Given the poor hiring climate, many workers who are lucky enough to still be employed are simply grateful that they are. Because of this, now may hardly seem like a time to analyze and rate your employer to see if this is a good place to work or not. Among the consequences of the Great Recession is that the workforce is less concerned about personal career goals and more accommodating to our bosses since they have been benevolent enough to keep us on payroll. This is the attitude we should have during down economic times, right? 

I sure hope not! If we have reached a point where furthering our career aspirations is considered an ill-timed luxury we can no longer afford, then we are in a Depression. Acquiring and retaining top talent should never go out of style for any organization and finding those workplaces that honor this operational approach should be paramount for the individual professional looking to advance in their avocation. 

Now of course, during these recessionary times employers are having to revisit strategic assumptions to see if they are still appropriate given cash flow and revenue constraints, changeable government interventions, and workforce transformations. But then conducting a SWOT analysis periodically is a good thing anyway. 

As companies look out over this unpredictable landscape, it is in their short and long-term interest to attract and keep the most qualified workforce possible. To not do so leaves businesses vulnerable to leaner and sharper competition, some of which will emerge from this Recession as relative winners. 

For the professional wanting to be positioned with a strategic and forward-looking organization there are a couple of key corporate initiatives to look for and lookout for.  When I hear from some clients how they are treated by supervisors or about the lack of operational discipline displayed by their employers I am amazed these places are still in business. 

Mismanagement, paranoia, intimidation, poor communication, and in some cases downright rudeness are all in full swing. I recently heard of a dedicated professional who put in over twenty-nine years with the same insurance firm and did not receive even a thank-you upon retirement. Bad corporate behavior aside, if an employer still relies on the traditional motivational model of rewarding employees with greater amounts of responsibility and pay as they march lockstep from associate to senior management, they may find that today’s workforce will not be impressed. 

Enlightened and enterprising expertise will be looking for companies that get it. Among the most important strategic components are employers’ talent management and continuous learning programs. Management systems that are serious about quality recruitment, onboarding, retention, succession planning, and employee development are the businesses most likely to not only attract and keep high caliber talent but are in a better position to succeed. 

Among the specifics employees want to see institutionalized are: 

• Complex and challenging assignments 
• Utilization of coaches and mentors 
• Frequent assignment or client changes 
• Engaging and relevant training activities 
• Opportunities for employees to build portfolios by continuous refinement of marketable skills 
• Team effectiveness development 

…and much more. 

Watching also for leadership that intelligently attempts to determine necessary metrics for driving decision making is a sign of an attractive employer. You cannot manage it if you cannot measure it. Therefore, managing talent requires innovative and effective means of judging the efficiencies of interventions such as those mentioned above. 

Do not let the Recession be an excuse for putting your career development on hold. Find those employers who want to build continuous improvement learning organizations through comprehensive employee advancement. If you are fortunate to work for such a company, give them all you have. For they too should be rewarded for being such a wonderful place to work. 

It is not at all unusual to see written or to hear oral descriptions from job seekers giving their pitch for why they should be hired with phrases like, “…with over thirty years of experience in…”, “…over two decades of dedicated service in…”, or “I am a Systems and Network Administrator with over 25+ years of …”  

Naturally, these references to long-term experience which have been devoted to a particular career are meant to convey expertise, commitment, and reliability. There is also a strong dose of pride in being able to make the claim that one’s chosen career has been focused on building significant levels of knowledge and mastery. The mature diligent career-oriented worker deserves to feel esteemed for such an undertaking. 

Unfortunately, these claims of longevity can be job search killers for the older workforce cohort. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence that age discrimination does exist. And announcing that you are relatively old does place you at a disadvantage when it comes to career or job shifting later in life. 

The obstacle of age discrimination comes at a particularly inconvenient time. Part of the recessionary fall-out is that older workers are being forced into retirement. Even without the down economy this generation of workers have come to believe that leveraging honed skills over many years would better position them for encore careers of their choice. 

