From my staffing hat perspective 2004 was a better year then the prior three years. The economy had some positive job growth. Wages for contractors, consultants and temporaries stabilized with some even increasing. The number of clients requesting our BLK (https://www.jobsbl.com ) to fill direct hire jobs grew and our “Tier” program experienced another year of exponential growth. We at BLK are still not at levels of past years but are moving rapidly towards our previous highs.
But still with all of this positive news unemployment remains too high, qualified job seekers remain under and unemployed. High competition for job seekers continues for many skill sets. While wars for talent exist in a few niche markets like nursing, scientific and regulatory. The job-outsourcing model seeks its level of optimal efficiency along with the off-shoring phenomena. Giving mix signals to both employers and job seekers.
As president of BLK my prediction for 2005 is for a continuing march towards improving job growth. The economy will continue to create new and better jobs as the dollar weakens and our USA products become more competitive around the globe. Many of our clients have or are reaching peak worker productivity numbers and will need to add to head count to continue to grow sales. All of these signs point to a return to excellent job creation.
As for my predictions for the next decade they are extremely positive. During the next 10 years the oldest members of the baby-boom generation will reach retirement age. This retirement trend will gut the ranks of managers and skilled workers leaving a gap to be filled by a new generation. Many have predicted that we do not have enough “generators” of any letter to replace these workers. For example, I recently read an article that a high percentage of librarians are close to retirement age. The art of being a librarian is only being taught in a few schools and the future holds an extreme shortage of librarians. Will GOOGLE replace this art?….I think not…..next time you visit your local library take a close look around….the next book you are searching for may never be found, if we don’t start making adjustments…..we will experience this in many other occupations and this my friends is the best news for our new college graduates…..who can be assured that they will have many choices beyond “McJobs”.