Workforce Development - A Good Investment?

What can happen when you reach the top of the corporate ladder

Top-level executives who lose their jobs usually need to overcome three big hurdles before they can get on with their careers. These obstacles are: inability to understand their real strengths and weaknesses; long service with one company; and trouble accepting that they may not be top-level executives at their next employer, according to a survey by OI Partners, a global talent management firm.

This from an insightful article that appeared in a recent post over at the Development Network relating to an article published in the Sept 2010 issue of Talent Management magazine.

It raises legitimate questions as to whether senior managers and executives are more at risk of being unprepared for unemployment than the rest of us.  Additionally how much of an example do these managers set, as relating to personal ongoing professional development.

Or do they simply not care?

 

Are you ready for a strange new world?

The future does not look good for traditional jobs--or "regular activities performed in exchange for payment," as dictionaries and public perception define them. Their days are numbered. But wonderfully new and better kinds of work lie on the near horizon: hyperjobs.

Typical Job of Yesterday

· One job (singular) per worker.

· Employed by a company.

· Functional.

· Rely on specialized skills such as accounting or engineering.

· Compensated by money.

Typical Hyperjob of Tomorrow

· Multiple simultaneous “jobs.”

· Self-employed.

· Purposeful.

· Rely on hyper-human skills such as discovery, creativity, and responsibility.

· Compensated by money and also by other forms of social exchange ranging from barter to “time dollars.”

Hyperjobs are a whole new kind of work. They leverage people's unique, noncomputerizable skills and abilities, and power the emerging global society.

Technology is, by its very nature, a job killer. The whole idea of tools, machines, and systems is to do things more easily, faster, or better than barehanded humans can. White-collar workers may currently feel comfortable about their own prospects, but in fact service occupations--including the most technical and intellectually demanding--are the new targets of technological advance.

Every day we see new evidence of service-sector job erosion: grocery checking taken over by self-service checkout stations; telephone directory assistance taken over by speech recognition and response systems; air terminal counter work taken over by ticketing kiosks; and middle-management functions taken over by increasingly sophisticated software applications.

The most intellectual and technical jobs have also made the hit list. Take college teaching and software development, for example. Cash-strapped colleges and universities hold the lid on professors' salaries by hiring less-costly adjunct professors and launching distance-learning programs that extend the productivity of professorial talent. Completely automated learning systems for some subjects are on the horizon.

Knowledge workers such as software developers are also on the automation chopping block. Software development is perhaps the most automatable of all the technical disciplines, and software-development tools are constantly being created to extend the productivity of human developers. Fewer people are needed to produce X amount of code.

Social trends also impact the earning potential of software developers. For example, the increasingly popular "open source" movement is now challenging Microsoft for preeminence in operating systems and business tools such as spreadsheets and word processors. That's great for society, but open-source developers typically make their contributions for free. They can do it because they have "day jobs." The question is, what will their day jobs be if and when paying positions, as at Microsoft, go away as open-source takes over?

No matter what the educational or intellectual level of the jobholder, white-collar jobs as we know them have become an endangered species.

 

Are you prepared to compete in this strange new world?

What price do we pay for not creating "ground floor opportunities"?

Unless something dramatic happens, opportunities are likely to be much more limited for todays youngest generation of workers who are less likely to get on the first rung of the ladder in order to learn their craft.

If todays youngest generation don’t get on the first rung of the workforce ladder, then the opportunity to progress further in their careers will be further limited.

Could we see a generation of 30-somethings with nothing more than McJobs on their resume?

Are You Working for Doogie Howser ?

Robert Wendover, of the Center for Generational Studies is one of the experts I look to when seeking guidance on multi-generational issues.  In his recent newsletter, he posed a question that many older professionals are asking...

"What to do when your boss is younger than you?" It’s a question that is surfacing more and more in conversations among the Boomer generation. As those in Generation X assume increasingly senior responsibilities, those who have spent years in the workforce reporting to someone older are now finding themselves supervised by those their children’s ages. Here are five suggestions for making the relationship a success:

1. Keep this situation in perspective. It can be easy to spiral into frustration or depression about having a younger supervisor. Instead, interpret it as a wake-up call to take stock about how you can better position yourself for the future.

2. Provide support. Just because this person has been put in charge doesn't mean they know what they're doing. Look for opportunities to share operational insights which will smooth this transition. If what you share goes unheeded, it's probably a good idea to back off and learn more about the person's style and how you two might relate.

3. Refrain from offering advice from your life experience unless requested. If this person is insecure about their authority to begin with, your stories might be interpreted as patronizing or perhaps even an attempt to undermine that authority.

4. Stay clear of the undercurrent that may consume the work environment about this person. This is not a time to participate in the gossip or grapevine. The new person will most certainly know that one exists and will be watching for signs of who is fostering these conversations.

5. After the dust has settled, ask this person about how he or she sees you thriving within the organization. Then listen carefully. In spite of his or her age, this individual might have better contacts within the organization. Rather than resenting this, look for ways to capitalize on it.

Remember, if you're in your 50s your life's not over simply because your boss is considerably younger. As most employment relationships continues to evolve from calling to contract, you need to remain vigilant about additional training and opportunities within and without your organization. Going forward, personal versatility is key.

An Important Piece Of The Puzzle Regarding What New Engineers Should Learn

Anne Scarlett, of Scarlett Consulting, (former principal of Zweig-White), who appears in the AISC's publication, "Modern Steel Construction" produced a very good article entitled "10 Things Entry-Level Engineers Should Know"

The article points out many of the essential things that a young engineer should to to become well established in the profession.  But she missed an important one.

Professional Development.  And ny this I don't just mean getting the necessary continuing education (CE/PDH) credits needed to maintain an engineer's license(s) or certification, but the kind of ongoing life-long-learning habit that takes you beyond what a new engineer needs to stay current with in order to practice.

Here's a perspective that I see too frequently, from the point of view of a firm that is a leader in professional development education/training for engineers:

• an engineer will look for the simplest way to amass the nesessary number of PDH in order to complete the requirements for the state boards by the mandated completion deadline.
• in cases where a education provider offers multiple levels of course difficulty (basic, intermediate, advanced) the learner will often opt for the easiest material, just to ensure a passing score and getting the needed credits
• the closer they get to the reporting deadline, the less discerning the learner will be regaridng the relevancy of the course, to their job area, or professional needs

I have asked several "professionals" why they do this, and often get the response, "I don't have the time to be picky", or "I don't want to risk not passing"

When I've asked managers of engineers if they wonder why an experienced engineer would load up on courses that are very basic, they often tell me that they don't watch what their people take that closely, or even will tell me "it's up to the engineer"

What would happen if you discovered that your newest engineers were regularly stretching themselves and taking intermediate and advanced courses, and doing well on them?  Wouldn't you look at these individuals as "high potentials" for the firm's future.  Likewise, what about the ones that consistently just do the minimum?

With today's powerful Learning management Systems, and the increasing popularity of eLearning for Engineers, managers can now observe not only what their people are taking, but watch how they are growing professionally.  Isn't that a great asset to the firm?  Strange, isnt it, how in a profession where we put so much emphasis on improving outcomes based upon use of data and process, that we often overlook one of the most important processes in the Engineering profession - professional development?

How Many Stimulus Jobs Will Be Green? (And Who Will Get Them?)

One of the key questions floating around today is how many jobs will be created by Recovery Act spending?  And who will benefit the most?

