If you recently looked for a job, you quickly understand that corporate America will no longer allow you to go from one industry to another. The box of business has never been more restricting, as employers no longer see skills as transferable. Glen Shumate has built a 25-year business career, living outside the corporate box, which has allowed him to thrive across several industries.
“I have always been raised to understand that if you are going to do a job, you should enjoy doing that job, so I have always enjoyed whatever job I have had,” said Shumate.
And he has enjoyed the opportunity to work in several industries. Shumate started his career by working at Cedar Point Amusement Parks in Sandusky, Ohio.
“If you live in the area, it is almost mandatory that you work at Cedar Point,” Shumate chuckled.
His five years at Cedar Point would shape Shumate into the man he is today. He learned how to network, provide excellent customer service, and interface with all walks of life.
“People came from all over to visit the park, so I got the chance to learn from and speak to scores of people who were all different in their own way. It helped to understand that developing my network was the key to my success,” Shumate said.
After he moved to Cleveland, Ohio, Shumate won an opportunity to work for the Cleveland Indians. He still worked in entertainment, but he shifted some to become a community advocate, which means he helped the Indians serve the needs of the community. Shumate credits his humble beginning with helping him craft the wonderful opportunity of engaging in the community.
He was able to not be held in a box of expectations. His skills were transferable, and while his job was different, his approach was the same.
“Creating opportunities to promote and help people is the root of all the positions I have held, “Shumate said.
So, while the industry might be different, his ability to use his past impacted how he thrived in his future.
After his time with the Indians ended, Shumate moved on to Destination Cleveland. It was yet another move outside of the business box; however, it remained true to his original calling, which is to promote, network, and champion the cause of whatever he is promoting.
For employees today, the struggle to be able to pivot and use their learned skill set has been lost to employers. So, being able to show experience only comes after one finds a way to get some experience. And without the opportunity to get a job, people miss finding out what their true passion is, and employers end up with unhappy employees who feel like they are in a dead-end job or career.
“People need to get comfortable being uncomfortable,” Shumate suggests. He wants people to understand that the job market today is moving at the speed of light, and people need to hurry up and attack their goals.
He is not wrong. Before the pandemic, life moved at a reasonable pace. Post-pandemic, life reinvents itself every three years. The hot industry fizzles in years instead of decades. The hot company to work for is shuttered only after five years of being open. The career path that was touted as the next best thing is not being replaced with AI.
No one or no job seems safe from the vicious idea of profits first. The post office, which used to be one of the safest places to work, might run out of money by the end of 2026.
Today, Shumate is the Executive Vice President of the Construction Employers Association, leading education, marketing, diversity & inclusion, workforce, and government/public affairs programs. With twenty-five plus years of leadership in program development, communications, and advocacy, Shumate is driving initiatives such as the Construction Management Academy Program/ACE Mentor Program and the Business Mentor Protégé Program.
“We are helping young people be able to find meaningful positions in areas of work that cannot be replaced by AI,” Shumate said.
Shumate also helps young people create the on-ramp to business ownership. His programs develop, build, and teach people how to take what they have learned and apply it in ways that encourage them to start, if they choose, their own businesses.
Once again, Shumate has been able to work outside the business box to lead a non-profit organization that helps people. Throughout his professional career, his goal has always been the same, no matter where he has worked, Network, help, and build.
Those principles have provided for those he has worked with, but more importantly, those efforts have built Shumate an incredible resume of work and the respect of those who have had the benefit of his friendship. And that is all one can ever ask for. Job well done, Glen Shumate.