Yet for many, the choice is staying with what work you are lucky to have or accepting early retirement. Not surprisingly, many older workers have been laid-off or have had their workloads increased to make up for those who were recently laid-off. The decision-making and negotiating power they thought they would have at this time of life is not there.  

Yes, there does exist the federal Age Discrimination Employment Act (ADEA) designed to protect workers aged 40+ from discrimination in hiring and other employment related situations in workplaces with at least twenty employees. Many states have laws covering discrimination in workplaces with fewer than twenty employees. Specifically, the ADEA: 

• Prohibits job advertising from mentioning age. 
• Prevents age limits from being set for training & development programs. 
• Restricts retaliation against workers filing violation claims. 
• Prohibits employers from forcing early retirements. 

But it is not too difficult for the company who wants to shun older workers from doing so. Job descriptions can be written in ways that are within the letter of the law, but which include items that make it difficult for the older worker to comply. 

So, why does age discrimination exist? In a way it seems counterintuitive to discriminate against the older worker. It is not hard to identify advantages to having more mature employees. They tend to have a proven work ethic, are not as concerned about work/life balance as younger workers are and have deeper levels of wisdom and proficiency. From the point of view of younger recruiters and hiring managers however, older workers conjure some unflattering images like: 

• old school thinking and lacking innovation 
• working at a slower pace 
• more costly in salaries and benefits 
• not having future long-term viability 
• not as tech savvy 

The list goes on. It is enough to make the plus 50 workers’ blood boil. I can hear them saying, “We’ve earned the right to be hired! We’ve paid our dues!” 

Nevertheless, if you are older and looking for work you need to update your resume, write new cover letters, and refine the way in which you describe your value to hiring personnel. So, face facts. You may have earned respect, but you have not earned that new position any more than any else has. You still must make the case for why you are the best candidate. 

If you are truly at the top of your game, then show it in your value proposition. Know what that company is looking for and convince them that you are their guy or gal. They are going to be looking for the greatest value at the lower cost. Present yourself with that in mind. Resting on past laurels will not get you that new job. Attaining it will. 

There is always something that others find annoying in each one of us. Maybe it is that we want the freedom to concentrate on a task of our own choosing, which leaves others feeling that we are too distant and not connected enough. Or perhaps, it is that we always need people around us for conversation and for bouncing ideas off of, which can annoy others who may think, “Can’t [he or she] just be out of my hair for a while?!” 

It could be that we seem too nonconventional, or too commonplace, or too quick to decide, or not decisiveness enough, or, or, or… Give it time and frequency and we can start to think we have major faults. Our self-concept takes a hit, and we find ourselves vowing to others that we will try harder to be better. 

Yet these alleged deficiencies may be indicators of personal strengths and workplace potential. A big problem with determining one’s own worth through the critical eyes of others is that it can cause us to veer away from an unfettered self-examination. It is hard to confidently express your own value when you feel overwhelmed or at least tainted by what you are told are weaknesses that keep recurring repeatedly. 

It may be time to reframe the deficits as benefits. Do you find yourself in a job that calls for multi-tasking when you just want time to develop a concept in a distraction free environment? Are you tired of working in isolation when you strongly wish you could be part of a cross-disciplinary team? In general, are you being required to function in a manner that is not congruent with your true, innate interests, aptitudes, and passions? 

Fortunately, the human collective is not split into two pre-ordained groups, those with natural talent and good luck to always succeed and those who are losers and who are never going to amount to anything. Everyone has the potential to prevail and contribute, if only the right set of circumstances align allowing everyone to perform at their best. There is a lid for every pot. 

It becomes necessary for each of us to know what we can do well and to seek those opportunities and situations by which we work in energizing ways rather than just managing our weaknesses. Take the time to consider the behaviors you have that seem to put others off. Ask yourself, is the behavior really your problem to fix or is it that you are somehow misplaced? 

