The Career Lattice: Combat Brain Drain, Improve Company Culture, and Attract Top Talent

CHAPTER 1THE CAREER LATTICE:Sustainable Growth for Employees, Organizations, and the Local Economy

Andrew Madison’s career had come to a dead end. For 16 years, he had been a field service engineer, helping customers of his employer, a semiconductor manufacturer, get their projects up and running. He was already weary of the travel, and of fixing glitches but never seeing the overall results of his work, when the Great Recession hit in 2008. His employer offered him a buyout. He took it.

But where could he go? He had an associate’s degree in electrical engineering enhanced by additional certifications, but he knew he didn’t want to just take another job based on his technical qualifications. He wanted to move into a growth industry, but he also ...