The Word Is “Green”Peace

Irrespective of what I’m attempting to complete of the articles and blog posts started as far back as April and May, Greenpeace representatives are dotting the landscape around downtown L.A. to raise awareness. I’ve been accosted by six of their people in the past two hours and within a distance of two blocks.

The first representative has a clever way of capturing her audience and overcoming “No.” She opens by asking if I have a minute to talk about Greenpeace. The response is “No.” She replies with something on the order of well we’re already talking and that’s part of the minute I’m asking for and proceeds to start speaking about Greenpeace.

Her words are actually quite interesting. There’s something about companies that aren’t being socially responsible with the environment and how Greenpeace is making an effort to encourage them to be more responsible in regard to the way they’re doing business. But I have yet to get to a place where my laptop and I can become symbiotic in order to record this information as it’s delivered. So I simply walk away while saying I don’t have time.

The representative has been effective in persuasive speaking. She has put an issue before me and caused me to think about it. As I make my way to the next bus stop, I peruse the concept of how many companies have indeed gone green, to what degree, in what ways, and how much more effort is required to satisfy such organizations as Greenpeace. I’m already quite aware that the new marketplace for jobs is in the “Green” industry. Thus, answers to these and other questions begin to develop predictors of tye number and types of jobs that will grow out of this effort.

Will getting people more involved in being socially responsible as it relates to the environment actually make a meaningful difference in our quality of life? Will this renewed effort actually create jobs for our slagging economy?

I finally reach a Starbucks and put out of my mind that this is one corporation that is making “green” efforts by supporting ethos water and fair trade coffees which are independent coffee grower cooperatives that develop and sell at a guaranteed fair market market price.

It’s possible to learn more about becoming responsible and “green” by going to the Green America Business Network. In perusing the many facets of being green, you can literally be knocked off your feet as you see the simple, short list of suggestions for becoming “green” and responsible. Is it any wonder that this is the new burst of energy and burgeoning industry of the New Millennium?

We may think that jobs are shrinking and being cut out but that is not true. What we need is a good crop of these New Millennium babies who can be creative with the ways we do things. The ones who enjoy the earth and appreciate the give and take relationship that needs to be maintained in order for us to retain the essential balance between industrial progress and using the most responsible means to achieve progress.

I’m accosted by the Greenpeace workers a second time as I step out of Starbucks’ frigid house so that I can rewarm my body to it’s normal temperature. This time, it is I who wants information from Greenpeace and they are the ones who are backpedaling. Which corporations are being responsible, is what I ask. The response contains easily recognized names such as Apple [Green], HP, Microsoft. But I press the issue. In what ways are they being responsible? There’s some hmm’ing and hawing and one of the three comes up with an excuse to not speak with me any longer because they’re not allowed.

In order to overcome the objection, I reveal my identity as a journalist in the recruiting industry and that I’m very interested in the new “green” industry that holds so much promise for employers and recruiters. But the cluster of representatives say they are not allowed to talk while they are in uniform. I overcome the objection by telling them that I’m working inside the Starbucks and I would like to interview them, to record what they have to tell me about the corporations that are being responsible and what other methods can be used to do even more. But the objection comes up again that they are not allowed to do that.

“That” is quite nebulous. I assure them that I would not be having them do any solicitation. I merely want to interview them in order to capture their words about the green policy. Again, they say they’ll have to check but they’re not allowed to do interviews while in uniform.

Well, it seems to me that as long as I was a mere ant in the ant trail of Life I was fair game for being captured and pulled into the hyperbole about being green and the benefits of supporting Greenpeace. But when I became a person who would listen attentively and then report what I learned, they could no longer speak to me. In fact, the cluster of three or four representatives disappeared about five to ten minutes after I returned to my table at the Starbucks.

Let me leave you with these thoughts. The Green Industry is very definitely here. There are many types of jobs available in this new industry. Take a look at the Greenpeace home page to see the many inroads that have already taken place and what they have to say about what can still be done to open up new ways to save the environment and the economies of both this and other countries. Just considering those last five words makes me feel we don’t have to be in the economic depression if we use the Green initiative to pry open those doors.

