Market Update - November 2010
Recently we chatted with Kevin Wheeler via an online radio show ‘FROG LIVE RADIO’ and posed a few questions to him. One area we explored was his opinion about what he believed were the fundamental shifts in employment trends.
Based in the US, Kevin‘s comments were as follows:
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Two areas of the employment market are in better shape:
- Highly skilled or in-demand skill sets are sitting well
- Relatively unskilled people are employed
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It’s the displaced middle/middle class [the ones who have a few years education/some skills] who have been experiencing the bulk of redundancies and they are not being hired back.
And the reasons for this according to Wheeler are because:
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People are being replaced with automated equipment and process improvements
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Wherever there is a need – it is being filled with contingent workers (contractors & temporary staff)
Additionally Wheeler believes, either driven by desperation or market forces, a new type of worker is becoming evident; the virtual worker. The person, who barters for jobs, completes virtual work, bids on work in an open community... all made possible by our technology and the internet.
And to finish, a salient comment from Kevin for us all to note…
"You have got to be aware of technology and management trends. You’ve got to be curious."
