Several previous Big Time posts have discussed green jobs as possible options for those looking for a new industry or new job to pursue. Part of President Obama's economic stimulus package included funding for environmentally focused jobs and industries.
Although some reports may say that the number of green jobs available is disappointing, these jobs are still options for passive and actively seeking job candidates. Check out the following article about finding a green job.
Not only does this article offer advice about what one might need to do to find a green job, such as relocating and staying focused on particular industries, but it also lists a number of web sites that can keep you up to date on the news and information about green businesses and industry.
Whenever I have a temp-to-hire or direct hire candidate going into a formal interview with my clients, the younger candidates always ask what is expected of them. I tell them that they need to conduct themselves positively and in the best light, while also maintaining honest integrity and professionalism. When the time comes for an interview, it is up to the applicant to determine what is expected of them, based on both the questions asked by the hiring manager as well as questions posed to the hiring manager.
But when a job offer comes along, it is up to the manager to make it clear what is expected of the new hire, right from the beginning. It is also the manager’s responsibility to clarify what the new hire can expect of the manager, the position, and the company. Too often, we assume the other party has a good idea of what is wanted and unknown expectations cause too much workplace animosity.
At times, I’ve believed that my managers ask too much of me; that their expectations are too great. Other Generation Y-ers just up and quit at this point, or at the least begin polishing their resumes for new jobs. When you’re faced with what you believe are unrealistic expectations, try to do one of two things. You can go right to the manager, and innocently suggest a bit of guidance in completing the task or better understanding what is wanted and by when.
For those of you (like me) who aren’t always as brave, the second option is much easier. Find a mentor in the office who can guide you, but isn’t going to do the work for you. You have to challenge yourself to grow in the company, and having that extra person there to coach and teach you will always help you erase your self-doubt when faced with a seemingly impossible task. You don’t want to become dependent on the mentor, but you do want to use their experience with the company and in personal development, to expand your abilities and develop your potential as an asset to the company.
I would also encourage managers to take the proactive approach and setting up new hires with a mentor right away. Mentorship programs will lead to better retention of employees and a reduction in younger employees jumping ship.
We've just posted a new podcast by Spherion CEO Roy Krause about the hot topic of re-careering.
He and I have seen and read about the trend of mid-career workers who are either dissatisfied with their current prospects or simply decide they want to pursue a passion and make a major change.
While many of us have probably pondered the idea of leaving the corporate world to become a photographer, interior decorator or dive instructor in Bimini, it's not necessarily an easy thing to do.
Roy explores the challenges of making a major career change and provides advice about how to effectively position yourself and explain your change to employers.
For a list of recent podcasts, please visit our pressroom.
We've been hearing for a number of years about the knowledge and skills gap that will be left by the impending, and massive retirement of baby boomers. I ran across a recent Forbes article about the fastest growing jobs in America, many of which made the list due to this boomer phenomenon. Here are a few highlights from their article:
Number one on the list: Home health aides, with estimated growth of 56% in their numbers over the next eight years.
Medical assistants, dental assistants and physical therapist aides should all see growth of more than 30% by 2014.
No finance or accounting gigs made the list, which was compiled before the private equity bonanza of 2006.
There will be 32% more college professors in 2014 than 2004, according to the BLS, and 33% more preschool teachers.
Technology jobs are growing rapidly. Software engineers and network systems analysts make the top 10 overall.
The exodus of baby boomers from the workforce is certainly one reason for the projected increase in these positions. In addition, the sheer size of the boomer population that is growing older and living longer is also influencing the growth of medical-related professions. Simply put, more people will be needed to take care of this aging generation.
Pursuing a career in any of these industries is a wise decision - just make sure to take advantage of working with the boomers who are still working but near retirement. These mentors will be your best resource for learning skills and knowledge applicable to your new career.
There is a broad trend we're seeing develop based on a large number of our clients throughout the country. And that is, more and more employers are looking for candidates who possess a mix of both technical skills (i.e. accounting, IT) as well as a decent amount of business acumen. A recent post on Job Search Secrets, and the Bureau of Labor Statistics, also point out that this is particularly true within some high growth job markets in 2007; computer systems design, systems administration, cyber security, and management consulting to name a few.