Oh, that’s right. There are all those other considerations that also get in the way of hiring the best. But this is at least a start.

New Job Search Strategies and Venues

I’m guilty and admit it. I’ve been publishing information you’re seeking but not here. It’s being published inconsistently in the places where it is appearing. All of these scatterings are becoming confusing. Time to regroup, be organized, and become consistent. (You can help me on that last one. Which of these three locations is the one you consider the place for me to provide this information?)

We already know that the economy is abysmal. Although economists won’t admit it, we are in an economic depression. Carefully study and compare our current situation to the 1930s and you’ll see the tick marks starting to add up to nearly equal numbers.

What’s interesting is how much we’ve grown in complexities in just barely a century. During the Depression of the last century, getting a job consisted of seeing a “Help wanted” sign in the store window, having a willing mind and able body and limbs, then handing the sign over to the owner with some positive conversation and the statement, “I’m willing if you’ll have me.” The owner did their on-the-spot screening and decision making and you either started or went along the sidewalk to the next place. These days, there’s personality screening, skills testing, physical and substance evaluation. There’s examination of whether you can get along with the staff as well as whether staff can get along with you. You examine the premises to determine whether it suits your tastes and whether the hours and shift are to your liking. It’s become very complex.

Some things we used to just suck up in order to stay focused and centered on getting the job done so the business could be a success (and we could keep working) become the focus to the exclusion of what the business is about. Maybe that’s one of the reasons our layoff and outplacement rates are as high as they are.

Whatever the issues, we’ve got jobs that are being cut from payrolls so that businesses can stay afloat. And we’ve got industries that are struggling to stay alive. Which means the time has come for us to rethink how we go about doing our work, where the work is located, and how to get the work. We need to consider what’s involved in staying on the payroll or getting called back. And those are the things I’ve been talking about in all three venues as well as some new ways of thinking about networking.

Entertainment

People in the entertainment industry have said it each time an awards ceremony is approaching. We need to think short term and contract. There’s too much work in the short run in all the areas that need to be covered. Those of you who are good in production and have Mac skills (not to mention graphics abilities) should be looking for and finding some tantatlizing opportunities that are contract in nature. That means they have price tags that can probably be negotiated. A two-hour project can easily turn into that plus a one or two day engagement if your work is good enough.

The key is to think short term and contract when looking for work. It’s no longer necessary to pledge your last dying breath to the company. Businesses are looking for ways to cut costs, not increase them. So to the extent you’re amenable to a hit and run relationship, where hit is each time the company needs the remote help throughout the year, you’re in business.

Other Industries

This contract and short-term work situation isn’t limited to the entertainment industry. Something that’s related to entertainment is makeup. And there’s word in the news that affordable makeup is quite a lucrative move — even for $60 per hour psychologists.

Speaking of psychologists, the other point that’s being made is that there is a growing need for people in all phases of health care in the public health care domain. This is because more people are losing their jobs along with their company-supplied health care insurance. The fallback is public health care and state-provided care.

A word to the wise is that you be sharp and stay sharp if you go into public health care at any level. Here in California we have facilities that are being closed rather than risk having inept personnel delivering poor to negligent care to the unsuspecting, consuming and in-need public. Lackadaisical attitudes and work habits are not the lasting qualities for these sites. Communication skills are imperative, that is, being able to talk with people in order to make them feel not only comfortable in distressful situations but also that they are being respected and receiving all the type and quality of care being given to mainstream denizens.

As the construction, banking, and real estate industries are floundering and people are wondering whether this is the prime time to dive in and start from the floor and move up or not, there is word that new jobs are coming out of this flattening. Green and energy is the way. Jobs in sustainable energy and renewable resources are becoming the alternatives. Look into what is transferable and what it takes to become a specialist in this area. You’re standing in the threshold of becoming tomorrow’s specialist and expert.

Tangential Services

The pressures from these new employment opportunities and ways of searching are creating new ways of doing things. This blog post is not for just job seekers. Nor is this blog. It is for all participants of the employment game.

