[Agamemnon]

We are currently short of “technical people”. Somebody forgot to have our people go to college at engineering schools.

What most "technical people" are missing is having learned the art of marketing themsleves and their skills to employers, and understanding that no one will worship you simply for the degree(s) that you earned, but for the delivery of real, measureable value to the employer's bottom line.

Industrially career-inclined scientists succeed handsomely once they realize that they are in the "business of science," and learn to both develop and sell their skills sets with that point in mind.

FReegards!

[Nepeta]

What most "technical people" are missing is having learned the art of marketing themsleves and their skills to employers, and understanding that no one will worship you simply for the degree(s) that you earned, but for the delivery of real, measureable value to the employer's bottom line.

You don't get it. I sell myself as able to add value to a business, and they like that, but they have the delusion that they can bring a guy off the factory floor and train him to hit "start" and get the same results. I've seen company labs running with calibrations they did YEARS ago for analyses that should be calibrated daily. But the work gets done cheaply, even if it isn't what it is supposed to be. I've seen this dozens of times in many industries. Someone like me can go in, do things right from the first day and keep things right and credible, but they might have to pay a few dollars more an hour.