Job seekers can learn who is hiring, who might be and when that might happen by studying multiple information sources. The most accurate of these sources is "the job whisperer," a term coined for the economy by staffing firm Randstad NA, headquartered in Atlanta.
You don't have to be an economist or a statistician to ferret out information from the job whisperer, which appears in several guises. These include intricacies of company upheaval ("disruption") and growth in company investments. Gaining familiarity with industries, industry niches and occupations that became casualties of the recession will help you avoid fields that are almost extinct. Tackle research from different angles before you determine your favorite method.
'RESTRUCTURING ECONOMICS'
Strategy consultant Rosemarie Truman, managing partner at RHT Consulting L.L.C., in Leesburg, Va., has conducted extensive research for large staffing firms by looking for "disruption" in market dynamics for increased opportunities. Her "restructuring economics" helps job seekers and staffing firms find:
• companies growing by more than 10 percent to 30 percent and aren't overvalued;
• companies that have restructured during the recession without creating ill will by slashing salaries and benefits;
• companies whose innovations created significant growth breakthroughs, such as Google's directly connecting a cell phone with money in its Android Platform; and
• industry segments which have experienced "enormous disruption given their market dynamics, such as pharmaceuticals, with $70 billion in patents coming up for 're-patenting' and erosion by generics."
Economist Mary Harris, who chairs the Business Department at Cabrini College in Radnor, Pa., would add that you should ferret out information about which companies are investing, because the amount will increase as employers become more confident about the economy. When they see sustained growth, hiring is likely to occur.
The method Truman uses requires scouring both formal and informal sources for pertinent information. "Informal sources are actually better," she comments. "You get to hear it from employees/ex-employees. These include my3cents.com, glassdoor.com, jobvent.com and sister sites tailored to different industry segments, like vault.com." Formal information uncovers a company's relevant changes, such as huge layoffs and decreases in compensation and benefits (seekingalpha.com).
ECONOMIC PREDICTORS
Although career counselors frequently tell people to follow their passion, recent economic trends would make having more than one essential. Watch out for passions that might give you trouble. Max Bublitz, chief strategist at SCM Advisors L.L.C., in San Francisco, Calif., points to the severe impact of the housing-bubble burst on the market. Bublitz expects most jobs related to the housing industry to be lost. He also projects keen competition for jobs by workers and non-workers of all types — part-time, full-time, underemployed, unemployed and discouraged. In other words, job hunters will have to become highly-informed and competitive.
Based in Bedford, N.H., Shirley Jones, senior vice president for the New England Market of Randstad NA, says that decreased unemployment and consistent reports of job growth are important. She's also been observing trends among clients — "many major and smaller companies across industries that have experienced ups and downs and are now experiencing a need to bring workers in, temporary and permanent, because things are picking up." Specific areas she cites are IT, manufacturing, financial services, professional and business services, healthcare and transportation.
Where should you not look? Truman advises staying away from "stagnant sectors or those that shrank, such as credit card companies; those that didn't innovate, including high-tech companies; those that haven't had disruption; and those that restructured unstrategically by slashing and burning employees."
Some of these methods will be more attractive to you than others. Find at least one you can use.
Dr. Mildred L. Culp welcomes your questions at culp@workwise.net. Copyright 2010 Passage Media.
RSS
E-Mail
Print
reprint or license