For example, around 2004 we talked a lot about whether it was ethical to poach employees from a current client’s workforce in order to fill a requisition for another client with similar types of workers. Now the poaching issue has ramped up several degrees. The poaching is happening on an interstate basis and the cry of “no foul” is still that “we’ll do anything we want to do.” In order for that one to fly, we’ll just overlook the fact that there’s some form of interference with doing business happening in these situations so that we can still look ourselves in the mirror tomorrow.

Never fear. Some report that layoffs in the HR department are increasing. However, the HR network of experts says there’s a growing trend toward outsourcing HR needs with a network of experts. Some are available through state governed networks where the State certifies and maintains a list of experts in certain specialties.

Look for new ways to network, even at the office. We’ve had Fegen suites since the early 1970s that turned shared office space and virtual offices in the ’80s and ’90s. What’s now happening is space is becoming more a members office environment, at least here in the Los Anageles area. You can use an individual work station, with Internet access, for a few hours or all day. Other options available are weekly or monthly access for either a work station or actual office space. There’s mail and other support services in addition to conference room availability for meetings, presentations, and so on.

This may be an option for up and coming entrepreneurs who need to keep a cap on expenses while allowing their business endeavors to thrive. One of the questions you need to ask of yourself is whether the mix of tenants (as well as in the neighborhood) is right for your business and services. If they complement, it should be optimal. If it’s just a hodge podge without rhyme or reason, it may take too much work to make it work and all the services to be as cost effective as they could be.

Finally, there’s still another new service that should be useful to all three sides of the hiring desk. Indeed.com has a new service that I think I remember will be on a monthly basis. It provides a summary of the number of job postings that have been made in 12 industries and the amount of increase or decline in each. Very helpful information to have for all three sides of the hiring desk. Whether job seeker, recruiter, or hiring manager, it helps to know what the trends are in your industry and therefore get a better view of the dynamics that are driving answers to your advertising and not. If they’re not answering, you need to look at what elements are impacting you and take measures to do something about it.

Busy Times

Yes, these are busy times. These are compelling times. And it’s all exciting because we’re yet again on the verge of watching new ways of doing business and job search being taken in a new direction. Whether they’re better and less complicated is still something to be evaluated. But it’s definitely exciting.

Still Standing for the Cause

There are times when we go through situations that are most disagreeable. Unsavory as they are, unacceptable to the typical, forward-looking person, there are those who see no flaw in the circumstances because that is obviously where the person is supposed to be. They are among their kind. These individuals are progressing as they are supposed to be (which is actually stagnating and not being challenged in any meaningful way). These people are free to live wherever they want as long as it’s in the same or lesser environment of where they’re expected to be. Goods and services are acquired appropriate to the person’s standing. There is freedom of self expression in whatever manner chosen, so long as it’s among a particular class of people. Boundaries should be respected.

That description sounds like life from some foreign planet. It sounds like a brochure for a communist country tour or a visit to some place still existing under dictator rule. Actually, it’s a description of life for a typical 21st Century resident in a United States ghetto.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has established unequivocal standards that relate to fair employment practices. One would expect that after more than 50 years, those rules and regulations would be part of every person’s subconscious and guide them to make proper decisions as well as act in a reasonable way when sourcing, recruiting, screening, and hiring. But they don’t. More examples are reported each week.

Even in the recruiting industry, there are those who proudly beat their chests and boast about how ethical they are. Yet these are the very same people who will attempt to have the applicant exclude themselves from being considered by asking them questions that tend to disqualify rather than demonstrate higher qualifications. What the applicants who survive this screening-out process gain is an opportunity at a lower salary because of the lack of skills they have to offer. It tends to be Jim Crow in treatment.

Again, prime examples of race-based pay inequities abound. Statistics from the Bureau of Labor Statistics and education centers abound with the evidence. According to a 1998 study by the National Center for Education Statistics, the difference between compensation received for work (and education that qualifies the individual for it) among black women compared with Asians was .857% and between black to white workers was .9724% for the same position. In other words, blacks could expect to earn at least 3 cents less than their white counterparts and 15 cents less than their Asian ones.

This reduced starting (and therefore long-term) salary keeps certain races and individuals locked into an ever downward spiraling path of lack of opportunity. It may look like they are getting work. But many times the work that is offered actually constitutes permanent under-employment. The only hope the person has of advancing their career is to change jobs because, unlike their initial hiring process, they will be passed over for all promotions unless they are quite aggressive in their pursuit of something more advanced.

