DECEMBER 28, 2000
HOT JOBS
Career Outlook, 2001 | What will the coming year's hiring trends be? Here are some fearless forecasts from a panel of experts. Part Two of a two-part series
| Despite reported job cutbacks at a few major U.S. corporations -- and worries
about a possible recession -- the war for talent doesn't appear to have abated yet. Business Week Online asked a number of career experts to give us their outlook for the job market in 2001. We posed two questions: What will be the hot managerial and executive jobs next year? Why these? What follows is the second and final round of their comments. If you're looking for more predictions, check out Part One.
We'd like to hear your nominations for hot jobs in 2001! So, drop us a line
with your predictions at careers@businessweek.com.
Jon Lindsey
managing partner at legal search firm Major,
Hagen & Africa
 America
no longer makes TV sets or washing machines. Now we make ideas: software,
entertainment, Web-related ways of doing business and accessing information.
In law firms and in-house law departments, we expect strong demand for lawyers
who can help turn intellectual property into money -- licensing, joint ventures,
and the corporate aspects of patents, trademarks, and copyrights -- or who
can help protect that property from others, either through litigation or
filings of patents/trademarks/copyrights. Intellectual property lawyers
with technical degrees -- electrical engineering, biochemistry, and the
like - - are especially hard to find.
In addition, those with expertise in dealing with technology-related companies
and in funding for those companies (private equity, venture capital, and
-- if the market picks up -- IPOs) are also still very much in demand.
Law firms are also starting to beef up their bankruptcy and litigation departments
in anticipation of an eventual downturn. Companies that in the past couldn't
be bothered to bend over to grab the crumbs that had fallen from their tables
will aggressively do so once the feast thins out.
We see demand in these areas across the country, but especially in high-tech
centers: Northern California, New York, Northern Virginia, Boston, Denver,
Austin, and even Atlanta with its growing sources of venture capital and
other early-stage financing. The most important characteristics will be
entrepreneurial instincts, team-building abilities, an embrace of technology,
and willingness to work hard -- people who, as many of our clients put it,
"get it."
|
Susan Bishop
president of executive search firm Bishop Partners
 Broadband
will open the doors to a whole array of new positions in content, distribution,
and technology. It's all about speed. People working in this field will
need to understand and listen to customers and be able to create new services
and products that help them work faster and more efficiently.
The ideal broadband executive will have divided his or her career among
network television, cable technology, advertising, and telecommunications.
That's not an easy fit, so many companies will look for people with the
best combination of those skill sets and then fill the remaining gaps with
other members of the management team. |
|
Peter Cappelli
George W. Taylor professor of management at the
Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
 Talent-management
jobs will be hot -- retention managers, talent officers, learning executives
-- as companies continue to discover that the best people are both crucial
to their organization's performance and difficult to replace. As competitors
figure out how to manage these things well, then everyone has to do it.
In general, I think jobs associated with managing people will become more
important, as long as the labor market remains reasonably tight.
Most organizations neglected these issues over the previous generation because,
for the most part, the fear of unemployment offset bad management. But in
a tight labor market, that is no longer true, and management problems are
driving people out the door and into the arms of competitors. Also, I don't
think educational background is so important, but job experience is. What
employers want to see in job candidates is experience working for a well-run
company. |
|
Deborah L. Oliver
senior account manager at Management Recruiters of Portland
Our
construction division is working with general contractors who can't keep
up with the demand to build more chip plants for the microelectronics industry.
In one week, I wrote 26 job orders for people who can build these plants.
Having an engineering background is critical. You have to know how to create
a "clean room" -- meaning that there's no dust, no particles, nothing floating
in the air that could ruin the chips.
Generally, these candidates oversee all of the mechanical, electrical, and
plumbing needs of the facility. Titles include mechanical supervisors, industrial
engineers, and facility-operations managers. Projects usually last 18 months
to two years. Sometimes people will stay on at the facility to oversee any
expansions. Or they'll move on to the next site.
Chip plants aren't the only facilities that need experts to build clean
rooms. Similar talent is needed at fiber-optic plants and biopharmaceutical
labs. Talent is sparse. The ideal candidate has 8 to 10 years of experience.
With that level of experience, they can make $80,000 to $120,000. |
|
Ian Rosi
founder of Austin Power, a student-run organization at the University of Texas/Austin that familiarizes MBA students with Austin-area
businesses
 In
Austin, wireless is exploding. Software companies are still looking for
people. Telecom is big. And almost all Old Economy companies are doing e-business
initiatives. Employers want people with product-marketing skills who can
do something right away. They don't want to spend time training. Experience
in "leveraged marketing" is in demand. These are post-sales marketers who
work on boosting the popularity of their product at client companies.
Companies are always looking for salespeople and people with software experience.
They also need product developers -- people who can identify what a customer
might need three years from now and get it built. |
|
David Parker
president and founder of executive search firm
D.P. Parker and Associates
We see increased demand in the biotech/biopharmaceutical sector in 2001,
for several reasons. First, the biotech industry is maturing. There are
public companies that are beginning to transition from researching drugs
to manufacturing them. That's creating openings in operations, marketing,
regulatory affairs, quality, and sales. The key qualification for these
positions is experience working in a highly regulated environment. Companies
really need people who understand the specifications set down by the Food
& Drug Administration.
In addition, investors and venture-capital firms are demanding that professional
management be in place at private biotech companies before they commit money.
They want to see experienced executives in place as the CEO, CFO, and so
on who have successful track records in introducing new drugs to the marketplace.
Typically, they're finding these execs at pharmaceutical companies, medical-devices
makers, and consulting firms that focus on the biotech industry. We expect
demand to be strong in the traditional biotech areas --- the Northeast,
California, Raleigh/Durham in North Carolina, Seattle, and Austin, and other
localized regions. |
|
Alysa Polkes
director of the career-management center at UCLA's
Anderson School
 The
most highly desirable employee will be able to apply new technologies to
existing organizations. These will be individuals who can meld the strategic
imperatives of their company with today's technological advances.
Related to this, I see the need for intrapreneurs and internal consultants
with strong strategic-planning and critical-thinking skills to uncover new
products, design targeted services, and reinvent conventional ways of doing
business. For managerial and executive talent, I also see an important opportunity
in the ability to instill company loyalty and a common sense of purpose
(one of the attractions of the dot-coms). Industries to watch include biotech,
pharmaceutical, and health care. Functional areas that hold promise include
operations/supply-chain management, and info technology. The desire for
individuals who can operate with ease in a global workplace will also grow. |
|
Peter Felix
president of the Association for Executive Search Consultants
The challenging war for talent will continue to perplex
top management. It's forcing CEOs to rethink their priorities and their
approach to people management. Positions in the forefront are chief people
officers and chief talent officers. The value of human capital is playing
a critical role in the success at many companies.
Our statistics confirm the huge demand for talented leaders. This will continue
as the forces at work in the economy sort the wheat from the chaff. Top
managers will command higher and higher rewards. And they'll be able to
set new parameters for motivation and retention of top talent. |
|
Copyright 2000, by The McGraw-Hill Companies Inc. All rights reserved.
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