THAI Airways has suspended its pilot recruitment this year

The financial crisis for sure hits hard – all over the world. This year, 2009, is the first year for THAI (TG) since its start being forced to suspend all new pilot recruitment until further notice. The aviation industry has severe difficulties. Most major airline companies lose money. Scandinavian Airlines (SAS) has not recruited one single new pilot since 2001. And now has the turn come to the prestigious THAI.
Will the market be back again?
I guess so, but it will take time. And the air carriers have to take several measures in order to save money.
Why my interest in these businesses?
Well, as an expert in the psychological parts of Flight Crew Recruitment I have previously served both SAS and THAI for decades. And I will curiuosly follow the further developments of these air carriers.

Do our genes cause everything in our behaviour?

During the end of the 60’s and the beginning of the 70’s there were a lot of serious discussions among professional psychiatrists and psychologists on the issues of the main causes of some severe psychic disorders, for example schizophrenia and other psychoses. A lot of research pointed out the connections between the disorders and some complicated internal family relations of the patients. Furthermore there were also stated that individual disorders were symtoms of some major structural problems in the present societies, meaning that it was possible to draw a line between politics (how the nation was steered) and the psychic well-being of an individual.
Such discussions have almost completely vanished nowadays. Today the focus of how to diagnose and how to treat is in the hand of the researchers of our genes – and the learning technologists. it is either our genes that are the cause of almost every behaviour or we have been taught and we have learned everything that is visible in our way of how we behave. Major parts of psychology of today seem like a humble, kind, human software that is almost free from any frank debate.
Are you straight or are you gay? Do not even think of open your mouth to state that becoming heterosexual or homosexual is a combination of genes and very strong psychic, dynamic events during your early upbringing. If you claim that you will probably be laughed at. No such things as psychodynamic forces, at least not concerning your sexual preferences! This is all a work by our genes! End of the discussion!
End of the discussion???

She is the princess

Here we are. She is She. As long as She admits to sit in my lap everything is perfectly OK. I will do my part to make sure that will survive me. One day She will become the Queen.
Just like her somewhat older cousin she enjoys music. She likes to dance. She is very loveable.
Being a grandparent brings you close to life.
And death.
Which of course is a part of life. The ending part.
The princess is at the start.
May she have a long, happy, sensitive and wise life, filled of music. And dance.

Vacation?

Summer morning. Taking time. Sunshine. Grandchild. Seagulls screaming (they have got seagull kids). Very light, very casual clothes. It looks as vacation. But is it? Emails coming in. Phone is ringing. Plans and decisions have to be set up and made. Organization of several things. Preparations. Got to go now.
Vacation?
No, sir. Not completely. Just small parts here and there.

Summer in Sweden is so very short

The Swedish summer is short, 8-10 weeks only. That is the main reason why the Swedes rush into the countryside as soon as it is possible, trying desperately to enjoy the few days of light and the possibilities to take a swim in the open sea. Most ordinary work stations cut down the working hours and lots of employees try to have some weeks of vacation (so also within the Police force and at the hospitals, so please don’t commit any crimes and please don’t become seriously ill during this time of the year!).
Anyway, here are a few pictures of our grandchildren. Midsummer Eve invited to dancing around the Midsummer pole (quite cold and rainy), but then, after Midsummer, came the sun and the warm winds.

Midsummer Eve

One of the Swedish top celebrations is Midsummer Eve. It is absolutely comparable with Christmas Eve. Midsummer Eve is nowadays always on a Friday, and Midsummer Day always on a Saturday. This is a politically directed construction – three days holiday.
Midsummer is the last big opening to the real summer in Sweden. From now on up to mid August is the time for vacation. It is a period of joy and frustration (as the expectations are always too high). It is family gatherings and it is family dramas. It is music and singing and it is too much alcohol. It is wedding parties and it is family separations.
But one thing is for sure: Our two grandchildren are providing us with such an amount of happiness so we will turn back to them providing them with our kind of inspiration, protection and stimulation. They are lovely.
The picture is taken by the professional photographer Jessica Lund.

Requirements of a good selector

A selector is the one that primarily selects people for employment during a recruitment program. There are, or ought to be, very high requirements to become a selector as he, or she, is the key person for the future of the candidates – and for the company or organization he works for.
Here are some suggestions from my side regarding the requirements of a selector (to make it simple I will use “he” only, even if there are a lot of females working in this area as well):
1. He has to have a very well founded education and training in behaviour sciences.
2. He has to understand and admit that psychological test instruments are very rough tools, meaning that they, if they are used, have to become interpreted and evaluated together with a lot of other data.
3. He has to understand some fundamental basics of both cognitive neurological and psychodynamic processes that are always going on behind and beyond the surface of people.
4. He has to understand the individual’s position within all groups and organizations the candidate is affiliated to.
5. He has to have a good and sharp overview of the interaction between the single individual and the powers of the society in which the candidate lives and works.
6. He has to be a very good analyst of the different layers of the Human Mind. A background and experiences from working with people in the clinical sector (for example work as a psychotherapist) is a very attractive strength.
7. He has to be very good in his communication with others, thus always be prepared to explain why and how he is analyzing the candidates in the way he does and why and how he has come to his conclusions.
8. As a professional selector he has to work within the area of recruitment and selection as his main working area, in this way always improving his own skills.

By my own experience I proclaim a warning for those, who introduce themselves as “experts in selection”, but who do not meet the requirements above. In such cases the recruitment and selection may go completely wrong.

Recruitment and selection of candidates

The selection process within a recruitment program is of course the most difficult and sophisticated one. The selection process starts by selecting the selectors. There are no psychological test instruments that could compensate for a not so skilled personal selector.
So, what are the requirements for a good and skilled selector?
There are a lot to think of and to decide in this context.
I will come back with my suggestions, but until then: feel free to state what you think are absolute requirements of a good selector. And if you come to think of anything of importance – feel free to send your comments to this blog input.

Are people in power our servants – or…?

It is quite common to state that power positions lead to corruption in one way or another. It is of course not that easy to say that all men or women in power could be tempted to accept money for even further privileges or that they could be bribed letting you have even more privileges; you know: such things, but all of us have a history, where power positions mean Top Positions in typichal hierarchical social patterns. And Top Positions mean really Power Positions. And Power Positions do not mean that the ones up there are just your servants in a modern, democratic sense. It is more likely that you are positioned to act as a servant to them, and as such a servant you are probably used to stand with your hat in your hands, slightly bowing your body, making yourself ready to follow and not to lead.
So it is and that is why I have always been suspicious against those people up there, trying to carefully find out if their decisions are there for the benefit of all those down here, or …
You´ll never know. So you´d better stay alert with a keen and observant critical mind. Just as an advice.

Frustration behind change and development

Are you content? Satisfied?
Good.
Or perhaps not that good.
Because if you are totally satisfied why bother to make any changes?
Think: if the small baby in his or her mother’s arms is totally cared for and is totally content – why then start anything risky that could change this kind of paradise?
And back to yourself: how content – on a scale from 1 to 10 – are you?
If you reply with something about 8 – 10 I would be somewhat worried for your further personal career. Perhaps you just to want to stay perfectly still.
If you say around 4 – 6 then – fine! There is hope.
If you say 1 – 3, well, then you really have to start to move right away. Come on!
Do something. You are able to make changes.
Yes, you can!