The employment picture for supply chain management, transportation and logistics in the first half of 2011 will look much like it did in 2010: anemic.
The second half of the year will show some improvement as large corporations with cash reserves and a profitable first half begin to fill in middle-management positions and lower-level executive roles. Unemployed baby boomers will be laid off in disproportionate numbers and unemployed for longer stretches as the shift in demographics moves older boomers out of the traditional large workplace.
Generation X professionals who boast 20-plus years of experience will be worthy competition for boomer executives in senior-level roles.
Finding the silver lining in the availability of this pool of talented supply chain professionals will be small companies (under 100 people) and midsized businesses (under 500 people). The small and midsized firms have been reluctant to access executives who have spent careers at large companies.
The Great Recession has facilitated a migration of displaced executives from massive bureaucracies with inherent bone-bruising politics to smaller companies with flat organizational charts and simpler business models – reporting structures directly to the owner or president and the ability to make decisions after a single meeting. Many disillusioned executives will wonder why they didn’t make the transition sooner.
Competition to simply land an interview for any position will be fierce throughout the year. Quality jobs at the best companies will attract hundreds, perhaps thousands, of applications and produce few interviews as companies and hiring executives look for precise skill sets with tight and limited compensation flexibility. Companies geographically situated in small markets will again become more receptive to relocation. The hiring companies will cover reasonable moving costs and expenses but won’t buy the houses as companies avoid getting into risky arrangements.
2011 will be considered a rebound year for employment throughout the supply chain and logistics community.