These lesser positions and opportunities are partially hinged on the not-so imaginary inferior quality of education that is delivered in black neighborhoods, especially the ghettos, compared with what is supposed to be a level playing field of equal education and exposure to challenging concepts that will develop the critical thinking minds and talent we so desperately need in 2018. Teachers are saddled with not only inferior quality supplies and resources. They are also burdened with inordinate amounts of administrative paperwork. Couple those obstacles with students who come to school ill prepared because they may have been deterred by any number of factors, and you have a powder keg of disenfranchisement that can be blamed on any and every part of “The System.”

As with the times before the EEOC, before the 1950s, people no longer rock the boat with protests of unfair opportunity or unequal opportunity. Instead, they quietly take whatever they can get in order to support their own selves and their families. Stakes, as always, are high. There are bills to be paid, rent that always comes due or resort to living on the streets. But the salaries the minorities can command are so much less than that of others that the quality of goods and services that can be consumed is also lacking. The ripples of unfair employment practices spread across the pond and touch on every aspect of business and life as we know it.

It no longer does any good to protest the wrong. To do so is to be one who makes waves and is uncontrolled and uncontrollable, prone to violence at the least provocation. The solution is to shut up the noise and get rid of it by whatever means is expedient.

We stand today looking forward to a new horizon of opportunity and a promise of change from the status quo. We have a new president who has been elected on the merit of who he is and how he conducts himself, not on what he is. What he actually represents is another statement about being an American. He is a blend of races that came to these United States. He is an example of one family’s struggle to make ends meet and strive to be a little better than the previous generation. He is one who knows the history of this country and appreciates the foundations upon which all of the lessons are based. From that type of knowledge and awareness, there can be growth and improvement.

With grit, tenacity, hard work, and adapting to the many cultures surrounding him, Barack Obama has succeeded in being the the President of Change. Change is desperately needed. Nay, it is required. He prepares to step into his office on Tuesday with the state of the Nation in shambles scattered about the floor. The leadership of the previous administration was in word only, not in execution. The world is breathing a sigh of relief and pensively waiting for the first strokes of the man who will bring order back to the Nation of leaders.

We now have the daunting task of getting shell-shocked troops out of countries where they should not have been sent in the first place only to bring them back to home soils where there are no jobs. There are few job opportunities for those who never left the States while they face high rates of layoffs. Wages are not desirable. Rents are high. Housing is next to impossible to find because lenders are foreclosing on more properties than gaining revenue from the risk. Perhaps we should become a nation of Peace Corps enlistees who live from the basics of the land and build up. Is it realistic for us to look back to an agrarian economy? As long as agri-business isn’t involved, that could be one of the solutions.

It was about 50 years ago that we marched on Washington singing and chanting and joining hands to demand Freedom Now. We listened as the charismatic King told us of how we were on our way to the Promised Land of Opportunity. But we now stand looking at that prospect and dare not breathe lest the dream vanish before our eyes.

Do we have anyone in our numbers, of whatever race or mixture, who is willing to call the injustices when they’re encountered and strive to create the corrections, turn the thinking, to the directions where there truly is an open door for those who have worked to enter it? We look forward to this inauguration and are hopeful. But we look toward this inauguration with two generations of people who no longer remember why all of these inroads are landmark.

Instead, those two generations ask “What’s Going On?” while those who were not even in their teens attempt once more to explain who the leaders were, what causes existed, why they were important and mattered. They hope by sharing the stories the younger generations will be infused with a desire to learn those lessons and names. There is a hope that they will strive to pick up the gauntlet and continue where others fell short.

We need to once again reflect on our American freedoms before we begin to formulate the response to these new generations. But we, all of us, no matter what color or ethnicity, need to be certain of the many promises this land held for us in the 1600s when the Pilgrims settled at Plymouth. And then we need to find ourselves still standing for the causes they represent. Finally, we need to firmly grasp the reins of change in order to effectuate that change, not run away from the deterioration that has become part of our apathetic reverie. Rather we need to move forward to the progressive realization of The Dream so that it will not have been in vain.