The Economic Policy Institute estimates $200 billion in construction spending over 2 years will create 770,000 jobs in:

• Transportation infrastructure
• School retrofit
• Electric power grid
• Home Weatherization Assistance Program
• GSA federal building retrofit
• Public and affordable housing

Most of these jobs unfortunately will go to men, not women, if the current workforce composition is any guide:

Women in construction overall (non-office) -- 2.6%

• Construction laborers – 2.7%
• HVAC, Refrigeration – 0.9%
• Plumbers, pipefitters, steamfitters  – 1.5%
• Electricians – 1.7%
• Insulation workers – 1.9%
• Sheet metal workers – 3.7%

Women in Manufacturing:  Machinists – 5.2%  

Despite the promise of new jobs, female employment in the construction trades (as well as Engineering) are only a fraction of the male participation in the labor pool.  Because of this, most women may miss out on the windfall resulting from the ARRA stimulus funding in Green construction.

  

Preparing for a New Career: A search consultants perspective

What a roller coaster ride this economy has been over the last six months.  I can remember telling people two years ago that the international economy is going to save us, because growth in Brazil, China, and India will keep unemployment under 6%.  

So much for blind optimism, but I wasn’t the only person who underestimated the scale of the financial crisis.  Optimism is a basic American virtue, but it must feel very sardonic to the 9% of Americans who are pounding the pavement (or keyboard) looking for new employment or those of us who have seen a sizable portion of our income and wealth vanish in a few short months.  

It is easy to forget that you are important and that you will add value to another organization again in the future.  So how do you construct a viable thesis that accurately describes your talents, abilities, passions and unique expertise to a skeptical employment market?

As an executive recruiter working alongside corporate leadership, part of my role is to identify and define the intangible qualities behind a job candidate.  When the market tumbles like it did last fall and companies are forced to make personnel reductions, I have the experience and perspective to understand who is shed and why.  Generally speaking, our clients are results-driven, making rational decisions to protect the solvency and profitability of their enterprise.  They keep the best and cut away the pieces they can live without.

There are certainly many gradations between the “Best of the Best” and the “Worst of the Worst,” so often the evaluation process blends the subjective with the objective, balancing potential and performance, all the while considering the long and short term needs of the organization.  The point is that if you are looking to scapegoat someone; the idiot boss, the conniving assistant, or the dysfunctional system, stop it!  As much as it may be true, it is not relevant.  Job-hunting is now your full-time profession and as with any position you have to optimize your tools.  You’ve already perfected your résumé, bought a new suit and have been networking feverishly.  What now?  If you have been actively looking for more than a month, and assuming you don’t have multiple offers, you should at least consider the possibility that you need to improve the most important element to your job-search – YOU.

Companies pay executive recruiters like me to identify employees who are truly great performers.  So if your thesis for employment is weak, you are not going to maximize your potential in the job market.  Therefore, it pays to do some challenging self-analysis and really define your thesis.  Your goal is to settle on a credible and compelling message with which to engage employers.  You will be more successful as a candidate if you are clear about what you bring to the table and can convince the employer that you will translate your special talents into an effective team member.  So after you have cried on a few shoulders, hoisted a few beers and decompressed for a few days, you must start the process of reassessment and repositioning.

Here are my Five Points to concentrate on when you formulate your personal thesis:

1. Self Improvement – As a search consultant, I want to see candidates with initiative to improve as an employee.  Advanced education is a great example of this, but it is not the end all be all.  For some employees it could be getting involved in a professional organization.  For others it might be attending civic meetings or earning a professional credential.  One easy approach is to look at successful people one or two levels above you and see what they do for self improvement.  Ask them what they did when they were in your situation and what they might do differently today.  This approach has the added advantage of exposing yourself to senior co-workers and demonstrating your desire to improve.  If you are unemployed or have limited access to executives, you should identify top-performers at other companies and explore the same questions.  Life coaches often call these contacts informational interviews, but you can simply look at it as networking.  A few thoughtful phone calls and an email or two might give you some great ideas.  Be sure to reflect your new impressions in your résumé.   
2.  Focus and Clarity of Thought – I always consider what a candidate is most interested in – a paycheck so they can buy a Nintendo Wii for the kids, or securing and growing a new business unit for my client’s operations role.  In the case of the former, I do not need you on the bus.  If you are the latter, then you will research and learn as much as you can about your potential employer before any direct contact.  If you understand their philosophy and business practice, you can translate your ability into value that the company will quickly understand.  Try describing what you know about a potential employer to your spouse or friend before an interview.  If they can’t understand it, you don’t truly understand it.  Go back and do some more homework.  Break down your thoughts into outline form. Make sure your commentary is concise and that you can count the points of emphasis on one hand. Keep things simple, but be prepared for those detailed hypothetical questions that relate your experience to the business problem at hand.  If you get that far, you want to walk away with the job!
3. Ego – Few people spend adequate time thinking about their own ego and how it affects their success.  In his book A New Earth, Eckhart Tolle discusses how all of us allow our egos to control our lives, instead of appropriately controlling our egos to serve our life’s purpose.  How I interpreted his work is, “Grow up and exercise your childish demons from your thoughts and perceptions.  Find the value in others without devaluing yourself.  Listen to the feedback of others, without being controlled by it.  Find balance in everything you do, including employment.”  Most good interviewers use some form of behavioral interviewing.  Specifically, they want to know what you have done, how you did it, and what motivated your actions.  They want to hear your story, so tell relevant anecdotes and how those stories play into your ego.  The interviewer should look past their own insights and into your circumstances, not judging right from wrong but listening for balance and an ability to present an ego-free reality.
4. Confidence – You cannot effectively lead an organization without core confidence.  As an executive recruiter, I look for a few key traits in a well-balanced person.  Think of a story in your repertoire that exemplifies a particular trait so that you can retell this story as you hear the questioner subtly touch on a particular topic.  Practice your stories.  When was the last time you talked about a particular circumstance?  What does a particular circumstance say about you?  This is your thesis, but to confidently describe yourself in a defined period of time, you must deliberately practice your stories multiple times and with as many different sorts of people as possible.  A great thesis deserves a great delivery and you will be able to project that calm, focused, honest, direct, perceptive, professional, friendly and fun leader that you are.  If the story is organized and you are not trying to think of the details, but can thoughtfully modify it to match the exact tone the questioner is listening for, you will be ahead of the game.
5. Proactive Listening – Proactive listening is the most crucial element of communication skills and frankly, it’s the easiest to explain and fix.  You can learn to do this in a day if your ego and confidence factors are in check.  Here is a quick strategy for you to use in your interactions – listen 75% and talk 25%.  Ask specific and detailed questions until the other person has provided a complete picture of their thoughts.  Try to wait for the other person to ask your opinion before offering it.  Analyze what you learned through proactive listening and give a thoughtful response.  Proactive listening can solve many business problems because it has the added benefit of giving you time to think and consider what is being said.  If you think clearly and can remain calm, the words will flow straight from your brain to your mouth.  This also provides you with the added advantage of only having to fill 25% of the conversation.  By economizing your words, you will be considered succinct, focused, confident, and in control of your ego.

My colleagues and I have the ear of many employers, so consider what I have just said.  Good luck with your career!

Christopher Swan is the CEO and co-founder of RSMR Global Resources, Inc., a strategic executive search firm located in Chicago, Illinois..  RSMR Global Resources provides retained executive search services to clients in the architecture, engineering, construction, green build, renewable energy, project finance, project development, sustainability, and environmental services areas.  They are members of the American Council of Renewable Energy Companies, and sponsors of the Independent Energy Human Resources Association.

