Steve's Blog (for Jobseekers & those hiring)

I am listing a couple of add-in categories that augment the trends listed in the previous job trends article:

As before, I have included a quick-list, in case you prefer not to have to read through the entire list:

#1) Collections
#2) Transportation and related Infrastructure Improvements
#3) Education, Arts, and Urban Renewal
#4) Sarbanes-Oxley, Transparency and Government Oversight
#5) Grant-Writing & Related Professions
#6) Private Security (Hardware, Software, Online)
#7) Workers for / Personal Presence in Online Social Networks

Additional growth area # 1: Collections

Background:

With the increase of constrained lending, tight budgets and shortages of ready capital for consumers, many people (private individuals and corporate entities alike) will find it harder to make ends meet. As such, I project increases in delays to paying off bills. With unpaid bills comes the inevitable and unenviable task of collecting on outstanding debts. Companies will soon find it harder to survive, as customers push out payments for planned delivery of products and services.

Analysis:

In order to off-set lost revenue from the shrinking number of viable customers, companies will need to collect on outstanding debt and close loops to ensure that owed money is paid. While many larger companies employ in-house collections departments, many mid- to small-size companies will turn to third-party vendors to collect this revenue. One  advantage is that collection agencies remove the astigmatism of aggressively targeting non-paying customers (they act as the buffer between the company and the customer).  They also are specialists at overcoming objections, can handle all complaints and feedback, and are typically discrete regarding the nature of the collection and the tactics to obtain payment.

Job / Expertise needed: Collections agents, Customer support representatives, Billing and Finance analysts

Additional growth area # 2:

Transportation and related Infrastructure Improvements

Background:

Based on the recent focus on high-speed rail and the influx of stimulus money in that direction, I project some growth for this industry.  Couple this with the nation’s  aging infrastructure, I project growth for critical transportation projects such as retrofitting for bridges, tunnels, highways, and main thoroughfares such as major roads, super structures, train & railway upgrades.

Analysis:

Growth in this sector will be tied to construction-specific fields such as contractors, welders ,bridge-layers, masons, etc.  Also, there will be mild growth for supporting administrative functions to manage financial aspects of this work (project managers & leaders, finance analysts, planners).  Within CA, growth may be adversely impacted by the state’s budgetary troubles, meaning there will be severe delays before projects can move forward.

Job / Expertise needed: Construction-related laborers, concrete-workers, contractors, some finance & project management staff.

Additional growth area # 3: Education, Arts, and Urban Renewal

Background:

Among the flow of money from the recent Stimulus packages, billions of dollars were set aside for various projects tied to educational efforts (including those related to the arts, philanthropy, and urban-renewal).  Similar to the building up of our operational infrastructure (roads, bridges, tunnels and other efforts), these projects shore up our cultural and sociological infrastructure by allowing educational, artistic and cultural endeavors to thrive.

Analysis:

I project growth in areas related to the administration and build up of educational and arts-related programs.  I can’t say that in California, this will completely off-set the state’s budgetary woes (with billions in massive cuts across the different public educational systems, CSU’s, UC’s, and Community colleges).

What I do see, however, is some breathing room for private endowments that until now had struggled with only private contributors providing the life’s blood of funding.  As far as types of jobs that will be created, I can’t be absolutely positive.  I project growth for positions in administration and support staff.  Also (hopefully) educational positions such as lecturers, teachers, instructors and professors.    How this will reconcile again the state of CA’s severe needs to trim costs, no one can say for a certainty.  I anticipate that most of the growth will happen in smaller, private institutions that may not be held to the state’s funding and budgetary constraints.

Job / Expertise needed:  Administration, Staff positions, some Educators (mostly in small, private institutions)

Additional growth area # 4:

Sarbanes-Oxley, Transparency and Government Oversight

Background:

With billions of dollars flowing to a variety of businesses (including financial institutions, insurance companies, large-scale auto-makers, and small and mid-size businesses), there is an ever-increasing need for transparency and accountability from these institutions that we (as taxpayers) are providing money to.  This is already evident in the existence of sites like USASpending.gov and Recovery.gov.  This is coupled with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which implemented a series of controls for the accounting of publicly traded companies in the United States.

Analysis:

However, what does this means for jobs?  Well, in environments where there is a shift from assumed safety and security of institutions to skepticism and mild to pronounced paranoia regarding how these companies spend hard-earned taxpayer money, there is an even higher need for stringent examination of $’s, figures, records, and other financial information.  Into these situations, comes the need for those trained to decipher the inner workings of companies’ financial records and data.  From that analysis, someone needs to articulate risks and provide guidance on actions to either minimize that risk through what ever appropriate actions are necessary.