In many cases, problems at work are the result of being constrained by doing things that we would rather not do. Perhaps, we are being directed to perform tasks we somewhat enjoy, but in ways divergent from our preferred way of doing them. It is likely that we will each execute at our best when our work is an expression of our interest and skill combined with the freedom to choose the course of progress. 

I like to give clients an exercise of drafting their ideal job description. It is not an easy thing to do for many. But I recommend trying it, so that you can design a template of what to strive for. Give yourself time to imagine that perfect employment scenario. When doing so, think of what your chronic “weaknesses” are telling you. These “deficits” could be gateways to workplace conditions that are unfulfilled. 

Of course, we cannot always get what we want, but we can sure try. The method of achieving a productive workforce should involve optimal placement of each employee.  However, it is up to everyone to get to the place where both you and your employer each receive maximum value for the work you do. The best way to manage a weakness is to turn it into a strength. 

Every professional should be able to state their value proposition. No longer just a business school term, value proposition has relevant meaning to all successful individuals and organizations alike. 

Career development in the modern era rests on the premise that each professional has a uniquely blended set of talents, interests, aptitudes, and experiences that is worth something to someone else. Finding a timely fit between the value provider and the value consumer is the challenge of the career climber and job searcher.  

With rare exception, most of us do not sit around spending our time crafting our value proposition. It is generally easier to find something else to do which is more fun. It is fair to say that most of us view the task of defining our one-of-a-kind value proposition as a daunting job. Where do you start? Are we talking about a clever, pithy phrase or a doctoral dissertation? 

I do not think that there is a hard and fast rule. So, what I will try is to demonstrate what I think is a reasonable attempt at writing a value proposition statement. I will use myself in the context of what I think I do well, which is to provide career coaching and resume/cover letter writing services. Note the length and depth of my statement. It is not as brief as a seven-word self-description, but it is not a thesis either. 

Bill Ryan’s Value Proposition 

Leveraging my extensive experience as an educator, I offer clients customized guidance in career coaching and proficient preparation of resumes and targeted cover letters. My service approach consists of the following features: 

• Listen actively whereby the client feels heard and understood. 
• Quickly perceive presenting issues.  
• View the client’s issues and goals developmentally based on age and work experience. 
• Assist the client to plan strategically with an unclouded vision of desired outcomes. 
• Apply task analysis to the creation of an action plan. 
• Help clients determine their own career momentum but be directive when necessary. 
• Always encourage, boost, applaud, and if needed, challenge. 

There it is. Fairly concise. No heavy lifting to write this.  

And the use of bullets is deliberate. Dismayed as many literary traditionalists may be, these days we absorb information in chunks or snippets, rather than in long essays. Bulleted points can be more economic to write, and they force you to think of your attributes and traits, the elements that make up your value proposition. 

What are the characteristics that make up your value? What is your specific contribution to business, the community, the world? Defining your worth is the first step to finding the best opportunities for expressing your value through what you do every day. 

I encourage you to try this exercise. Allow yourself to think of the value proposition piece you write as a dynamic document. It is fine for it to be something susceptible to many drafts and continual revision. You will want to revisit it frequently, always refining and attempting to make your value proposition statement as true as possible to what you have to offer the workplace. 

An issue is starting to heat up that I believe will have significant impact in fields such as career development, workforce management, and the evolving nature of the employee and employer relationship. It involves the proliferation of private, entrepreneurial, and independent contractors and the hiring or contracting of them by companies. 

Projections are that a growing part of the future workforce will be made up of independent contractors providing relatively short-term project-oriented solutions for business. Where conflict may arise is in the legal enforcement of how employers classify and treat those among their workforce as to whether they are categorized as employees or independent contractors. 

Both federal and state laws have a history of protecting worker rights from employers who would seek to deny workers’ compensation coverage and other benefits to their employees by classifying these workers as independent contractors. In New Hampshire, for example, legislation became effective January 1, 2008, revising and broadly applying a consistent definition of “employee”, thereby increasing worker protections enforced by the New Hampshire Department of Labor. 