 

What is the future for Green Jobs?

Renewable energy and energy efficiency (RE&EE) technologies continue to drive significant economic growth in the United States. In 2006, these industries generated 8.5 million jobs, nearly $970 billion in revenue, more than $100 billion in industry profits, and more than $150 billion in increased federal, state, and local government tax revenues. Additionally, RE&EE provided important stimulus to the beleaguered U.S. manufacturing industry, displaced imported oil, and helped reduce the U.S. trade deficit.

In 2007, the news was even better. RE&EE generated more than 9 million jobs, more than $1 trillion in revenue, and nearly $160 billion in federal, state, and local tax revenues.

To put this in perspective, RE&EE sales outpaced the combined sales of the three largest U.S. corporations. Total sales for Wal-Mart, Exxon- Mobil, and General Motors in 2007 were $905 billion.

If U.S. policymakers aggressively commit to programs that support the sustained orderly development of RE&EE, our national prospects look even brighter. According to research conducted by the American Solar Energy Society (ASES) and Management Information Services, Inc. (MISI), the renewable energy and energy efficiency industry could—in a crash effort—generate up to $4.3 trillion in revenue in the United States and create more than 37 million jobs by the year 2030. These 37 million jobs would represent nearly one out of every four jobs in 2030, and many would be jobs that could not easily be outsourced. 

Joe the Plumber's Job is Starting to Look Darned Attractive

This past week I was reading a piece that appeared in Parade magazine looking at the potential for  jobs creation due to the Green Building initiative.

The article cited a report from the U.S. Conference of Mayors says the “green economy” could create 4.2 million jobs in the next 30 years. More than 3 million would come from a switch to renewable power and alternative fuels. 

What was no big surprise to me was that it confirmed that “It’s Joe Six-Pack with a hard hat and a lunch bucket, ready to install solar panels.” It went on to prophesy that retrofitting old buildings to meet environmental standards could replace many of the 800,000 construction jobs lost recently. 

Right now, the most green jobs—including environmental lawyers, consultants, and engineers—are in New York City, Washington, D.C., and Houston.  The article points out that many of the new green jobs that are being created don’t require a college degree—only access to training programs. 

But that's soon to change, as the "hands-on" Green building takes place

Consider the change over the past 10 years where science, techology, MBA's, law and upper management were the way to make big bucks and have security.  Today it's not unusual to hear people in the trades that are sustaining 6 figure incomes, with lots of job security, and great benefits.

At a time when tech giants are offshoring any job they can, and relegating much of their US workforce to contingent staffing firms who provide workers on a project by project basis, is it any wonder that Joe the Plumber's job is starting to look more attractive than ever before?Joe the plu

Some of the brightest new workforce talent may be right under your nose...

What do you want to be when you grow up? That’s a question all of us have to answer at some point. The problem is, many of us graduate high school and go to college without having a clear idea of our career aspirations. As a result, most who start college don’t complete a four-year degree and often those who do end up with majors that don’t suit their talents or ambitions in life.

One organization that helps today’s young people answer the question, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” is Junior Achievement.

Junior Achievement is one of the world’s leading nonprofit economic education organizations. Provided free to schools, JA programs help kids in grades K-12 explore entrepreneurship, financial literacy and the world of work. Volunteers from the local community come into the classroom and share their work experiences with kids, getting students to seriously consider what they want to do for a career before they get to a point of choosing a major or making the decision to go straight to the workforce following high school. JA programs also help students better understand the connection between what they learn in the classroom and success in the workplace.

To learn more about getting involved in Junior Achievement, visit their website . There are JA offices across the country, and around the world. If you want to volunteer, participate or get your kid or school involved, visiting this site is a good place to start.

Fitness Training for Your Career?

Many job interviews include as well tests in an assessment center where applicants have to solve different tasks in little time. I discovered a new mobile assessment trainer that makes you fit for these tests and offers  to improve your mental agility even without job interview.

The mobile assessment trainer is a good preparation for the selection process of a new employee. Often the applicants have to complete different tasks in different fields in order to show their performance. This way the potential employer can see which candidate is best for the vacant job. The abilities and competencies required can vary considerably depending on the job.

The assessment trainer offers many different exercises and trainings in order to improve your performance. You can train yourself in 12 different disciplines: mental arithmetics, anagrams, completing number series, converting weights and measures, estimations, exact observing, memorizing pairs of numbers, learning by heart, finding words, cognition and knowledge. In addition, all tasks can be chosen in three levels of difficulty, and practice or exam mode.

Even if there is no job interview, the mobile application coach can help you maintain your mental fitness and flexibility.

You've heard the term - "your mind is a muscle" - how often do you work it out?

You can download the assessment trainer for free at www.zelfi.com/en/mobile-games/for-free/assessment-trainer-free/

Displaced? Here's the 15 hottest jobs in the next decade...

Time was when following a career path was like climbing a ladder. Rung by rung, you ascended in a succession of orderly steps, each one with added responsibility, pay, status and, you hoped, satisfaction. No more. Today when you reach for that next rung, it's likely to have been shifted offshore, job-eliminated in a cost-cutting crisis.

This excellent article by Money magazine discusses the experts forecast that workers starting out now will switch careers -- that's careers, not jobs -- an average of more than three times during their lives.

Fortunately, these job market changes are not all bad. As old professions are swept away, new ones roll in with unique opportunities. The trick is to catch a wave early enough to ride it.  Interested?

read more | digg story

If You Think You Have A Bad Boss, You Could Do Much Worse

A recent global survey shows that employees in the U.S. have the most positive opinions and friendliest relationships with their managers, leading them to be the least likely to disobey their supervisors’ direction compared with international workers.

Writer David R. Butcher, who published a timely article on ThomasNet, reveals to us that while there are plenty of bad bosses, that bosses as a whole in the United States too often get a bad rap — one that they simply do not deserve.

His article, "Think Your Boss is Lousy? It Could be Worse" reveals a new global survey that shows that employees in the U.S. have the most positive opinions and friendliest relationships with their managers, leading them to be the least likely to disobey their supervisors’ direction compared with international workers.

U.S. employees are also most likely to perceive their managers as competent, talented and open to feedback, according to 5,500 workers surveyed in 10 countries by European management and HR consulting firm BPI, which owns a majority interest in Chicago-based SSP-BPI Group.

The international Employees Assess Their Manager survey, conducted in October 2007, sought insights about differences in workplaces and managerial styles by asking employees to rate their relationship with their supervisors.

The key findings, released last month, determined that, overall, about two-thirds of global employees generally had a good opinion of their managers.

It's a great, well written  article, that provides a good perspective on the things that U.S. bosses are doing right!

How Interns figure into the picture

For many firms, interns may represent serious untapped potential.

An internship, provides training for those who are interested in a career in process technology or a related field, as well as providing skill/knowledge enhancement for those who seek to further their training in the process industry.  It also provides an opportunity for a real-world work experience.

Have you employed interns previously?  You may want to consider this resource, which is highly relevant today.

We all know that a significant labor shortage has been predicted, and knowledgeable entry-level technicians and craftspersons with some experience in the work environment are preferred by employers.

Internships benefit the Company in a number of ways.  Internships allow the company to invest in the community, and  Interns can be evaluated prior to hire - those you choose to hire tend to contribute to lower recruiting and turnover costs.  These Intern employees are partially trained when you bring them on-board and can be productive to the organization sooner.

