In a Wall Street Journal Online  column, Carol Hymowitz suggests that, despite the fact that this is a tight job market during which companies will be laying off workers; many businesses will seek talent that they have not developed from within their ranks. She notes:
Companies haven’t been grooming and training enough employees for promotions and now have a mismatch of talent for open positions. In the past, top managers would plan far ahead to fill a position. Today, every vacancy seems to be treated as unique — and even as a surprise, despite the long-term trend of frequent job changes by employees. “Workplaces are filled with frustrated people who want to advance but haven’t gotten training or broad enough experience,” says Peter Cappelli, a management professor at the Wharton School and director of Wharton’s Center for Human Resources. “In coming months, we’ll likely see companies laying off employees but also crying that they can’t find people with the skills they need.”
This may be good news for those thinking of bagging their job searches in exchange for sitting tight and waiting out the economic downturn. If you have acquired the training and experience you need to position yourself to advance, this may be a good time to seek a new opportunity.
It also reminds us of a very important point:
Increasingly, employees are responsible for their own career trajectories. Most managers aren’t sitting around thinking about how to help make you more marketable for promotions. At the expense of becoming a broken record, YOU NEED TO DRIVE YOUR OWN CAREER BUS! If you don’t seek training and opportunities, they may pass you by.
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