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Australia is currently experiencing a shortage of qualified engineers and wants British workers to emigrate to fill the gaps. This month’s 8 Questions looks at the opportunities offered by overseas working and at the pros and cons of international travel, with 672 readers responding
1. Was the global nature of engineering an important factor in your decision to enter the profession?
Yes: 28% No: 71% Don't know: 1%
It’s often said that the global nature of engineering means there will be plenty of opportunities to work abroad. But was this an attracting factor in our readers entering the profession? Not particularly. Most said the primary reason was that they simply wanted to become an engineer.
2. Would you say that your particular sector has become more globalised over the course of the past decade?
Yes: 79% No: 18% Don't know: 3%
Consolidation over the past 10 years or so has led to an increasingly globalised engineering sector, with an increasing number of organisations having offices spread across the furthest reaches of the world. Our readers believed that this trend of globalisation would continue.
3. Do extended overseas opportunities exist within your current organisation?
Yes: 72% No: 26% Don't know: 2%
The globalised nature of the profession means that overseas work opportunities exist for almost three-quarters of our readers. The write-in remarks showed that engineers were pleased that the chance to travel existed, as long as it wasn’t forced upon them.
4. Would you like to experience prolonged overseas working at some stage in your career?
Yes: 55% No: 33% Don't know: 12%
The idea of living and working abroad evidently appeals to many of our readers, with better weather, bigger projects and the chance to broaden horizons being the main reasons given. But not everybody wants to work abroad. Many said they were happily settled in the UK.
5. Does overseas business travel form part of your current job responsibilities?
Yes: 64% No: 35% Don't know: 1%
Here we see that life as an engineer means foreign travel for most, with almost two-thirds saying they were expected to go abroad. This seemed to please most readers. Many of those in the Yes vote category said it brought variety, while many who replied No said they would relish the opportunity to travel every once in a while.
6. Would you like to experience a greater level of overseas travel in your current role?
Yes: 41% No: 54% Don't know: 5%
These replies exposed that fact that overseas travel isn’t always as glamorous as it might seem. Many of our readers said it often entailed getting up at the crack of dawn, meeting clients, eating alone in a hotel, and then returning without seeing any of the place they had visited. So more than half said No to more trips abroad.
7. Would you ever consider a new position if it offered zero opportunities for overseas travel?
Yes: 74% No: 19% Don't know: 7%
What is it that attracts a person to a new job? Well, from the results above, it doesn’t seem to be the opportunity to travel. Almost three-quarters of our readers said they would consider a new role even if it meant never having to get their passport out. The write-in replies told the story about engineers’ priorities: job satisfaction came first, along with job security and financial reward. As long as those three criteria had been met, then a happy working life would be achieved, it was felt.
8. Do you think that slicker communication technologies such as 3D video calls will one day significantly reduce the need for overseas meetings?
Yes: 67% No: 28% Don't know: 5%
We often hear that slicker and cheaper communications technologies will lead to a reduction in business travel. That rationale is frequently applied to arguments against new high-speed rail, yet less so against increased aviation capacity. So what do our readers think? Two-thirds agreed: exciting and futuristic technologies such as 3D video calls will lead to a lower requirement for travel, it was felt. Those in the No vote category were rather more cynical. One sceptical chap said he had waited all his working life for effective videoconferencing, and that it still hadn’t arrived. So he still flew regularly.