They also bring the latest theories, ideas, and classroom training to their job to share with incumbent employees.  Accordingly, they also re-energize the work force with their enthusiasm, positive attitudes and work ethic.

Don't have an Internship program currently?  Watch this space for a future discussion on how you can begin one - and make it work for you.

The role that "Career Blockage" plays in International Assignments

Increasingly, firms find that it is necessary and prudent to expose their promising talent to international assignments.  Sometimes it works out fine, other times it doesn't.

One of the reasons cited by expats that leave posts (or firms) is "career blockage", or better known as the feeling that working abroad has gotten their career sidetracked, while people back home are climbing the corporate ladder.

I used to travel abroad extensively, and would frequently run into an expat that after a few drinks would admit “the home office has forgotten about me”

It doesn't seem to matter whether you are doing your job or not, it's just a human nature response to conditions.  It appears to the expat that there is a lack of collegiality and communication when working abroad, especially when surrounded by cultural natives who are in their natural setting, and receiving support and personal communications routinely.

The role of "HQ" managing this common concern is significant. 

HR needs to ensure that expatriates know that an international assignment helps in terms of advancement within the firm.  This also needs to be periodically reinforced by upper management.  Sometimes this is hard to do, especially when there is a lot or organizational "churn" at the upper management levels with people moving to different jobs, or leaving the firm altogether.  Remember that the initial expectations that may have been set, if not committed to a written agreement, may not survive if there is (as if often the case), changes in upper management.

Likewise, planning needs to take into consideration, the very real concerns that expats have about their return to their "home base."  I have declined some overseas posts because the company was unwilling or unable to describe what would happen upon my return to the states.

Will the firm respect (and value) the unique new skills that I have acquired while overseas?  Will my return represent a "loss of status" (either real or perceived)?  Will there be a plan for re-integrating me into the stateside business?  Reverse "Culture Shock" can also be a factor, (and an adjustment period is a wise idea for the expat, as well as their family)  If firms are not prepared to do these things, it can really impact on the willingness of personnel to go overseas on assignment.

It is food for thought, hmmmm?

Food for Thought

On the glide path to Easter, some random musings about the state of todays job market.  (We'll discuss some of these in more detail after the holiday)

• Ask any recruiter and they'll confirm that while technical skills may get you the interview, soft skills will be needed to get you the job
• Technical skills are increasingly a commodity - which means that they often can be done anywhere they can be done cheaply, even in another part of the world.
• If your background is Technical, your future (eg ability to advance) will be to advance into jobs that require more "soft skills" and recruiters are looking for these during the interview - they’re absolutely essential to long-term success
• The real world is of today is increasingly unpredictable - soft skills are how you learn to cope with change
• Most organizations assume you have some technical skills - thats why most recruiters interview time is on how you ‘fit’ into the organization. A person who doesn’t fit can ruin the inertia and spirit of the team
• More of jobs today are customer facing.  Do you have a good undertstanding of what this means, and are you realistic of your ability to interact well with customers?

Not sure where to pickup softskills?  Online provider, like RedVector offer dozens of relevant courses that will help you get the basics that you need.

What messages are we sending to students?

Students are influenced by parents, faculty, peers and society at large, as they ponder their life choices, which include fields of study, choice of career path, etc.

But are students (at all ages) making informed career choices?  In today's increasingly sophisticated business climate, does having no Baccalaureate degree = a dead end?

Today's students I fear are abysmally unaware of the many career choices available to them.  Nor, do I perceive that the pathways from educational pursuit to career are being clearly laid out before them.

There is, in my humble opinion, more emphasis on who is getting the jobs now, as opposed to who will get to keep them in the future.  Don't get me wrong, having a near term focus is important, but not at the risk of short-term gain that will lead to a dead-end later on.

That's why lifelong learning and development are so important to be instilled in our learners today.  Unfortunately, this is frequently not the case. 

Here's an assignment - you need to comment back on this post and share with our readers...

Ask some of the young people that you encounter that are completing their last year of school.  Ask them what's next in their life...

Don't be surprised if you hear
School -- Boy! I’m glad that’s over -- now I can get to work!

Nontraditional Teachers Lining Up

One of the great educational challenges we face today is the shortage of individuals want to teach and who can teach our youth what they will need to know to cut it in our rapidly changing world.

Why does this article resonate with me?

For one thing, the teachers "in the system" are in many cases struggling just to maintain their existing teaching load, and are themselves challenged by school district bureaucracies and policies.  Where are the "real world" perspectives to come from, amidst a rapidly changing jobs landscape.

For example, how many teachers and guidance counselors are introducing our youth to careers in construction, where the pay, benefits and job security are above average?  Do the current faculty see construction as much more than the "summer job" that they may have held before, where they were little more than job site general labor?  Does such an attitude dissuade them from encouraging youth to learn about jobs in this industry? 

Do our current cadre of teachers and guidance counselors have an awareness of the types of match, science, or communications skills that these youth will need to be able to enter the field at the "skilled worker" level?  Are these teaching professionals even aware that people without a degree with just a few years of experience with these skills are being actively sought after and snagging annual pay in the high five and low six figures? 

Yet because of youth making misinformed academic choices they often end up competing after graduation for "commodity" jobs that are often not fulfilling.  If they had chosen a path that enabled them to grasp basic math/algebra/geometry skills, they would likely find themselves in  a better bargaining position for jobs.

So it boils down to how to get people from the professions to step into the teaching profession to expose our youth to some of these possibilities.

Check out this story about a St. Paul schools program, designed to find candidates for hard-to-fill jobs by making teachers out of professionals coming from other fields.

read more | digg story

Ever Wonder Why Women Enter the Field of Engineering?

Julie Martin Trenor, Director of Undergraduate Student Recruitment and Retention at the Cullen College of Engineering, University of Houston is one of the most significant voices advocating the Engineering profession for women. I pay close attention to anything from her that crosses my desk.

She recently cited some excellent research into WHY women are drawn to engineering, that I wanted to share with you.  She cites studies by Goodman & Cunningham in 2002, Seymour & Hewitt, in 1997, Grose in 2006 and the American Society for Engineering Education in 2006 that document the "drivers" of interest in Engineering for women.  These studies provide a good "roadmap" for profiling women who might take to the Engineering field:

• Confidence in math/science abilities
• Engineer role models (90% know an engineer)
• Parental encouragement
• Value potential societal contributions of the field
  • Fields with more obvious altruistic nature boast much higher female enrollment percentages: 
    
    • e.g. biomedical engineering =  42%,
    • environmental engineering = 43%.
  • However, top 6 disciplines with highest % of women comprise only 17% of all B.S. degrees awarded
• The future of our engineering workforce therefore rests on the ability of the field to market itself as a socially-conscious, application-driven, and team-based profession!

The talent shortage will not relent, even in a recessionary cycle, and it is imperative that women continue to ascribe to the engineering profession.  Unfortunately, just as there are incentives, Dr. Trenor also points out that there are still many barriers for women.  Among them she cites:

• Poor math preparation: decisions on which discipline to consider, often start in 7th or 8th grade
• Lack of K-12 engineering courses
  
• Negative messages, gender-biased attitudes exist everywhere
  
• Lack of female role models
• Engineering’s public image problem
  • Few role models available in the public eye.
  • Unlike doctors & lawyers, engineers are rarely portrayed in prime time television
    • Engineers/scientists are often portrayed as white males
    • Women fre3quently relegated to subordinate roles (e.g. lab assistants)
    • Contrast “Dilbert”, “Star Trek” vs. “Law & Order”, “Grey’s Anatomy”
• Peer pressure to go into "popular" programs
• Isolation

There need to be more engineers period, and there are many opportunities for women to excel in this profession.  Watch this blog for more updates on Dr Trenor's important work in this area.

