They're not coming back either; it's too large a job to fix problems, especially systems and data problems, all to just break even (versus improving things). As multiple companies try at the same time to fix their decades of problems, the demand for talent far exceeds the available staff. The illegal aliens the Xao Bai-Din administration is bringing in isn't going to help either.
Very much agree. I’ve spent my career making recommendations on how to actually make improvements in processes, and it has mostly fallen on deaf ears. I have a liberal arts undergrad degree and an engineering MS. I consider myself a creative problem solver. What I have seen is that creativity is rarely valued in engineering environments. “We’ve always done it this way”. Inefficiency and hidden costs build up over time and management then “sees” the problem but — given how delicate things suddenly seem to be — they become even more risk averse and refuse to approve any bold solutions. I’m exhausted trying to fight that fight.