Job / Expertise needed:  Auditors, Financial Analysts, Forensic Financial Planners, SOX Compliance Specialists, and accompanying management and support staff

Additional growth area # 5: Grant-Writing & Related Professions

Background:

Much of the speculation for this job-growth area comes from our country’s emphasis on the disbursement of Stimulus funding.  Many growth areas I have written on have found at their core a direct or indirect benefit from the recent stimulus funding.  In order to properly utilize funds from the package, however, organizations of all sizes (large to small), and types (for profit’s, not-for-profit’s, and non-profit’s) will need two things to ensure they are able to capitalize on these funds:

1) They need to properly design, implement, and manage appropriate projects to utilize the funds.

2) They need to articulate their detailed plans, including how they plan to utilize the funds, and how the United States, and it’s citizens will be able to measure their Return On Investment (ROI).

This second item comes in the forms of formal grants that are written and submitted to the US Government for approval.

Analysis:

The pressing need will be not only on the need for those with clear and concise writing abilities, but also on the skills needed to navigate the obstacles of endless government bureacracy to obtain the needed funds.  Needed skill-sets include strong writing abilities, research skills, internet savvy, political connections, intricate organizational skills, and the capacity for plan, leverage resources, and execute to submit quality proposals on time.

Job / Expertise needed: Grant-Writers (including writing, editorial and clerical staff), Database researchers, Data-entry specialists, Legal support staff, Financial & Accounting staff.

Additional growth area # 6: Private Security (Hardware, Software, Online)

Background:

Much of the world’s financial resources is reliant on the transmission of data from one location to another, whether between institutions, individuals, countries, or massive electronic systems.  That said, the protection of such data is of ut-most importance and the highest visibility.  Although most people hear about the occasional store, restaurant, or even bank robbery, this immediate, physical, in-person type of crime is becoming less and less prevalent.  It is now giving way to an onslaught of cyber-based, electronic attacks from the internet and beyond.  It used to be that if crooks wanted to take what’s yours they would need to get close enough to you that you could possibly see their faces.  Nowadays, with a few clicks of a keyboard, or the receipt of some email from a Nigerian prince, your life-savings and livelihood could disappear.  With the increase of exposure and access to every increasingly complex online tools and programs, we must also increase our awareness of the potential threats and gurd against those threats that could devastate our lives.

Analysis:

Who do we need to protect us with these dangerous online threats?  Here is where security comes from the establishment of strong and capable security vendors (anti-virus, firewall, and anti-intrusion software vendors, such as Trend Micro, Symantec, McAfee and others).  Also, it helps to have security at the hardware and firmware level (from companies such as Cisco, and others) to protect our interests.  Aside from protecting our systems from letting the bad guys in, we also need the means to restore our systems to a state that allows us to continue or start over from where an intrusion had become a problem.  Therefore, data-backup, data encryption, and system recovery will also be vital to keeping us from collapsing into obscurity and failure.  So who will do this type of work?  While the numbers of hires will depend on how the economy does, there will always be needs for competent system and database administrators, technicians, and support staff.

Job / Expertise needed: DBA’s, System Administrators, Security Specialists, some need for programmers and coders, Technical support staff, Onsite technicians, some Business Development and Sales Staff

Additional growth area # 7: Workers for / Personal Presence in Online Social Networks

Background:

This is an outgrowth of the paradigm shift of job search from the traditional method of “upload or apply to a job, and based on your personal merits, the company hires you,” to “getting hired depends on who you know.”  What I have seen in the job search world over the last few years has been a convergence of a few different phenomena:  1) the prevalence of expanding social circles and networking to foster advancement and career mobility 2) the use of online tools to manage contact information, expedite communication, and track and manage the exposure of companies to prospective hires, and candidates to recruiters, hiring managers, and sourcing companies  3) the advent of instantaneous accessibility to, research of, and validation in information.

Analysis:

What does this mean for me as a candidate?  Well, there are various jobs supporting this industry 9from technical and administrative positions), we also have to look at this as shifting the landscape of what is required or expected of prospective candidates.  In other words, it’s not enough anymore to say that I have a resume, or even a web page.  You must now prove that you understand how to mange your online presence, to manage what information is available about you as a candidate, and how to best leverage that information to your benefit, whether it’s on Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, LinkedIn, Spoke, Plaxo or elsewhere.

Job / Expertise needed:  Online technical expertise such as Programmers, Site administrators, Technicians, etc.  Some Sales and BD positions along with support staff.  More important to be able to integrate a competent web-presence into any position for any hiring company or industry.