What are Hard to Fill Jobs? Not What You Might Expect...

The country is not suffering for astrophysicists and neurosurgeons.

Rather, a majority of the "hardest-to-fill jobs" are done by blue collar workers, according to a survey by Manpower Inc.

The jobs most likely to go wanting are:

1. Sales representative
2. Teacher
3. Mechanic
4. Technician
5. Management/executive
6. Truck driver
7. Driver/delivery
8. Accountant
9. Laborer
10. Machine operator

To compile the results, Manpower surveyed more than 2,400 employers nationwide.

"With the variety of positions employers are struggling to fill, it seems like job seekers should have little trouble finding work," said Jonas Prising, president of Manpower North America, an employment services company. "Yet on a daily basis, we hear from clients who can't find the right people for open positions and candidates who are struggling to get hired. ... The talent crunch is more complex than a shortage of people."

In 2007, 41 percent of employers said that they had difficulty filling jobs, down from 44 percent in 2006. Sales representatives were also the hardest jobs to fill in 2006, though engineers and nurses were then second and third.

Are We Creating Hardworking Idiots?

Thanks to Adrian Savage, a writer, Englishman, and a retired business executive, in that order. He authored the following piece "Creating Hardworking Idiots"

You can read his posts most days at Slow Leadership, a popular site for everyone who 
wants to build a civilized place to work and bring back the taste, zest and satisfaction to leadership.

The German World War II general Erich von Manstein is said to have categorized his officers into four types. The first type, he said, is lazy and stupid. His advice was to leave them alone because they don’t do any harm. The second type is hard-working and clever. He said that they make great officers because they ensure everything runs smoothly. The third group is composed of hardworking idiots. Von Manstein claims that you must immediately get rid of these, as they force everyone around them to perform pointless tasks. The fourth category are officers who are lazy and clever. These, he says, should be your generals. Discovering this information set me to wondering how General von Manstein’s categories might apply to business organizations today.

Lazy and Stupid

Most organizations have some managers within them who are lazy and stupid—at least, that has been my experience. Would you agree with the general that you can leave them alone, because they do no harm? I doubt it. Most organizations claim they try to get rid of any employee who is found to be lazy, let alone stupid as well. Maybe they try, but they don’t seem to be so successful, judging by the number who are left, some even in fairly exalted positions. Maybe one reason for this is that lazy and stupid people rarely do much active harm. The harm they do is more often based on missing opportunities and stifling the creativity of those who report to them. Bad enough, but not always easy to turn into clear grounds for dismissal—especially if the person in question is protected by someone powerful. Still, my guess is that even lazy and stupid people today realize that the best route to self-preservation is at least to appear busy and active.

Hardworking and Clever

Von Manstein’s next group is made up of hardworking, clever people. Organizations mostly want as many of these as they can get, for obvious reasons. But you’ll notice that the general seems to confine them to the military equivalent of middle management: jobs that are aimed at making everything run smoothly. I suspect one reason is that such people do make excellent administrators. They can take orders from above and turn them into practical ways of achieving the desired results. Some are so useful in these roles that they are never allowed to rise higher. Others maybe want to progress, but lack something that—at least in von Manstein’s view—is essential to become a good general. That something, it seems, is laziness. He wants the choice of generals to be made from people who are clever, naturally, but also lazy. Why should that make them better top executives?

Lazy and Clever

One reason might be that laziness is the principal spur to creativity. Lazy people are always looking for easier, simpler, and less arduous ways to do things. If they are also clever, the chances are that they will find them, and make them available to everyone else. Lazy people are also natural delegators, and find it very attractive to let their subordinates get on with their work without interference from above. Lazy, but bright, generals would be likely to make sure they focused on the essentials and ignored anything that might make for unnecessary work, whether for themselves or other people. In fact, it’s hard to see why you would not want your top managers to be as lazy as they are clever. It would indeed make them great strategists and leaders of people.

Hardworking Idiots

Now to the last group: the ones von Manstein said that you should get rid of immediately.
That group is made up of people who are hardworking idiots, in his words. He says such people force those around them into pointless activities. I don’t know about you, but I suffered from several bosses I would unhesitatingly put into precisely that category. They were extremely hardworking—and demanded the same from their subordinates—but what they set others to work on (and what they spent their own time in doing) was mostly worthless. Maybe they were actually lazy and stupid people trying hard to seem busy, but too stupid to choose the right things to be busy about. It certainly felt like busyness for its own sake, and it was hateful. Or were they naturally hardworking idiots? Some probably were, but it’s my opinion that most such people are clever enough. It is the organization that makes them function like morons.

Today’s fast-paced, macho style of organizational culture creates, and then fosters, the hardworking idiot. Indeed, I think it takes a great many sound, useful, hardworking, and clever people and turns them into idiots by denying them the time or the opportunity to think or use their brains. If you don’t look busy all the time, you’re virtually asking for a pink slip, never mind what it is that you are doing—or whether it is actually of any use to the organization or its customers. It’s all so rushed and frenetic. If all that matters is “meeting the numbers” and getting things done (whatever those things are), managers will be forced into working hard at projects that they know make no sense.

The dumbing down of organizations isn’t caused by poor educational standards or faulty recruitment. It’s due mostly to the crazy pace that is set, and the obsessive focus on the most obvious, rigidly short-term objectives. The result is a sharp increase in hardworking idiots: people who are coerced into long hours and constant busyness, while being systematically forced to act like idiots by the culture around them. Don’t ask questions. Don’t cause problems by thinking, or waste time on coming up with new ideas. Don’t think about the future, or try to anticipate problems before they arise. Just keep at it, do exactly what is expected of you, and always get the most done in the least amount of time and at the lowest cost. If von Manstein is correct, the result will be that more and more employees will be used to perform essentially pointless tasks. Isn’t that exactly what we see?

I think that even a fairly cursory look around most organizations today would confirm the accuracy of this observation. Consider all the time wasted in unnecessary meetings. The obsessive emphasis on staying in touch, regardless of need. The torrents of e-mails, most of which are simply copies of documents of no direct relevance to the people to whom they are sent. The constant collecting of data for no clear reason. Management by numbers and motivation by numerically-based performance measures. Trust replaced by obsessive control and leadership by forced ranking of subordinates against vague criteria determined by committees with no idea of the specific circumstances.

You do not need ethical insight or human understanding to operate a machine, and machines are how many of today’s leaders see their organization: machines for making quick profits, not civilized communities of people working together to a common end. We can only hope some organizations at least see the error of their ways before the hardworking idiot becomes the commonest creature in the hierarchy. We are well on the way to that point, which is probably why so many people cherish dreams of getting out of the corporate rat race. It’s no fun to be forced to deny your own intelligence on a daily basis. We can still reverse the trend, but only by dropping the current out-dated dogmas, dangerous half truths, and total nonsense that disfigure management thinking. Let’s do it before it is too late.

Interesting Info on Starting Salaries in South Florida

Being a Floridian, I often get asked what salaries are like down here. 

