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ASIAN AMERICAN
CAREER SUCCESS CENTER

Position Yourself for Success in 2007

2007 is a transition year that presents opportunities for those with a smart focus.

by Nickie Harris




GOLDSEA | CAREER CENTER | JOBS AT FEATURED EMPLOYERS

Position Yourself for Success in 2007

he coming year looks to be another period of cautious optimism, with U.S. economic growth expected to be slightly lower than in 2006 (i.e. about 3.2% in 2007 versus about 3.6% this year, according to most forecasters). That's the product of a mixed bag of good and bad trends. On the plus side is continuing robust gains in the productivity of the American worker coupled with surprisingly aggressive business investments. On the down side, we face rising interest rates, a slowing housing market, high oil prices and geopolitical uncertainty over the war on terror and the continuing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.

     The bottom line for job seekers? 2007 will be a year of calm waiting, with neither tantalizing opportunities to create a feverish gold-rush mentality like during the tech boom of the late 90s nor the panicked crash-mentality of the early 00s. Employers will use the time to evaluate their work force against opportunities they foresee developing down the road. Basically, that means weeding out those stick-in-the-muds who are likely to hold the company back while hiring and promoting those with the forward-looking skills and mindset that will be solid assets in an increasingly competitive global marketplace.

     So while there won't be much downsizing, and even healthy hiring, employers will be grading each employee with an eye toward strengthening their organizations. In general that means more of what has been happening during the past decade — more overseas outsourcing of production and even some customer-service functions, more aggressive automation of administrative support functions to enhance productivity and responsiveness to the market, and tweaking the brand name and positioning through investment in the marketing side of the business.

     So what does all this mean in terms of what you should be doing to improve your position in your organization?

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     In a nutshell, this is the time to focus on positioning yourself as someone who belongs on the forward-looking, efficiency-oriented side of your organization by following these guidelines.
  1. Stay in touch with your employer's long-term strategy. That will clue you in as to which areas of the company are likely to shrink (i.e. areas with little or no prospects for advancement) and which will grow (i.e. areas that promise more opportunities). It may be helpful to know that, as a whole, the U.S. will continue to send production jobs offshore well into the next decade, resulting in a 3-6% reduction over the next 5 years in jobs related to producing goods and even services that involve no face-to-face contact.
         Another shrinking area is administrative support. As more organizations learn to automate routine office functions, they are shedding office workers whose primary function is routine recordkeeping tasks. The number of jobs in this area is projected to barely stay even over the next 5 years while, on average, the total number of jobs are expected to growth 6-8%. By contrast, areas involving the application of math and computer skills are expected to jump 15-18% during the same period. These areas include the computer programmers, software engineers, systems analysts and computer support specialists essential to the constant push toward automation and efficiency.
         Business and financial operations, which includes jobs needed for successful outsourcing, like buyers, budget analysts, credit analysts, and training and development specialists is expected to jump 12-15%. Above-average growth of 9-14% is also expected in the areas of design, media, marketing and entertainment as American companies increasingly become marketing hubs for products produced overseas. Social sciences fields like human resources, training, mental health and career counseling will also see robust growth of 10-14% over the next 5 years as more emphasis is placed on retaining and training an increasingly diverse workforce for international operations.
  2. Be ready to volunteer for new positions or jobs in new departments. Often new departments are created as part of a larger corporate restructuring to respond to changing business conditions. Those new departments can become the foundation for whole new areas or divisions that grow faster than the rest of the company. Your willingness to adapt to change help you to be seen as an asset to a dynamic, forward-looking company.
  3. If you find yourself in a department that has been stagnant and is more of a cost-center than a revenue center, and you aren't one of its stars, look into transferring to one that is seen as a revenue center. Cost centers like administrative and support departments are vulnerable to downsizing and are unlikely to offer opportunities for advancement. On the other hand, sales, financial analysis, computer programming and support and marketing and business development functions are generally shielded from cuts. They are also the areas that will offer the most opportunities when businesses start roaring ahead in good times.
  4. Take advantage of opportunities to learn new skills, whether offered in-house or in the form of subsidies for classes and seminars at outside educational institutions. Remember, with change comes either danger or opportunity. The best way to stay clear of the dangers of change is to keep seeking out opportunities to embrace it!
“Employers will use the time to evaluate their work force against opportunities they foresee developing down the road.”


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