Wednesday, May 10, 2006

The Ongoing Brain Drain.

I fear that I live in the land of mediocre. As much as I love this place........it's beauty and pace and sense of community, New Brunswick just doesn't know how to keep it's cream of the crop.
Today, I learned that two good friends are moving to Calgary. Between the two of them, both born and bred New Brunswickers, they have 6 degrees. And yet, they havent been able to land permanent jobs in a city where their talents and skills should be acknowledged, applauded and utilized. They have had to scramble yearly to nab another contract all the while using their creativity to juggle various other entrepreneurial pursuits in order to pay the bills.
As much as I'm very excited for them, and for the opportunities that lay ahead, I can't help but be angry that this province and this government, with all their talk of the "Prosperity Plan" and supposed opportunities blah, blah, blah.........., can't get their act together. What is wrong with this place??? We are losing people everyday! Smart, outgoing, creative, hard working and committed individuals who would much prefer to remain tied to their roots than to leave family and friends behind, are leaving everyday!!
One of the biggest stumbling blocks that I see from my view on the frontlines is that the leaders and CEO's are not visionaries. Rather, they can't seem to look beyond today. Whether it's due to disorganization or overwhelming workloads............. there are few of the key people who can get their act together enough to look up from their desks and develop a long term plan. They don't give themselves the time or opportunity to look beyond the status quo of how business and government is being run to see that the fresh faces with the fresh ideas is what they need to bring their department or company out of the mediocre doldrums.
So, here we sit.............. in this potentially fabulous province sucking our on our big toes, doing nothing to catch the train leaving the station................the train taking our very best away from home.
It's just not right. We need a leader that doesn't hide behind bs statistics on employment and repatriated returnees. We need a leader who doesn't hide behind glossy brochures that spill out a "Vision" for the future. We need CEO's and Employers who can see the possibilities in unique individuals and not hire a clone to replace the previous clone, who didn't have a new idea in their head. We need leaders who will take risks..........and there ain't one on the horizon.

1 comment:

Quilting Goddess said...

Calgary, the big fat goose that lies the golden egg. Yes it is a city that is growing and has jobs abound, but all that glitters isn't gold. The cost of living is ever rising and the wages aren't. The national house rate for buying a house went up by almost 8%, in Calgary alone it went up by 29%, by next year it will be even higher. Hubby & I are saving for a house, now we will never be able to afford one. Last year you could buy a new starter home at 250,000 that same house today goes for over 325,000. Our vacancy rate on rentals is less then 1%. Talk about a catch 22, we have the jobs but nowhere to live.