The Way Back Machine - Did we see the Labor Shortage Coming?
I was thinking the other day while reading a few articles on LinkedIn about recruiting, leadership, leadership in recruiting etc. and it struck me that I sat in a presentation a few years ago.....2005 to be exact.... where a few consultants told us that there would be a labor shortage very soon.
At the time I was in capitol goods Leading a business that sold robotic solutions. And I can remember that I was tickled pink about the news but frankly I didn't believe the information.....I mean it was from a consultant right!? (sorry to all my consultant friends) and he was predicting something that was 13 years in the future! How in the world could anyone predict that we wouldn't have enough people to fill all of the openings that we would have!!
He was telling us that there would be a huge labor shortage in - yep you guessed it - 2018
As you search the current data today that is pretty close to the number of people that we do not have in industry.....and it isn't going to get any better from what I can see as the skills gap widens.
I had a Leader at the time tell me after this presentation that no matter what the economy did the company with the biggest stable after the great recession would win in what ever industry they were in....yeah he was right.
Today we are working hard at recruiting....not for those jobs that we have open today but those jobs - check that - I mean careers that we will have open tomorrow. Companies are trying everything from apprenticeships take for example what Behlen Mfg in Columbus NE is doing...
"Youth apprenticeships will help young Nebraskan's gain skills to good paying careers!"
To attending career fairs all over the place - and that means allocating the resources to make that happen.
As I have said before... less than a decade ago we never really had career fairs....sure we posted jobs on the campus job boards but we are light years ahead of that!
What will it take going forward? Creative & innovative forward thinking to foster, recruit and train the next work force that is coming. I am here to tell you the programs that you have today will not get it done tomorrow.
We were talking today at a Board meeting that I chair as to what we need to do to get and keep the attention of those that need employment - and as I told the group the same things that motivated us to work for a company is not what is driving this generation or the next one coming up.
One thing that I have found with so many that I talk to about a career they want to have a say or be a part of what is or will happening. That is why programs like the Great Game of Business work so well....it creates a sense of ownership and say in a company that cannot be matched any other way..tie this in with a good Lean / 6 Sigma or Agile program and you start to build the stable!
Want to know more? Drop me a note on linkedIn or email me at [email protected]