When’s the Right Time?

When’s the right time to make a profound disclosure?

We all have self-created images of another person based on their writing(s), their phone voice, the content of their resume. These are all innocuous media that are EEOC approved because they tend to not disclose the race, gender, age, physical disabilities that the other person has (or does not have).

Sometimes things will be given away in small ways. They are not that consequential and we accept that the matter will be disclosed. Essentially, it’s a time saver for people to realize “Wallace” is a man, not a woman; that Chin means the person with whom we’re corresponding is Chinese.

Most things become very obvious when we finally meet in person. But some things are still obscure, even in person. So when’s the right time to reveal that you have a disability and will need an accommodation? Some employers (and HR folk) get very nervous when they learn that their candidate or applicant has a disability and will require an accommodation. Or you tell a recruiter that the applicant will need a special keyboard and their voice begins to quaver as it becomes distant. They’re visualizing front office appearance and the negative of that. Then they either say they’ll get back to you about the applicant or tell you the position has been pulled. They’re loss. But did they really need to know about the disability at that early juncture?

Perhaps the disability doesn’t need to be revealed at all. No accommodations are required. To bring up the disability is to gild the lily and call unnecessary attention to something that’s a non-issue. But when there are unnecessarily burdensome requests and demands made that go beyond the necessities of the job being performed, it’s more than appropriate to put the other person on notice that they are being obtuse and a more reasonable and efficient way of doing the job (in addition to more cost effective) is available. Did I say anything about revealing the disability that’s being tolled? Why would it be necessary? Maybe to get sympathy; but that isn’t the goal here.

Normally, I give advice through these blog posts or merely express my opinion or vocalize my stance. There are times when I actually leave the final call up to the reader and wait for the conversation to start. This is one of those instances.

You are smart people. You have valuable thoughts that deserve being communicated so that others can know you and consider your perspective as they formulate their own opinions.

Back to our subject — when to talk about a disability. What about when the subject of favorite activities comes up? Do you say, “Boy, I just love reading my braille notes during a dark and stormy night.” Or when the topic turns to outdoors activities, do you talk about things you used to do but only partake as a spectator now? Maybe an explanation (more or less an apology) isn’t necessary; just saying that it’s a fav spectator sport. Another option is explaining that you were merely curious about the other’s activities and interests and whether there are any matches.

Actually, I don’t think it’s necessary to walk around with a placard saying “Feel sorry for me, I’m disabled.” It might if you have a tin cup, but that isn’t what you want in the workplace nor in the social world. Pity and handouts always come up short. You have an identity. It may not be as attractive to you as you would like it to be. But then, we’re always our own worst critic. Be proud of who and what you are (if there’s integrity) and don’t apologize for your own perceived shortcomings. You just may be a lot more attractive and desirable than you give yourself credit for being.

As to when is the right time to disclose the disability. How about when it’s absolutely necessary — “I never learned to swim” — and everyone is required to dive into the water on “Survivor.”

Candidate Face Off

These presidential debates and Town Halls are starting to move me back into Total Immersion. Everything I see has some relationship to job search, sourcing, recruiting, candidate development, retention, and promotion. They have me thinking quite a bit about diversity and legitimate qualifications. And they’ve got me thinking a lot about interviewing.

I’m at the stage where I’m thinking what if we had a face-off between the last two or last three contenders for a C-level position. Instead of keeping the candidates away from one another and their responses to our many questions about “what if” and “how would you” or “where would you” we did things much differently. We would put them in a conference room with the members of the Hiring Committee, the full Board, and the Officers. The members of this auspicious audience would pose questions to the candidates. The questions would be based on specific topics that are pertinent to the governance and welfare of the company. A la Town Hall style debate, the candidates would respond to the questions and also be allowed additional time to respond to or refute the answer their opponent gave.

I’ve been frustrated this election year with the fact that I’m not able to easily take in the debates. Even more frustrating is the fact that it appears the candidates are falling back on speechifying and spouting rhetoric rather than delving into talking about the difficult issues and coming up with projected plans and workable designs for this nation and its people.

