Redeployment

There are thousands of jobs going to be lost, everyone will be affected. Friends, family. Short term unemployment is horrible, long term unemployment is a real stain on a culture. Having worked in the automotive industry during the last recession where there were thousands of losses, having interviewed hundreds of people at that time for a handful of jobs, I am particularly sensitive to the human and social costs of this. I know these are exciting times and actually there are some really brilliant things that will come out of it, we will be better for it in the long run, but right now people’s heads are spinning as they come to terms with the issues and even young people are coming out with very little opportunity. Apparently the big firms are only going to the top 5 universities this year. My question is what can the events and related industries do to keep people engaged? One of the biggest losses from redundancy is the loss of connection to people, the loss of goals and deadlines, the loss of social interaction that work gives us. Can we do anything to redeploy people, can we think differently and find things for people to do – even if they are unpaid – how can we utilise skills and talent in this downturn without taking advantage – but how can we get things done that never would get done in normal times? Clear thinking at this time, could make a huge difference to outcomes for us all.