Doesn't seem to matter what discipline, folks are always interested in learning more about the wages paid "south of Dixie"

Recently came across an interesting article in the "Judged" blog, which is a pretty cool source of information about what's happening in the legal profession.  They wrote an article entitled "Info on Starting Salaries in South Florida" that sheds some light on what the larger firms down here are offering new folks joining their firms.

Ever wonder how that associates salary compares to what you see on your monthly bill for legal services?  Check out the article, I think it'll be insightful.

Here where the new jobs (and job growth) will be

There's a lot projected to happen as relates to skilled jobs, according to a recent report published by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Among the interesting data of this report:

WHERE THE SKILLED JOBS WILL BE
The Bureau of Labor Statistics projections of employment in 2014 suggest that apart from IT-related occupations, most other scientific, technological, engineering and mathematical (STEM) professions are expected to grow moderately, at rates similar to those for the entire U.S. labor force. Only three specific STEM occupations are expected to actually decline in employment, and all of those projected declines are quite small.
High projected growth rates (20 percent or better):

• Forensic science technicians +36%
• Medical scientists & epidemiologists (summary) +34
• Hydrologists +32
• Biomedical engineers +31
• Computer specialists (summary) +31
• Network systems & data communications analysts +55
• Computer software engineers +46
• Network & computer systems administrators +38
• Database administrators +38
• Computer systems analysts +31
• Computer & information scientists, research +26
• Computer support specialists +23
• Computer specialists, all other +19
• Environmental engineers +30
• Computer & information systems managers +26
• Environmental engineering technicians +24
• Actuaries +23
• Life scientists (summary) +21
• Market and survey researchers (summary) +20
• Other life, physical, & social science technicians +20

Low projected growth rates (five percent or less):

• Sociologists +5
• Statisticians +5
• Architectural and civil drafters +5
• Chemical technicians +4
• Historians +4
• Mathematical technicians +3
• Computer programmers +2
• Electrical and electronics drafters +1
• Petroleum engineers -0
• Mathematicians -1
• Mining & geological engineers, incl. mining safety -2

 

• WOMEN INCREASE IN THE WORKFORCE - Also of note is the projection that over the 2004-14 projection period, the number of women in the labor force is projected to grow by 10.9 percent, faster than the 9.1 percent growth projected for men. As a result, women's share of the labor force is expected to increase from 46.4 percent in 2004 to 46.8 percent by 2014.

• GROWTH OF THE HISPANIC WORK GROUP -“By 2014, the Hispanic labor force is expected to reach 25.8 million, due to faster population growth resulting from a younger population, higher fertility rates, and increased immigration levels.
  
  Despite relatively slow growth, whites will remain the largest group, composing 80.2 percent of the labor force. Blacks will constitute 12.0 percent of the labor force. Asians will continue to be the fastest growing race group, climbing to 5.1 percent of the labor force in 2014.

and finally, a topic we've covered extensively both on this blogspace as well as my speaking engagements around the country:

• CHANGES IN THE MAKEUP OF THE LABOR FORCE -The labor force will change in composition, as a result of changes in both the composition of the population and in the rates of labor force participation across demographic groups. The projected labor force growth will be affected by the aging of the baby-boom generation — persons born between 1946 and 1964.
  
  In 2014, baby-boomers will be ages 50 to 68 years, and this age group will grow significantly over the 2004-2014 period. The labor force will continue to age, with the number of workers in the 55-and-older group projected to grow by 49.1 percent, nearly five times the 10 percent growth projected for the overall labor force. Youths between the ages of 16 and 24.will decline in numbers and lose share of the labor force, from 15.1 percent in 2004 to 13.7 percent in 2014.
  
  Prime-age workers. those between the ages of 25 and 54 also will lose share of the labor force, from 69.3 percent in 2004 to 65.2 percent in 2014. The 55-and-older age group, on the other hand, is projected to gain share of the labor force, from 15.6 percent to 21.2 percent.

Civil engineering fails to attract women

The challenges faced by US engineering firms to attract women is being mirrored in other countries as well...
A scheme to attract younger women into long-term careers in civil engineering has drawn a blank, industry representatives said today.  The initiative to recruit 85 school dropouts 16 years and over into firms in the North-East of England, over and above the normal recruitment intake, has attracted a number of new entrants, none of whom are female

read more | digg story

Human Capital and the war for talent

What are the factors that will determine the size and makeup of tomorrow's workforce?

It is clear from experience, as well as the vast amounts of information available to employers that the demographics of the global workforce are changing.

Patterns of migration, issues of diversity and social or educational development are presenting employers the world over with an increasingly difficult and important challenge - where their talent will come from in the future.

Watch this space for upcoming posts where we'll deal with these important issues and provide ideas on how employees AND employers can cash in on these changing patterns...

Men at Work - Gimme a Break !?!

Call it my warped sense of irony...

I was driving down the road today and saw the DOT standard "MEN AT WORK" sign, and noted that there were 3 ladies on the work crew.  I wonder how often the average passerby even considers that these are not just MEN at work?

It should not be a surprise that increasingly, smart women are looking to the construction industry as careers.  The pay and benefits in the construction industry are the best in business and industry. Pay is based on knowledge, skills and experience. Additional coursework and degrees from higher educational institutions paves the way to promotions within the industry. And there are more jobs than employees available to fill the many positions in construction. Whether your ambition is to work in an office or in the field, furthering your education is a vital step in getting ahead and staying ahead.

Many women enter the field of construction because their husbands, fathers, brothers or uncles work in construction and they encourage their wives, daughters, sisters and nieces to come into the field with them. Other women start out working in a construction office processing paperwork and then advance into the field and up the career ladder. Still others like the idea of working outdoors, using their hands to build houses, commercial buildings, bridges and highways, supervising projects and providing a good income for their families.

Women can be found working in construction offices or on-site as architects, CAD technicians, interior designers, estimators, project managers and project superintendents. Some women work on surveying crews; others work as building inspectors and plans examiners for municipalities. The possibilities are unlimited.

There are several ways to learn the construction business.

1. On-the-job training and apprenticeship programs have been the traditional route to construction jobs.
2. College programs and courses in construction management, business, drafting, estimating, surveying, civil engineering, and mathematics prepare women for both office and field positions. Some women continue their educations at the university level. Networking with management and leadership groups helps in moving up the ladder.  Many colleges offer certificates and associate degrees in Architectural Drafting, Computer Aided Drafting, Building Safety and Construction Technology, Civil Engineering Technology, Surveying Technology, Construction Management and Welding. (before you laugh at welding - bear in mind that a journeyman welder with O/T can make $120-130k/yr)
3. Want to check out construction from the comfort of your living room?  There are hundreds of "continuing education grade" courses on construction available online.  For example, RedVector has a large library of "fundamentals-level" online courses that will help anyone interested become familiar with the concepts and language of construction.
4. Another resource is the Arizona State University, Del E. Webb School of Construction that offers a bachelor of science degree in Construction. Starting wages average $50,000 per year.

Looking for change and a career with a long-term future?  Check out these resources...

A Halloween Treat for You from the Evil HR Lady

I'm a fan of the "Evil HR Lady", who publicly claims to be "an HR professional in a Fortune 500 Company. I've hired, fired, managed pay and analyzed the numbers. I've even tried to cooperate with Finance, but, well you can guess how that turned out."

She operates a great blog by the same name (Evil HR Lady) with a high volume of feedback that confirms that she is on the right track.

She recently published a great article called "The Coming Talent Shortage" that provided a response to the YouTube video about workforce demographic changes. 