In the Federal government, Senator John Kerry introduced legislation in December 2009 matching a House bill that would increase the burden of employers to classify workers as independent contractors. The point being to secure workforce protections like workers’ compensation, Social Security, Medicare, overtime, unemployment compensation, and minimum wage for the greatest number of workers. 

It is good to know that the government is out there looking out for the little guy, and it undoubtedly keeps many employers honest. However, I am afraid that an unintended consequence of these protections may be to discourage employers from contracting with independent providers at a time when many of these workers want to work self-reliantly and to be free from the long-term obligations of an employee status with an organization. 

Employers may want to reduce legal compliance pressures by just hiring full or part-time employees and not take advantage of the strategic talent options available from independent contractors. This creates a challenge for highly motivated and skilled individuals who want more control over how they work. And it is to them that the burden lies in convincing business that contracting with them will not come with onerous worker protection strings attached. Otherwise, their dream of working creatively from one environment to the next will be in jeopardy. 

Independent contractors need to be noticeably clear with themselves that being independent means just that, on your own. Income and benefits both must be generated by the private worker. A networking trend that may help independents is in establishing exchanges or guilds that can negotiate for benefits such as health insurance. By using the economies of scale, independents may be able to provide for themselves the benefits they need but should not expect from traditional employers. 

Another area independents need to be clear about is in the language, terms, and conditions of their contracts. Contracts will have to be written in such a way that the independence of both the contractor and the hiring company is maintained. To write such a contract, both parties should be clear on the definition of “employee” for the state in which the working relationship is to take place. 

For example, in New Hampshire the recent redefinition of the term “employee” contains eleven conditions that must be met to exclude the independent contractor from employee status. And all eleven conditions must apply! Going into these contractual arrangements armed with this kind of knowledge places the independent contractor in a stronger position, because then they are then able to mitigate the concerns and reduce the hassles for the hiring company. 

There are many benefits for both parties in having temporary project-based contracted work. Despite the predictions of its imminent expansion as a practice, planning and foresight will be more necessary than ever. Here is yet another case in which adaptability and an orientation toward change will be called upon for success to be achieved. 

By now most professionals know how to strengthen a resume in a time of increasing recruitment efficiency and robust job competition. Attention needs to be paid to the use of effective keywords. 

Keywords are those industry buzzwords that let recruiters and hiring managers know which job niche you may be best at filling. Better yet, keywords alert Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) that you may be worth interviewing, if the system has been programmed to highlight resumes with the keywords you have included in your resume. 

ATS is currently in use by many large corporations. It becomes an attractive tactic when the number of resumes submitted far exceeds the human eyeball-capacity of an organization. 

The technology is just a variation on standard search methodology made famous by Google. Instead of yielding web pages based on a set of search terms, resumes are selected based on a set of keywords specific to the position being filled. If you as a job seeker are being asked to upload your resume in plain text or rich text formats or to paste it into a web/database field, then chances are it could be screened by ATS. For your resume to not be rejected in a millisecond, it is necessary to have the right keywords which will prompt a selection. 

The challenge for job seekers and resume writers is to identify relevant keywords and embed them into resumes in a way that looks natural. Submitting a list of words and calling it a resume will not do. Resumes must be prepared in such a way that they can be read by an ATS and a human. 

How does one find out if they are utilizing the best keywords in their resume? There are several ways of doing this. For those seeking a new position in what for them is the same industry they have built their experience, then many keywords should be already known. It may just be a matter of systematically generating a list of terms directly related to your background knowledge and inserting them strategically into the resume. 

For those job seekers transitioning to a new or related industry some keyword research may become necessary. Here are some ideas on conducting that research: 

1. Study online job boards for postings like or similar tothe kinds of positions you would consider pursuing. Note the industry vocabulary that is frequently used in both the headings and body of these postings.
2. Identify the terms used in descriptions of your chosen profession in industry publications, professional associations, and the Labor Department’s Occupation Outlook Handbook web sites.
3. Look at the profiles of professionals with similar positions on LinkedIn to see the terminology they are using to describe themselves.
4. Poll your professional network to get their keyword suggestions.
5. Staffing agency professionals, particularly those dedicated to niche recruiting, can be a source of appropriate nomenclature.

