By Laura Blanco
Over the past two years, many have decided to leave their jobs in pursuit of another career. Since working from home became the norm, many are pursuing that kind of flexibility in scheduling and benefits. Anthony Klotz, a psychologist and professor of business administration at Texas A&M University, coined this “The Great Resignation."
But Barry’s Career Development Center has found this to be, in fact, “The Great Reflection.”
Kimberly Timpone, associate director of the Career Development Center, and her colleagues found many people are evaluating whether work meets their financial and emotional needs with time to spare spending with loved ones. Consequentially, employees have left their current positions during the pandemic, which has its own separate impact.
Many employers have been feeling this impact of the pandemic with staff shortages.
“Unfortunately, sometimes we forget how many people have passed away since the pandemic, and all of them have left vacant positions wherever they were working,” Timpone said. “In general, employers are really struggling to fulfill positions right now.”
Melanie Cabo, a junior studying prelaw, has had both the in-person and remote work experience. Her first job was at AMC in customer service, working late nights and cleaning.
“It was my first view of the world because it was customer service and I got to see every different type of people: rude people, nice people. It was definitely something I will remember,” said Cabo.
Five months later, she became a customer service representative working for HealthCare.gov. Cabo has worked on-site, but now works from home.
“I know the difference of being in a call center where there’s people next to you and it’s hard to hear [callers]. Working from home has been so much easier for me because I feel more confident when I’m talking to people,” said Cabo.
Timpone noted that the advantages of working from home tend to be the disadvantages of working in an office and vice versa.
“Personally, I felt more connected when I was in the office physically,” said Timpone.
She was able to walk to a coworker’s office for a question or grab coffee and catch up with coworkers. Not commuting to Barry was a bonus for her while working remotely as she lives in Fort Lauderdale, decreasing her miles and gas expenses.
Both she and Cabo believe remote work is a lifestyle that will soon become permanent.
“I absolutely think there are certain positions where that is going to be the norm going forward,” Timpone said, adding that it depends on the position, industry, and company.
In a survey conducted by The Buccaneer, 60 percent of Barry students said they would rather work on-site while 40 percent prefer working from home.
Cabo thinks it would take a few years to get everyone back in office because several people still choose to stay home rather than go in-person to work.
“I feel like [working from home] was going to happen eventually. The pandemic just made it progress faster,” said Cabo.
Timpone encourages students to continue researching and being curious amidst an increase in entrepreneurial ventures from students across all majors.
Each Barry student has a career counselor who they can reach out to for advice and assistance. Find more information on barry.edu at Career Development Center under Academics.