Is lifetime employment a thing of the past?

Yes. People are less loyalty and employer dun apprepriate the staff like last time. Only switch a few jobs. my current stay for 4 years to 5 years.

These days, the employees are extremely mobile. And given the improving economy and the influx of skilled workers from countries all over the world, employers are spoilt for choices. Loyalty to a company holds no weight in this volatile employee market. With the retrenchment exercises going on in so many companies, your experiences and loyalties to a company don't mean squat when a company decides on down sizing. What is important are mobile skills, skills that can be applied to different job scopes... like programming skills, management skills, sales skills, networking skills... etc. These are the skills that can be applied to any jobs in any field of work that matters. These days, employees have to be adaptable. We are all entrepreneurs of our own lives. We have to market ourselves effectively to hold down to a job. Gone are the days where one is appreciated for his tenure there. If you produce results, you are treasured. If that benchmark you set for yourself dips, you are no longer as valuable as the one who produced better results than you. There is no other choice for us but to adapt to this change in society.