If you're an individual looking to break into the hot IT field, I found a great cyber tool to get you started. Check out the YouTube video below called 'An Introduction to a Career in Network Support.' This video is part of a series by TechAnvil that gives an excellent background to some jobs within the IT field. They will give you a taste of what to expect from these jobs which can help you determine if they are a good fit for you or not.
I am always interested in articles and blog posts that refer to "hot jobs" or "top career choices" lists. One such list that caught my eye was recently posted on Career Builder Campus blog. It names some exciting and rather inventive career options, including Art Therapist and Animal Defense Attorney. Yes, those are real jobs. If you've got a passion for something unique and what may be considered a niche career, these are some great options for you. For those of you who want to stick with career paths a bit more commonplace, you've got choices too. Consider some "hot" mainstream industries in 2007 that are desperately seeking good, qualified talent.
Healthcare will continue to seek out dedicated employees, especially in nursing and allied health positions. If you're looking for a career that has longevity and provides a daily dose of excitement, healthcare may be right up your alley.
Technology is still a red hot option. The IT industry is always evolving with new products and innovative ideas, which can mean long term growth opportunities and an outlet for creative juices. It too remains one of the most exciting career choices for potential job candidates.
Other industries that make my list of "2007 hot jobs" include accounting, education, law enforcement and human resources.
Whether your goal in life is to become an executive chef to the rich and famous, or to happily spend your days crunching numbers, the opportunities are bountiful. Once you've chosen a field to pursue, focus your energy and efforts towards landing the job. For help and advice on getting the job check out the posts in the job search guidance and career advice sections of this blog.
As the year 2006 is coming to an end, it seems an appropriate time to share some of my predictions for and about the mature workforce in 2007. There are too many to include in one post so look for more predictions in the days to come. And, as always, I welcome your comments and perspective on these and any other predictions of your own.
2007 is the year that mature "specialists" will begin to dominate the temporary job market. They will teach, mentor and transfer specialized knowledge to the next generations. Beyond this similarity to past "masters," they will expand their specializations and bring a new level of creativity to "work."
The battle over social entitlements will heat up in 2007 and will turn red hot late in the year. Boomers will pay closer attention to outcomes as 10,000 boomers turn 50 each and every day. One in three will face retirement with no money except for social entitlements. All face the probability of significantly longer lifetimes.
Healthcare jobs will lead all other opportunities in 2007. In a recent survey conducted by AARP, 32 of the 50 best employers for workers over 50 were in the healthcare industry. Beyond healthcare, telecommuting will take another giant step forward and the temporary agency business will flourish.
A podcast on this topic is now available. To listen to or download this podcast, please click here for Quicktime users and here for Windows Media Player users. All Spherion podcasts will soon be available at the iTunes Music Store for those of you that want to take us with you on your iPod.
The folks at Computerworld just sent us the results of their 20th annual IT Career Survey that has a few interesting (but not unexpected) nuggets about the current state of IT salaries. Who's getting the short end? According to this survey, it is the network managers and the technical trainers. No surprises there considering that some of these positions have either been outsourced offshore or have been replaced by downloadable instructional video podcasts. The winners (obviously) are the Web developers, the programmers; essentially anybody that can bring a touch of Web 2.0 to their current employers.
The Web has become infinitely more malleable thanks to technologies like Ajax that allow anyone to customize software and Web-based applications to suit VERY specific business needs and can make a company more efficient and competitive. What used to take months to develop, now takes a few hours to create...and what's even more attractive to business-owners is, these applications are mostly Web-based, which means they don't need to host them on their own network servers (this probably explains the dip in pay raises for network managers).
Who's hiring these Web developers? Media companies and content owners are being forced to adapt to changing consumer appetites by distributing their content libraries online. Web skills are hot, so we've been recommending to our many IT candidates that if they do not already have a proficiency in this area, they should add these skills to their repertoire immediately. Also, a word to employers: you may find yourselves paying top-dollar for Web developers, but we encourage you to think about the efficiency gains you may reap down the road.
I have been thinking about the advantages and challenges adding 3 million more people each year to our population might mean to many aspects of our work lives. I have come to believe, after all speculation is over and done with, that " demographics are reliable predictors of destiny" - and, as one result, the very near future looks quite different than the very recent past. Are you ready for what population change means to work in America?
