Abstract
Journal – September 2015 – Item – ‘Promoting Professionalism: Am I Bovvered?’ I read with interest Harvey Dearden’s paper. As always, Harvey offers an insightful and accurate view of his subject. I also read Peter Norman’s ‘Fully Supportive on the Attitude Towards Diversity’ in the same issue. A thoughtful overview of a large and minefield-sown landscape. I offer the thought; the two are linked. Unless the profile of engineering is lifted and engineering is seen as a rewarding and fulfilling career, we will continue on this same path.
Unfortunately, alternative careers and lifestyles are all evident nowadays. I recently spent an evening with someone ‘who works in The City’ and who’s main occupations is ‘selling uncertainty’. I also discovered his annual bonus was larger than my salary.
We used to live in a society dominated by engineering. From mining to ship-building and everything in between. Our culture reflected this; I offer a slightly odd example. As a boy, I grew up on a TV programme called ‘Thunderbirds’, I’m sure readers remember it. The cultural aspect here was that for every problem International Rescue came up against, there was always an engineering solution. I remember other engineering-based TV shows like ‘The Great Egg Race’, ‘Tomorrows World’, ‘Robot Wars’, the list goes on and on.
A quick look at the TV Times now reveals a preponderance of commerce, finance and ‘relationship’ shows. These include a plethora of programmes buying old houses and doing them up only to sell on later, finding vintage cars in abandoned sheds, of sewing, baking, gardening, decorating and of course the supposed ‘reality’ shows, where life is anything but real.
I have no long-term solutions, but are there some quick fixes? I offer these:
In advertisements for jobs include ‘… should be a member of a professional body (i.e. a chartered institute)’.
In the interview itself ask ‘… are you a member of a professional body?’ You may like to push this and ask how many local section lectures or events they have attended as part of their continuing professional development (CPD).
Local Sections have got to get into schools (science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM)), colleges and universities and promote (give away if necessary) memberships.
When we meet sales representatives, we should ask them hard questions about professional body membership and SQEPness of staff, rather than dwell on bottom-line delivery prices.