http://www.fairfaxcountyeda.org/techwire.htm

With a strengthening economy, opportunities for job seekers have increased across the globe. Lorraine Lavet, senior client partner and office managing director of the Tysons Corner, Va. office of Korn/Ferry International, sat down with Gerald L. Gordon, Ph.D., president and CEO of the Fairfax County ( Virginia) Economic Development Authority, to answer 10 questions on what employers are looking for in job seekers today.

For 35 years, Korn/Ferry has been a leader in executive recruitment, conducting more than 100,000 senior-level searches for clients worldwide. Today, Korn/Ferry offers services ranging from corporate governance and CEO recruitment to executive search, middle-management recruitment, strategic management assessment and executive coaching and development.

1. What are employers looking for in job seekers today?

Lavet: At the C-level, employers are seeking demonstrated leadership experience, strategic vision, a global perspective, outstanding communications skills, and the ability to build and retain a world class team to execute the business. Further, they must have a record of complete integrity. Employers are seeking leaders who have a demonstrated track record of results. Equally important is the cultural fit of the new executive. He/she may possess strong experience, academic credentials and leadership skills, but the right fit in the organization’s culture is critical to their success.

2. What’s the job outlook for the year ahead?

Lavet: At the executive level, we are seeing an increase in job opportunities across the globe. There are two trends to observe. First, many executives who stayed with their companies through difficult times are now ready to move on to new opportunities. Many are simply burned out from their current situations. When they move on, that creates vacancies. Many firms are using executive search to identify candidates to meet these replacement challenges, particularly for CEOs and CFOs. Second, we are seeing that employers who waited to make new hires in the past few years are starting to have net additions to their staff. We are witnessing this across all major regions.

3. What are the prospects in the technology job marketplace?

Lavet: As U.S. businesses have increased capital investments in technology, many technology companies have increased hiring at the senior and mid-management levels. Not all of this hiring is in the U.S. however. For example, we've seen tremendous increases in our technology practice in the Asia/Pacific. Further, there has been an increase in CIO hiring across industries. As the role of the CIO has continued to evolve to an increasingly strategic business position, we are seeing increased attention to this role. Indeed our CIO recruitment practice increased by nearly 70 percent this year.

4. What are the prospects for homeland security or defense jobs?

Lavet: The prospect for homeland security and defense jobs remains strong this year. While the Washington, D.C., region is benefiting from increased federal spending, other markets that manufacture goods are also seeing a jump in employment. Korn/Ferry’s federal government sales and marketing practice has increased substantially this year and we foresee continued growth through 2005. Many commercial technology firms that entered the government market post-9/11 have determined that it’s a market they want build and now need experienced leadership to take their businesses to the next level. Many of these firms started out with commercial sales executives trying to sell into the federal marketplace. While some were able to make this change, others realized the learning curve was far too steep. This is creating a demand for highly experienced, seasoned business development/operations professionals who specialize in the federal arena.

5. What regions in the U.S. are strong job markets right now?

Lavet: We are observing growth throughout the nation in advanced technology, consumer, life sciences, health care services and financial services sectors. The Washington region, particularly Fairfax County and other parts of northern Virginia, is robust in government business, government affairs, legal and trade associations. We are seeing improvement in Northern California, including Silicon Valley. The Northeast should be a strong market this year, particularly in financial services and life sciences.

6. What makes a particular region strong?

Lavet: A number of factors contribute to making a region particularly strong. They include:

• A solid base of larger businesses that effectively attract a clustering of smaller businesses. Entrepreneurs see opportunities to support the larger concerns and add jobs. Small businesses continue to generate a large portion of new job growth.
  
  
  
  
• Access to investment capital is always critical.
  
  
  
  
• A diverse business base is important. If a region is dependent either on one industry or one main employer, they are vulnerable to market changes often beyond their control, such as imports or outsourcing to other nations. We’ve seen this happen repeatedly to smaller communities.
  
  
  
  
• Business leaders that care not only about the performance of their own enterprise, but also the overall health of the community. Clearly when business leaders become actively involved in the schools, housing, health services, transportation, low crime, and related matters, there is a greater sense of community. This is very important to attracting and retaining a highly skilled workforce. Highly skilled and educated professionals want the best for their children, with schools being of greatest importance.
  
  
  
  
• Having a strong higher education system is key to fueling innovation and fostering growth.
  
  
  
  
• Finally, having business friendly government policies are also critical to attracting and retaining businesses in a given region or state. In recent years, California went the opposite direction, creating very challenging and costly business regulation. This has driven many businesses out of California or even the U.S. in some cases. I’ve heard companies indicate they do not plan to increase jobs in the state, but rather in other states that are more business-friendly. Attempts are being made to remedy these problems, but in some cases it's too late.

7. How important is quality of life for employers attracting top employees?

Lavet: It’s critical. Employees are looking for affordable housing, excellent schools, child care, a supportive community, a range of potential employers, and the ability to commute in a reasonable period of time, which translates to a good transportation system. In many regions of the country, traffic has become intolerable. Telecommuting options have become critical to employee quality of life.

8. How important is it to have a security clearance?

Lavet: Depending upon the business, it may be critical. Clearly, if a professional plans to work for an employer involved in confidential government work, a security clearance is essential. It is raised as a necessary credential often by our clients involved in federal government business with the Defense Department, the Department of Homeland Security or the Intelligence community.

9. What should job seekers be doing to prepare for a possible job change ?

Lavet: Do your homework. There is a great deal of publicly available information either via the web, local business journals, industry trade journals, or friends/family. Assess whether you have the requisite skills, experience and education to perform the job you are seeking. If there is a gap in these areas, evaluate what you can do to close that gap. Check if a prospective employer offers training or education benefits to help you to close the skills gap. Check if the local community college offers evening courses so you can continue to work. Carefully evaluate your options. I don’t recommend lots of job hopping. Employers are leery of a candidate who has moved every year to a new job.

10. What are your thoughts on the job marketplace in the Washington, D.C., region?

Lavet: Our experience suggests a strong 2005 in many sectors including advanced technology, defense, federal business, associations, government affairs and health care services. Unemployment remains low, presenting a challenge for employers to retain their top performers. Further, many well known firms have announced significant planned hires in the coming year, presenting further challenges in finding the talent required to fill these jobs. The region, particularly northern Virginia and Fairfax County, continues to be strong. Commercial real estate prices are among the highest in the nation due to strong demand by employers for additional space.

Thousands of companies have chosen Fairfax County, Virginia, located just west of Washington, DC, as the best place to expand or relocate. Fairfax County is home to six Fortune 500 companies, 4,700 IT companies, almost 300 foreign-owned firms, nearly 300 trade associations and the Fairfax County BioAccelerator that supports early-stage bioscience and biomedical firms. It boasts a quality of life that's hard to beat. And being this close to the national government provides access to trillions of dollars in federal contracts. If you are thinking about expanding or relocating your company, it's time to give Fairfax County a look. The Fairfax County Economic Development Authority has experts who can help your relocation decision – at no charge. Call 703-790-0600 or check out other areas of this site.

[此贴子已经被作者于2005-2-15 12:40:57编辑过]