So exactly what kind of words should you use in compiling this all-important keyword main list? 

• Words that are industry and job specific 
• Words that highlight the job candidate’s experiences and qualifications 
• Words that refer to hard professional skills 
• And words that indicate useful “soft” personal attributes for the position. 

As an exercise, try writing your own ideal or fantasy job description. Which words are you using to describe the occupation? 

It is not enough to craft a resume with a killer profile, quantifiable accomplishments, richly worded qualities, and which is aesthetically pleasing. It is also imperative to populate the resume with the right keywords to land you that interview which could change your career and your life. 

If it is not too late, I have a New Year’s resolution suggestion to make to all professionals, whether unemployed, underemployed, or gainfully employed. The suggestion is to simply define yourself. 

Do so succinctly and economically. Define your value. What do you offer? How does your work community benefit from your input? Being able to professionally and exclusively define yourself is an advantage. To become known and recognized as a quality and reliable asset is a core utility of career development. The career gain that can be realized spreads across all employment scenarios. In fact, venturing forth without a way to define yourself leaves you at a disadvantage during a time when competition for great jobs is increasing. 

Large corporate institutions, as we have traditionally known them, are undergoing a transformation. It probably began way back with the growth of middle management but is now characterized as an increasing reliance on more horizontal teams that can cross-pollinate ideas and result in synergistic production.  

Many executives are becoming more coach-like in their function. Employees are desired for their ability to get along with others, have a strong work ethic, and to be creative problem solvers. Hopefully, your self-definition incorporates all these virtues. 

We know that small business is a major force in driving the economy. When small businesses start hiring, we can expect an easing of the high unemployment rate. What drives small business? People with ambition and smarts do. In the same way that an entrepreneur figures out and communicates their value proposition, each of us should be able to do the same. Being able to provide solutions, improvements, and advantages to the marketplace is the grist for small business employees’ definitions. You would not want your business to be a white bread commodity, so why tolerate it for yourself. 

The Internet has created a new entrepreneurial landscape that didn’t exist twenty years ago. In the decade just completed, expansion of information access by way of increasingly sophisticated gadgets coupled with the growth of social interconnectedness is spawning innovative and constructive self-employment opportunities. In the upcoming decade we can expect more information filtering and selection technology demanded, and perhaps created by, end users. Staying with this evolution curve can be the brand basis for many neo-entrepreneurs. 

Whatever your career direction or place in the workforce, knowing your niche, your unique importance, and your significance will advance your position with existing and developing prospects. And just as important as knowing your positive traits is to become skilled at presenting and displaying them. Be in the mindset that others, be they upper management, colleagues, customers, or clients need you and that your talents are worth acquiring. Find the self-marketing techniques that are right for you. Promote yourself with the confidence that comes from knowing who you are. 

So, with the start of this new year discipline yourself to go through some simple exercises. What I recommend involves selecting descriptive words about you. Begin with a single attribute that makes you employable such as “trustworthy”, “competency”, or “adaptability”. From there try seven word phrases like, “a valued professional expert solution management specialist”, “take impossible projects and make them happen”, “Communicate. Steer the ship as needed. Deliver!” Eventually, craft a complete sentence about yourself. Some examples include: 

“I offer focused and deliberate care to the patients of this facility”. 

“My extensive knowledge of CAD software and ability to work hard results in high quality production.” 

“Accomplished professional with a track record of improving educational and operational performance through vision, leadership, and team building.” 

Try it. Go forward into 2010 and beyond with your own definition of your worth. The benefit of doing so is within reach. 

The priesthood is not a career. It is a devotion to service that does not differentiate into work time vs. home time or time-on and time-off. Being there 27/7 only begins to describe the commitment that a religious practitioner, whether it be priest, rabbi, swami, imam, or monk gives to others and to the deep pursuit of their beliefs. 

