‘At least young people have an excuse for extensive job changing, whereas managers may and should be asked why they weren’t asked to participate in the company’s further projects.’

There is a saying in America, "Replace your furniture every three years, job every five years and spouse every 15 years, and you’ll be stress-free." The interval for each point may vary, but the idea is clear: changes are essential for human well-being. This is in partly true in Russia, but, sometimes, the intervals are shorter, especially with regard to changing jobs.
Art Franczek, president of the American Institute of Business and Economics, said the Moscow labor market has improved greatly in the past two or three years and, right now, is in a reasonably good state. He supported this by noting that the number of students pursuing M.B.A. degrees has increased, and their main goal is to advance in their career as quickly as they can by improving their job skills and networking possibilities. "People are motivated to get higher positions within or outside their companies, and, of course, the lack of advancement positions within a company becomes a strong job-hopping factor."
However, there are different types of and reasons for job hopping. Alexander Baranyuk, manager of the banking and finance department at Express Personnel, specified three types of job hoppers: young specialists, sales managers and project managers.
The "young specialist" is a fresh graduate with little experience or much in the way of professional goals. Their reason for job hopping is mainly part of an attempt to find themselves. Unfortunately, such candidates may seem to employers to be ambitious but unreliable young people with no patience and loyalty to the company. Another group is "sales managers," who have one or two years’ experience in sales and client work. Of course, sales managers who change jobs may not be considered ideal candidates, but their work specifications and high motivation to earn brings them to the route for new job searching. This category is more likely to get reasonable jobs, as employers are usually interested in hiring sales managers who are able to increase their sales turnover. Loyalty is not the main criterion in this case.
The third category is "project managers," who are hired to work on certain projects such as brand development or new factory launches. The demand for such job-hoppers is relatively high, as their job-hopping experience is often a plus for employers.
However, Ulyana Klimova, consulting manager for Express Personnel, said, "At least young people have an excuse for extensive job changing, whereas managers may and should be asked why they weren’t participate in the company’s further projects."
Some HR managers and consultants said they think that job hopping is a real issue in Moscow. Ilya Bushuyev, manager of the IT-Telecom department at Express Personnel, gave examples of job hopping caused by rapid changes in external factors. "Such factors usually influence large enterprises. For example, Rusal had to reduce its staff by 25 percent after aluminum prices fell. Such enterprises are a means of acquiring professional skills and social protection at the primary stage of employment. However, a specialist who finds himself working in constantly changing conditions ends up looking for a new job in about a year."
Olga Gavrilova, HR director for Personnel Upgrade, said that "unlike in the United States, the normal amount of time for working at one job in Moscow is two years; changing a job after so little time would not look good to employers in the United States." In her opinion, job hopping should be taken for granted in Russia because "no matter how sad it may seem, it is an integral part of the current Russian job market."
Nevertheless, not all HR managers said they supported this opinion. Marina Kablukova, client manager at Universal Personnel, said only certain types of people are inclined to hop jobs, and "These are usually people who make job hopping a hobby, with the exception of cases of emergency brought about by things such as a company’s bankruptcy or very low salary and no social-protection conditions."
Yekaterina Zotina, HR manager at L’Oreal, said she was of a similar opinion. She stated that job hopping is not a terribly burning issue at her company and in Russia in general.
Employees had their own opinions on the issue. Boris Sipaylo, a 27-year-old PR specialist, said that he could call himself "a latent job hopper," as he often thinks about changing jobs. The main reasons he cited were inadequate salary, lack of good instructions and low professional level at a company. Yelena Zhidkova, a 26-year-old receptionist and secretary at a design firm, on the other hand, said she is quite satisfied with her job, and that "this feeling comes mainly from the possibilities to move within the company, realize yourself in the company’s projects and be a part of the corporation."