Taken together with a changing mix of ages, ethnicities, cultures and races, educational accomplishments, and world events, population change paints a picture of our future of work.
Did you know, for instance, that Healthcare is already the number #1 industry in America?
If America capitalizes on innovation, science and the latest technology, the healthcare industry may give America (and you) the most opportunity to remain economically competitive in the next 10 years.
What do most of emerging jobs/careers have in common?
Here's what the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts... 70% of new jobs require specific education, training and/or certifications.
Step forward to the near future. Ask yourself... which industries and what jobs are guaranteed to grow in just the next 10 years?
I ran across a post on Employment Digest that mentions a surge in IT manager positions. Although I have seen an increase in IT management positions from my own clients, I wasn’t aware of just how many IT managers are making it onto the scene. For example, the post references that IT managers employed in the US have jumped 44 percent since the dot.com collapse of 2001, compared to a 19 percent decline in the number of programming and support jobs. Also, the BLS states that managers now represent 11.2 percent of IT employment, the fourth largest technical job category.
The blogger mentions that this growth reflects the importance of IT implementation in our current business landscape. But he also points out that organizations today are looking for “soft” skills such as leadership, management of people and budgeting as much as they are technical knowledge.
I would add that a very important change in the makeup of IT workers today is also driving the growth of IT management positions. A technology renaissance has intersected with a time in which aging boomers are exiting the workforce and moving into retirement. I believe many of the “soft skills” companies’ value and need from their IT folks were often found in baby boomer workers where the mix of soft and hard, technical skills is generally more balanced. Many of today’s younger IT workers have tremendous technical know-how, but can lack the ability to connect their IT work to larger company objectives, leadership or project management skills.
If you’re in the IT field and looking for ways to manage your career, this is an important trend to understand. Many of my clients are seeking IT workers who have the strong technical expertise, but who also understand how technology helps improve a company’s business. In other words, the ability to roll up your sleeves and get the work done, but also the ability to see the business impact, lead and direct others. Focusing on your management skills as much as you focus on your technical toolbox will help pave the way for a very successful career.
Did you know AARP studies state that one in four boomers wants to do something completely different from their previous work? My experience tells me that many more would like to explore changing from the corporate world into a nonprofit world, to stree-free or fancy-free jobs, or to roles that will allow them to meet new and meaningful challenges. New opportunities abound... here are a few to consider. Real estate sales or service. No, I am not suggesting trotting around homes in a dwindling market with the other 2.4 million U.S. licensed real estate agents. The "hot" market for mature professionals is in sales and service in the active living adult communities where the price of admission is age 55! Buy or build a small business or franchise. AARP found that in 2002, 5.6 million workers over the age of 50 were self-employed in an unincorporated or incorporated business, making up 40 percent of the self-employed population. Physician assistant. Enjoy many of the benefits of being a physician with few of its liabilities. Under a doctor's supervision, physician assistants do diagnosis, treatment, and patient education, but training takes just two to three years. The BLS reports that PA's will be among the fastest growing careers. Tutoring for pay. Red hot if you can tutor in math, science and English language skills. If you have an educational credential, that's a plus. But, if your own career demonstrates your expertise, many opportunities are available without the formal credential. Explore paid part-time opportunities in the public sector. According to the EEOC, the average age of federal workers has reached nearly 46 years of age. Part-time opportunities will be bountiful in the public sector as government struggles to contain costs in the future. Debunk the myth that the government does not pay well. According to figures compiled by the BLS and the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, the average federal employee earns a salary comparable to, or better than, his/her counterpart in private industry. Foster care to save a generation. There are over 520,000 children in the U.S. foster care system. Many of these children will do better if placed in homes with "grandparents" than with younger families who are struggling to raise their own families. And, I'll bet some of you could use someone to love, mentor and inspire as well. Now go on, explore!
The nightmarish temp job ... we've all had them. Now you can relive every awkward, cringing moment with My Temporary Life, Spherion's original Web series based upon YOUR worst temping stories.
Spherion is an employer of choice to 300,000 individuals. We've been finding rewarding career opportunities and job experiences that prove a great match for individuals' skills and expertise for 60+ years.
Let Spherion connect you to a career opportunity that will ensure your continued success! Connect now