Assuming most of the clerical have not chosen religious structure and order merely as an insecure refuge from independent decision making or worse yet, as a place from which nefarious acts like child sexual abuse can be perpetrated, then much wisdom may exist among those spiritual advocates. From them we all can learn something about the ever-elusive contentment to a career. 

Let us visualize an idealized image of a pleasant, complacent, and content religious person. There is peacefulness and gentleness about them. Their faces read warmth, acceptance, non-judgment, and understanding. They have taken the time to contemplate life’s big picture and as a result are comparatively self-actualized, free of the many distractions that keep most of us from such a state of equanimity. 

How is this condition achieved? Has God chosen to touch only a selected few, while the rest of us are relegated to scraping by the best we can? I do not think that is the way it works. The serenity that can come from living and working a life of unambiguous purpose is available to all. As in most things in life, it boils down to choice and luck. 

We can strive for deep dedication to what we choose to do for our work. In fact, to do anything less is most unfortunate. Seizing each day for growth, service, and creative expression is always an available option no matter your level of experience or attained income. 

Martin Luther King once talked about a little shrub growing on the side of a hill amongst redwoods. That shrub being dwarfed by the larger trees nevertheless was innately compelled to reach for the sun, to find whatever narrow shaft of light as could be found, and to optimize its situation. 

The poise and demeanor of the religious adherent is accessible to those who choose it. Such a devotional approach is available to the rest of us as well. A life of full measure can result from amply developing one’s career. 

Divine intervention, if you will, does of course play into this religious example. The best of intentions and attitude can be severely challenged by unfortunate circumstances. There is an American mythology stating that financial reward and career satisfaction comes only to those showing the pluck and courage to independently achieve greatness despite all the odds. 

Yes, the right combination of brain and brawn can find bounty in our free market society. The one prerequisite that seems to not receive mention in this equation, however, is that of luck. Be incredibly grateful that disease, a debilitating accident, tragedy beyond your control, did not rob you of the life you know with all its grand accomplishments.  

Or, as Malcolm Gladwell writes, whether the circumstances of the timing and location of your birth give you an unearned advantage. True success with work and life at the devotional level considers both efforts exerted, and blessings bestowed. 

I know there are many who think they are happy to simply go to work, do your job, and come home to live your “real” lives. But for most, what you do for work and the way you do it is inextricably tied to the vibrancy of your lives. 

I recommend getting to that place where you feel your work belongs to you and that you intentionally and lovingly make your contribution. Having allegiance to work that is passionate is a pursuit worth following. 

I am a career consultant who likes to write resumes. It seems that many of my ilk either like delivering the coaching/consultancy/guidance part or the resume part, but not both. I do not totally get that. I see the two as inseparable, two sides of the same career services coin. 

What I like about beautifully written resumes is their economy. By that I mean maximum impact with minimal resource. Powerfully describing a person’s professional value and work highlights in one to two pages can be a beautiful thing. 

Now, I know the point of a resume is to land you the job interview and that is particularly important. But let us take a step back for a moment and view the well-crafted resume as a finely polished piece. Some are truly impressive. There can be an aesthetic to balancing text and lines and bullets with fonts and headings and slickly arranged information. Sometimes, the eye can flow across the page effortlessly while the data and intended images materialize into a package that leaves the reader thinking, “This is good!”. 

Okay. By now I have firmly established myself as a resume nerd. Now, don’t you want a resume nerd writing your resume or advising you on how you can improve yours? 

For those of you still reading this blog, let us look at some of the features that make a great resume. One of the most useful exercises any job seeker can do for themselves is to write a concise, economic, yet powerful and informative professional summary or profile. Being able to describe yourself and to display your value in three to five sentences indicates that you are self-aware, confident, and forward leaning. 