Michael Moore (the lawyer, not the other Michael Moore) posted a link to this video about the upcoming labor shortage.

This article is a "MUST READ" for people concerned about where our future experienced talent will come from.  Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Its All About the Talent

FMI Corp's,  Ron Magnus, who heads their Talent Development division dropped me an email recently, alerting me to a new Construction Industry report on Talent Development that FMI has just published.

By 2008, it's an accepted fact that a wealth of skills and experience will disappear from the job market as the first members of the Baby Boom generation reach average retirement age. Talent development will become a critical strategic objective and differentiator for any competitive organization.

Magnus reaffirms that in order to remain successful in the knowledge-based, global economy building and construction firms must continually invest in their human capital. 

1. This is a great report, well worth your time, in a easy to read format. Click here Download USTReport2007.pdf for a copy. 

 

Why Do Women Only Represent 9% of the Engineering Workforce?

A report published by the American Society for Engineering Education paints a picture that should concern for all Americans.  While women represent 56% of  total U.S. undergraduate enrollment across all fields of study, Undergraduate engineering enrollment, is only 17% of the total at 366,361 in 2005, according to the ASEE study

Today, women represent only 9% of the Engineering workforce. 

There's a lot of good programs underway to turn this situation.  Women-in-engineering (WIE) programs, and the Society of Women Engineers (SWE) student chapters, other support mechanisms provide:

•   Outreach/ K-12 education
•   Learning and/or living communities
•   Forums for discussing concerns/questions
•   Connection with role models in academia, industry, government
•   Mentoring (peer and professional-student)
•   Advising
•   Professional development and career guidance

It's premature to call this game before all of the innings have played out.  Never before have the prospects for women in engineering been better, nor have there been a stronger advocacy and support system available.  Let's get the word out.

The Engineering Workforce Commission also cites decreasing female enrollments since 2001; enrollment numbers remain virtually unchanged since 1984, and although Doctoral degrees have recently increased, these gains are being undercut by decreasing B.S. enrollments in Engineering.

Women to overtake men by 2012

Citing better exam results that will catapult them to top at work , writer John Walsh of the Irish Independent wrote that women are well poised to take over the majority of top jobs in business, law, finance and the sciences within the next five years. And it's all because they are staying in education longer and getting better results than men.

The projections are made in a joint report from FÁS and the Economic and Social Research Institute which looks at the likely share-out of jobs by 2012. Just over a quarter of females will have degrees by then compared with only a fifth of men. A further 15.4 percent of females are expected to have attained diploma/certificate level compared with only 9.5 percent of men.

By contrast, nearly a fifth of men (18.9 percent) will drop out of school with only a Junior Certificate. Just 11.4 percent of women, however, will drop out at Junior Certificate level. Women tend to concentrate in clusters of occupations while men are in a greater range of jobs, some of which face uncertainty. The most obvious is construction where most workers are male. And the report, written by Dr Pete Lunn, Prof Gerry Hughes and Ms Nicola Doyle, suggests males workers would be more exposed if there were negative shocks to the housing market and the construction sector in general.

It predicts that, in the medium-term, overall jobs growth will be greatest in occupations that require third-level qualifications and high skill levels. Professional, associate professional and managerial occupations are expected to grow by more than 20 percent relative to 2005 figures. Outside of these high-skill occupations, some personal services occupations, including caring occupations such as childcare, are likely to experience similar expansion. Highest growth is expected in business, financial and the legal professions, where numbers are predicted to rise by nearly 50 percent.

Other occupations forecast to expand are managers and highly qualified workers in health, education and science. The report expects that two thirds of the health and education professions will be populated by female workers in 2012 - in fact 8.5 percent of all female workers will be in one or other of these areas. At present, around half of business, legal and other professionals such as psychologists, actors and information officers are women but the report predicts that their share will increase to 55 percent in the next five years.

In the case of science professionals, the report expects that women will account for 58.5 percent by 2012 compared with 41.5 percent in 1998. The category includes chemists, physicists and pharmacists. However, the proportion of women engineers, including software engineers, is expected to drop. This reflects the recent decline in numbers of females entering related courses. An area where women seem to be heading towards equality with men is management. In 1998, a third of managers were women but this is expected to reach 46.9 percent in five years.

However, Dr Lunn stressed this did not necessarily mean women were breaking through the 'glass ceiling' to the board room - it could simply be that more were being appointed to middle management and supervisory levels.

Careers With a Guaranteed Future

Looking for an area with incredible need and that will fuel ongoing demand for skilled engineers and construction personnel?  Think infrastructure...

As the Katrina New Orleans levee failure and the recent Minnesota bridge collapse pointed out, infrastructure in the United States is clearly in need of an overhaul. In fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers, does a report card every two years.  Check out the most recent one (from 2005):

America’s infrastructure report card for 2005
By the American Society of Civil Engineers National grades

• Aviation, D+
• Bridges, C
• Dams, D
• Drinking water, D-
• Energy (national power grid), D
• Hazardous waste, D
• Navigable waterways, D-
• Public parks/recreation, C-
• Rail, C-
• Roads, D
• Schools, D
• Security, I
• Solid waste, C+
• Transit, D+
• Wastewater, D-

Giving an overall GPA to America’s Infrastructure: D

These areas are "essential basic infrastructure" to our society, and it cannot be ignored. 

Education firms like RedVector.com who have extensive libraries of accredited online education provide the leaders in this area with the latest educational offerings in building and improving America's infrastructure.  If you're in this business, or intend to be, it should be mandatory training for you.

Another resource the American Society of Civil Engineers has provided to educate people on the important issues of infrastructure is their "Critical Infrastructure Blog"

All Americans are dependent upon sound infrastructure - so this is REQUIRED reading

Let me know what you think.

Working with the Contingent Workforce

Esme Friesen of the Galt Global Review published a set of great best practices to assist the supervisor or manager thinking of hiring a contingent worker.

According to Friesen, the squeeze on workforce budgets continues the same as it has for well over a decade. Whereas everybody wants to expand their scope while increasing their bottom line, adapting to variable market trends is still the order of the day. In some organizations this means the hiring of new staff and for others this means a decrease in their labor pool. Both ways, managers have had to find flexible staffing solutions and as a result, the demand for a skilled, reliable contingent workforce has risen significantly.

Fishing for resources in a new "fishing hole" carries with it a special set of challenges.

Friesen offers the following points to help you be more effective in sourcing from the Contingent Workforce marketplace:

1. Have the staffing service coach or counsel a contingent worker on job performance.

It is one thing to point out a procedural protocol to a new contingent worker, but it is another to give them an evaluation. Marcie Ellison, Vice President of The Personnel Department's temporary division advises "the staffing service should be calling you. If there is a need for a performance or corrective review, it is the responsibility of the service to address it." Otherwise, contact the service to request a review and tell them why it is necessary.

2. Let the staffing service negotiate the rate of pay.

This issue is best addressed with the staffing service. The staffing service's account manager uses input from you to establish rates of pay and will handle all communications regarding pay raises for the contingent worker. Contingent workers are regular staff of the service and as such, have their own agreements with respect to wages. When you begin negotiating with the contingent worker, you become a de facto employer and can run into difficulties in defining the "employer" if there is ever a dispute.

3. Express your needs for skills and let the staffing service do the training.

Staffing agencies often have training and upgrading programs available to their field staff. If specific training is required for a job, the staffing service will work with you to identify and implement the best training program for the contingent worker.

