the discussion is based on possibilities and probabilities drawn from Shirley’s situation. There is not a single thing cast in stone or declared as the only viable alternative. The decision to choose the right path rests with Shirley. She has to consider the pros and cons of all the options, conduct a cost-benefit analysis, and select the approach that best suits her situation. In making her decisions, she should try and involve Tony, who is also concerned about her next move. A family is a unit, and some decisions affect the unit. Therefore, she needs to ensure there is communication between them in making the most befitting decision under the circumstances. The Happenstance Theory highlights assessment and feedback from other people as essential factors in making career decisions (Krumboltz, 2008). These people, to be involved are those who will be affected by any decision made or those who can provide critical insight for consideration in decision making.

Challenges to Consider

In this assessment, there is an agreement between Tony and Shirley that she can return to work. She also has a roadmap on how to get back to her profession. Those are two challenges out of the way. However, she has more problems to contend with in her new path. The last time she was working, she only had one young son and had worked the majority of her life without a child. Therefore, the dynamics of working now and back then are different. She needs to strike a different work-life balance. Consequently, she needs a program that fits her parenting duties and working schedule. In her job search, she should consider those critical elements as prerequisites before making an application. That means she needs a job near home, and one flexible enough to give her enough space to expedite parenting duties.

An effective network can very much assist in the situation. The career coach would advise her to liaise with working professionals in accounting – those also doubling up with parental duties – to understand how they handle both successfully. Learning from those with experience is a rewarding trick for so many. The equilibrium between work and other life roles means that one has time for everything in the to-do list. With a flexible schedule, she can drop her kids in school in the morning, pick them around lunch hour, before handling her three-hours afternoon shift from home, That would be an ideal situation for a working mother; she would not have to sacrifice any of her duties.

Conclusion

Shirley needs a job more than she requires re-ignition of her professional career. The primary need for her is some income for the family. If she followed Holland’s Code theory, she would probably be advised on the principle of being realistic, and if she had the capital, to be enterprising. Her situation requires compromise and picking up whatever is available for her. She may be mentally ready, but the skill set she possesses may require sharpening to be in line with the market demands. Self-awareness is a great tool to possess in these situations. If Shirley is self-aware, she knows what she wants and the direction she needs to take. She must present this to the career coach to provide a template on a possible success path in her search for a job.