The frustration is exacerbated by the overwhelming amount of dysfunction impacting us due to the fascist regime under which we’ve labored for the past eight years. It is a regime that feels it is answerable to no one and is completely privileged and untouchable. It’s use of the many economic tools is without knowledge and appreciation of the inevitable outcomes from mismanagement. We shouldn’t be surprised and shocked at the pervasive amount of fallout impacting us at this date.

Why would we do something that’s this far off the traditional path of interviewing and screening? These types of debate interviews or face-offs would allow the stakeholders to see the full strengths each candidate brings to the table on a pro rata basis. These face-offs could have the advantage of showing which candidate has the strengths the company needs at this time and provide insight into how those strengths would actually be used to get the desired results.

Aren’t interviews and their content supposed to be private? That’s what we’ve been told for centuries. Perhaps it’s time to break the mold. No one has given us solid reasons why the types of responses we seek from these candidates should be obscure and occult. In fact, this is the level at which the enterprise needs to know from the outset whether the potential leader is one who is ethical and how well they articulate the goals and agenda of the company.

There are so many times when the same question is not posed to all the candidates. Therefore, how they would have answered compared with their competition is still a mystery. Yet decisions are made based on what was said, who seemed to provide the best answers, and recollections that strive to retain what was said by the other candidate some three to five weeks before. And these recollections are beside the point that there have been many unrelated meetings and negotiations and other business that has overriden this minor step in the hiring process.

Additionally, this alternative interviewing style affords us with a new perspective of the candidates. C-level workers are the leaders of the corporation. They are the vision of not only where the company is going but the best way to get there. They set the tone for the style and manner in which things are done. They are the role models. How they handle challenges, pick up theirselves when there’s a misstep, their communication strength, and graciousness are all part and parcel of what we’re trying to get right. Having these candidates face one another is a true test of how well they can handle the challenge of facing any opposition.

This is a time when the stakeholders can get a very accurate picture of what the candidates see as the major emphasis and focus for the company. It is also the time when everyone can see and hear how well the candidate has prepared himself with knowledge of the company, its standing, and other important aspects that relate to making decisions on behalf of the company.

Does the candidate play to his or her own strengths or does s/he use denigration to gain position over their contender? How solid is the candidate’s knowledge of the issues facing the company? It’s important to know whether the person appreciates the competition’s brand compared with that of the company as well as whether they have ideas about how to enhance that image. Having them discuss these matters on a page for page basis is much better than getting caught up in something that takes us off in another direction that simply does not compare.

If nothing else, having these simultaneous interviews does something very important for the company. It allows the contenders to know who the other is. Wherever the also ran goes, there also goes a new contact and a relationship and respect that was built on clear and open communication.

Perhaps this proposed final interview of C-level candidates is over simplified. Maybe it wouldn’t work because the human factor in any situation is always the one that simply cannot be predicted. It is always possible that between the two final contenders, one is more ruthless and unethical and will then turn back to their competitor’s company and let the word slip that they met the other candidate while having talks with the company about a mission critical vacancy.

The Talent Crisis and the State of Education

What is it about Los Angeles schools and the caliber of education in this city? It’s difficult to tell whether the phenomenon of producing poorly educated individuals is unique to the Los Angeles schools, to particular zip codes within the sprawling city, or whether it should be attributed to the caliber of teachers who are employed here. With a small turn, it seems the problem isn’t isolated to just Los Angeles. It’s a state problem. It’s a national problem. It’s epidemic. Approximately half of those who enter high school will graduate four and a half years later. Of that number, there will be the usual spread of achievement and proof of quality education.

Some give up in deference to the many external pressures impacting them. Some are the usual profile of get by with the minimum amount of effort. Some of those numbers will blossom at a later time, when they realize the importance and value of knowledge and the path to achieving their goals in an acceptable way.

Our Mayor proposed a solution to the issue of education. After all, it impacts the quality of product one can expect from the City, it’s a form of interstate commerce, this “Made in Los Angeles” stamp that graduates of our schools carries. And the lackadaisical attitude impacts other products that are actually manufactured and marketed in other states and cities, in other parts of the world. So much so that employers are still reluctant to hire individuals from a particular zip code.