4. Refer any requests for personal time-off or vacation to the staffing service.

Contingent workers will request time off through their staffing service manager who will then contact you regarding coverage prior to approval being given. If temporary employees approach you, simply refer them back to their staffing service manager. Your primary relationship is with the service, and so is the employee's.

5. Discuss job opportunities with the staffing service.

In this era of talent shortages, it is best to discuss job opportunities with the staffing service. Often the best contingent worker is not the best permanent employee. For many individuals in the contingent workforce, it is a lifestyle choice. They prefer the flexibility and variety that going from job-site to job-site affords them and staffing services know this. The service may have other individuals available who are interested in finding permanent employment, and who are more suitable to the position. To get the best from the "temp to perm" potential, contact the service who can then work with you to determine who the most suitable candidates are. It is always good to check first with the service.

If a temporary or contract worker approaches you for a position, it is a compliment to your managers and your organization. Still, you are best advised to direct them to publicly available job postings to which they can apply. If there were a position that you wanted to hire the contingent worker for, contact the service, which will then approach the employee directly.

6. Be discrete regarding harassment or discrimination issues.

If a situation where a contingent worker is behaving inappropriately arises, contact the service directly as soon as you become aware of a situation.

7. Let the staffing service terminate a contingent worker.

While it may be your responsibility to do the hiring and firing for your firm, the contingent worker is the responsibility of the staffing service. Always contact the service to terminate a contingent worker.

8. Do include contingent workers in your company's employee functions where appropriate.

Contingent workers are an important part of the modern workforce, therefore it is important to make them feel as though they are part of your team. Inclusion at staff parties and other employee functions is a good idea.

There are times, however, when the company may be hosting "staff only" events such as company retreats and seminars etc. In these instances, it is best to contact the service to explain the contingent worker's exclusion. For recognition events, the service should be invited to present any awards or bonuses the company is offering to its contingent workers.  In addition, a few staffing services offer their field staff benefits packages, training and skill development, advancement schemes, and recognition programs. Choose one that does.

9. Be in touch with the service.

The basic rule of thumb is to always be in touch with the service. They are set up specifically to manage contingent and leased workforces. They have a firm understanding of the legal and logistical issues associated with the hiring of temporary staff.

How Safe Is Your Job?

In a recent edition published by Parade magazine, an article entitled "How Safe Is Your Job?"  examines a very real issue for management and affects workers too: 
U.S. workers are increasingly disengaged, and that foreign workers have appear to have a higher level of focus and commitment.

The article cites :
Beyond the cheaper cost of labor, U.S. employers say that many workers abroad simply have a better attitude toward work. “American employees must be punctual, dress appropriately and have good personal hygiene,” says Chao. “They need anger-management and conflict-resolution skills, and they have to be able to accept direction. Too many young people bristle when a supervisor asks them to do something.”

Thus, when developing today's workforce, attention needs to be paid to the "soft skills" that are essential for career and workplace success.  Providing development in just the technical skill areas is simply not enough.

There are plenty of good traditional classroom training and online training resources available to help develop these skillsets.  For busy people, who want or need to take courses on their own time schedule, online training providers RedVector and Skillsoft provide excellent "competency-based" education programs to help you or your team to increase their skills in these important areas,

Before you give orders, you need experience taking orders

Many years ago, when I was aspiring my first supervisory role, my mentor asked me what experience I had in "taking orders", by which he meant, did I have any experience being directed what to do, and being held accountable for the result?

As it happens I had multiple such experiences - by directive parents, teachers, and early employment situations, and time served in the armed forces - all of which gave me perspective about examples of leadership - some were great leaders - some were awful.

This is a critical skillset to master, even if you're only a crew chief of a two person crew.

From these experiences however, I learned a couple of important things:

• giving orders is not as easy as it seems - properly done, there is a good deal of work that precedes the order.  It is not just "passing the buck" for someone to do something that the supervisor doesn't want to (or won't) do themselves.
• taking orders and getting them done requires good listening, and attention to detail, and especially important - finishing the assigned task
• It is not just about "assignment of work" and intimidation ("because I'm telling you to"), as much as it is facilitating the completion of the work to be done.  The "baby boomer" generation would take orders without question - increasingly, people want to know "why" and "why is this important" - you need to be prepared as a leader to answer these questions directly.

When I encounter someone who has not experienced first hand "taking orders", who wants to accede to supervision or management, it makes me wonder what kind of orders they will give, and what kinds of results they will see.

Seems like the "veterans" who have been the most successful, can relate to their own personal experiences and draw upon not just theory of management, but actual emotions that help them give orders that important, are appropriate to the person and address the situation at hand.

How do you acquire the ability to direct others if you've never had to do it yourself?

You Are Not Your Job: Part II

A good chunk of early education is really to prepare most people to just follow the rules once they enter the workforce. In many ways, the educational system is just an initiation to the workplace environment – with it's authority figures, their expectations and their reward system – and not truly about learning anything practical.

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The Contingent Workforce

Highly skilled professionals are fast joining the temp ranks, so start planning your career as a consultant now, says HotGigs CEO Doug Berg

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Do we still live in the Dark Ages here in America?

If you haven't recently been over to CR4, the GlobalSpec discussion group, there's a lot happening lately.

One of the more interesting discussions is regarding the issue of gender inequality in the engineering discipline.  A recent article "Bias Continuing Issue for Women in Science Careers", that cites a  Reuters piece via CNN.com, "Women trying to make it as scientists face bias, hostility and a lack of respect that all combine to hold them back....These barriers both frighten women away from scientific careers and block the women who try to succeed," as reported by the most recent issue of the Journal of Science.

We cannot afford this type of bias today, as the ranks of engineers continues to dwindle, and an estimated 50% of the engineer ranks are looking at retirement in the next decade.

The Society of Women Engineers is working hard to change this, but this is a specialization wide issue that must be dealt with in a much broader sense.  In case you weren't aware, SWE is the driving force that establishes engineering as a highly desirable career aspiration for women. SWE empowers women to succeed and advance in those aspirations and be recognized for their life-changing contributions and achievements as engineers and leaders.  It is important to set the expectation that women are needed in engineering as they ponder career choices.  It is even more important to ensure that once they enter the engineering discipline that they are given the opportunity to grow and prosper.

When the perks look too good to be true - Look deeper

If you are wondering about whether those "out of this world" perks that appear in new stories are real, you'll enjoy reading Perk Place: The Benefits Offered by Google and Others May Be Grand, but They're All Business

Published by Knowledge@Wharton it will give you insight into the "business side" and payback rationale, as well as some insightful perspectives on what workers can expect, as well as what they can expect to give up.

Gen X May Struggle to Fill Baby Boomers' Shoes

Generation X managers may struggle to fill Baby Boomers' shoes as they retire over the next 10 years and company leadership transitions to the younger group, according to new research, involving 24,000 midlevel managers found that while both groups were able to meet performance outcomes, they arrived at them very differently

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Change and the New American Workplace

Meg Montford is a Career Coach who helps people make radical career changes.  She also has a great blog called "Career Chaos".  She recently published a great piece entitled "New American Workplace" that cites the book "The New American Workplace" by James O'Toole and Edward Lawler.  Her article discusses a webinar presented by the authors that was hosted by the American Management Association) where they analyzed the changes, consequences and choices of today's organizations.

Meg has a number of great topics on her blog and is worthy of anyone considering a career shift or trying to understand the dynamics of how people address career changes in their lives.