Furthermore, this does not and should not have to be a static piece of writing. Every three months or so I pull out my resume out and rewrite the lead. I cannot help but to continue tinkering with it, always trying to gain some improvement. Here is my current version, which is positioned on my resume just below my contact info: 

Career Expert, Educator, Program Developer 

A motivated and independent professional currently demonstrating effectiveness in customized career development and educational program enhancement. Expertise working with individuals in need of career and education related guidance through vision and a drive for continuous client improvement. Adept at educational program expansion and development on behalf of organizations. An educator involved in the implementation of curriculum development, advocacy initiatives, and learner management. Excellent interpersonal, group presentation, and written communication skills. 

Just in reading this again for this blog I am seeing that changes can be made. A month ago, it looked fine. As soon as I am done with this blog, I think I will mess around with it some more. 

Does this mean that I am indecisive? Perhaps, but I think all of us frequently undergo some micro self-perception changes. Also, it is good to try continual perfecting. How many times do you reach total purity? For me, not so often. 

Another thing I like a lot about a well-done resume is to see a collection of professionally written and unique personal achievement statements in the Qualifications section. When I see a resume with those statements, I know I am reading about someone who is in touch with their accomplishments. Being able to show clearly and with specifics how you added quality to past positions can seriously give your history cachet. 

It is, oh, so easy to put off writing or revising your resume. I know that for most people it is rated as being more obnoxious than paying bills or filing taxes. But if you can put yourself into a proud autobiographical zone where documenting your working past can be artful rather than miserable, then you might just get a lift out of the result.  

Not nerdy enough to find that zone? Call me. I can help. 

It has been interesting to notice that one of the consequences of the Recession is the growing discrepancy between traditional management practices during belt-tightening times and the changing nature of talent acquisition. Recessions naturally cause a thinning out of businesses. Typically, we think of it as a Darwinian consequence of the weak giving way to the strong. However, it is worth noting that some of the survivors may have made it through this round of business closures but could be setting themselves for a loss of competitiveness in the longer term. 

Businesses throughout all sectors are looking for ways to do more with less. Layoffs, furloughs, and redundancies are resulting in a leaner workforce. Added responsibilities being given to the employees who remain, coupled with their fear and uncertainty about job security are beginning to compromise employee performance. 

Of course, there are ways to streamline processes, but in general reducing staff usually means diminishing productivity. How can management cope? One tactic being used is to double up positions. That is, taking two job positions, laying off one of the employees and giving the remaining employee much of the workload of the laid off employee. 

Money may be saved, but from a performance improvement perspective it is a disaster. At best, it is a short-term fix, but not a long-term productivity solution. And since there do not appear to be plans for mass hiring anytime soon, even with an improving economy, employers will be trying to do more with less for some time to come. 

Meanwhile, workers are receiving a harsh lesson in employment economics simultaneous with the ongoing information revolution. The Recession is accelerating the career development phenomena of workers relying less on organizations for full time employment and security. The Internet is providing increased opportunities for online training, research, and the means to enhance exposure and networking. 

Technology is making it easier for the ambitious to become entrepreneurial. This combination of a sour economy with a growing robust web is pushing the American workforce closer toward becoming a free-lance nation. 

Is management prepared to take advantage of this shift in workforce dynamics? This is what may separate the best performing companies of the future from the too-slow-to-change failures. 

I think it could very well be likely that the following scenario becomes commonplace: Optimizing employee performance and productivity will increasingly be focused on outsourcing by businesses to match the highest quality talent for the right job. Full time employees, who have been squeezed in with too many on-the-job responsibilities, will be replaced by targeted, on-demand, just-in-time contracted resources who will provide better performance in accomplishing specific tasks. 

As needs change, so does the specialized talent. Entrepreneurism grows and becomes increasingly focused in niche areas. Together, businesses and the new entrepreneurial class find each other through ever more sophisticated job boards and social network media tools. Innovative management and concentrated expertise forge a workplace that becomes more nimble, adaptable, and clever. 

Change is occurring. Which companies will be leveraging it for success, and which will not start becoming clear soon.