Quite a flurry was started when last year the question was put to the recruiting industry as to where the responsibility for education our youth should reside. The question arose out of the controversy started as the Mayor sought to have control over the School Board, to supplant the Superintendent of Schools with himself. Villaraigosa has succeeded in his striving to take over the running the school district and he did so by making an ally of his potential rival, Superintendent Brewer.

It was announced on October 1 that Villaraigosa will have oversight of two “families” of schools, which turn out to be the lowest performing of all the schools in the Los Angeles Unified School District, 44 schools in total (27 high schools, 17 middle schools that feed into those high schools).

I’ve delayed addressing the October 10 announcement of the school district’s spin-off district because there was a need to research which are the affected schools. That information is not easy to ascertain using the resources I was initially able to access. It seems another report from the District’s site should have been used.

But one thing seems to be consistent: There is no one, single solution to the education (therefore talent) crisis. Impacts are multiple and that means solutions also need to be wrought from many areas that work toward the core. However, one study conducted by a California State University at Los Angeles Assistant Professor, a Ph.D. candidate, and a representative from LAUSD found that teacher confidence in their self and the abilities of their students had a direct correlation to the success those students achieved. This “get what you expect” syndrome has been researched at other times in management and human resource areas. The results are consistent.

It looks like the reminder needs to be given on a repeated basis. You get what you expect. Expect the best and treat the candidates as you would want to be treated. Those are just two steps in overcoming the talent crisis as it is affected by the education issue.

education, “workforce preparation”, “school district”, management,

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Continued Hiring and Raises in Spite of Tight Labor Market

News reports say we’re in a tight labor market. In spite of that, hiring managers will not be firing workers. Instead, they will continue to hire and will offer salary increases. The logic — once you’ve got the good ones, why not do what’s necessary to keep them.

Isn’t it nice to be able to spout off all of that official sounding information? But who understands what it really means? Few, very few. So what is this “tight labor market” rhetoric? First, it isn’t rhetoric. It is a fact that annually, fewer people are prepared to step into the workforce and deliver the type of performance that is required as measuring up to “good work” or “quality performance” for the employer’s needs. What this means for those who are already employed is they have done what’s necessary to prove theirselves; they’re now in the desirable position of being able to ask for (and probably receive) a higher salary. They’ve shown that they have the right stuff to make it.

In doing research for this post, a Federal Reserve publication called The Beige Book was found. It looks at all parts of the economy across the country and examines the various pressures and dynamics that are happening to cause growth or contraction. You’ll want to add this to your industry and company research links tools so that you can learn more about what’s happening in your target industry. Then you can make your entrance with knowledge and insight. You may even want to spout a few of the statistics during the interview, just to show that you know what you’re talking about and would make phenomenal talent.

But let’s get to the nuts and bolts of what’s happening in the labor market. According to the Beige Book, the economy is tight. We don’t have enough well qualified, well educated, properly prepared workers coming into the market to offset those who are leaving for retirement. In fact, the labor market looks very much like it did in 1999.

The underlying message also includes the fact that it takes more to train the new worker than it did before. Adding to that is the slap-dash attitude that whatever it takes to get product out the door is okay; quality can be sacrificed. Indeed, pressures to deliver on time sometimes demand that the “little things” be let go for the sake of living up to the reliability factor. This, many times, is a very short-sighted attitude in consideration of the long-range possibilities of product failure and consequent consumer lawsuits for personal injury or death.

Ah, that legal background causes all manner of detours. Forgive me. Back to tight labor markets and the impact on hiring and raises. There will be less hiring but less than in the previous quarter. There is a reluctance to fire workers because firing tends to create gossip that makes people worry and reduce morale. Reduced morale means lower productivity while workers are checking out want ads in case they are one of those on the block. And lowered productivity means less work that gets delivered to the client — who pays the bills.

Sounds a bit like a Catch-22. It’s actually a fact of Life and part of the business life cycle.

If you’ve got a job, do whatever is necessary to keep it. If you just can’t sweat it out, hold on until you find something else that’s a better fit.

More importantly, this is a critical time to purposefully network.

Productivity and spending in nearly all sectors is up; one exception is residential mortgage origination and refinancing as well as construction. People are willling to spend. They desire product. The news is that wages are increasing.