Todd’s Thoughts 

What will the coming year hold for Michigan's job market? Specifically, what does will 2008 hold for skilled workers in the state?

Knowledge Crisis Ahead?

As of the first quarter of 2006, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, unemployment for knowledge workers (defined as anyone with a bachelor's degree or higher) was hovering just above 2% and on the decline throughout the US. In addition, 76 million baby boomers will retire in the next five years. We are on the verge of a more acute and protracted "War for Talent" than we faced in the late 1990s. However, this time the talent war will be much more cross-cultural, multi-generational and global.

Recruitment and human resources leaders can no longer afford to be parochial in their outlook on talent. Ageism, non merit-based discrimination of any sort and myopic attitudes toward the sources of talent will spell disaster for organizations where those biases are allowed to prevail. The winners of the war on talent will welcome talent of all ages and varieties, and they will build their networks into the farthest reaches of the planet.

It is imperative that executives and senior managers, from small, mid-size and large firms, understand the implications of our aging and diversifying domestic talent pools as well as the dynamics of a global workforce that is expanding at lightning speed. For human resources leaders, knowledge of best practices in retaining older workers is key. For recruiters, knowledge of top sources for recruiting the diverse workforce and of the factors that appeal to diverse recruits is critical.

In the end, tapping into the global, remote workforce may prove the most challenging. Recruiting leaders should ask themselves who they know in talent "hot spots" around the world and how well they know those regions--their cultures and values--themselves. What partnerships have they made with global services firms who can provide on-demand skilled workers? Would they know where to start if they had to quickly build a team of software engineers, or accountants and actuaries, or build a call center for customer care and management? As the supply of skilled and semi-skilled workers dries up in the developed world, these connections and partnerships will be invaluable.

Source: Excerpts from Inc.com column by Allan Schweyer 

Study: Almost Half of Résumés are Bogus

While much attention has been focused on performance-enhancing drugs in the sports world over the past few years, a new study shows that the business world may be suffering from even more cheating -- at least when it comes to résumés.

RésuméDoctor.com, a South Burlington, Vt.-based résumé-counseling company, spent six months verifying dates of employment, job titles, and educational background on more than 1,000 résumés, and found that 42.7% had one or more significant errors. The study, which was the company's first, looked a résumés for positions ranging from entry level to executive.

Todd Springer, a managing partner at Footbridge, an Andover, Mass.-based engineering and IT staffing firm, said he has seen many instances of title inaccuracies and date discrepancies. "A résumé is designed to be a selling tool," he said, noting that it is an employer's obligation to then verify that sales pitch. Interviews, he has found, are an essential part of the vetting process.

At the same time, contacting references is key, Springer said, recalling a résumé he once came across where the candidate was actually covering up prison time with bogus information. He suggests cold-calling references, especially if the employer has pre-existing relationships with someone in a company listed on an applicants résumé.

RésuméDoctor's Worthington said that the fear of lawsuits makes many companies reluctant to do thorough résumé checks.

Source: Excerpts from article by Ted O'Callahan - Inc.com