Resumes

Continue woking on your resumes. They are due at the end of the block. If you did not get a sheet from Coach Williams then do so before you begin.

The Top Jobs for 2009

By Chris Dannen
Courtesy of fastCompany.com
In 2009, the job market will be full of contrasts: some industries will be eviscerated while others face shortages of workers. The good news is that despite the recession, there are still real jobs to be had. The bad news is that you may have to change fields to find one.
The trick to job hunting in 2009 will be to figure out how your skill-set can translate across industries, says Elaine Varelas, a managing partner at Boston-based outplacement firm Keystone Partners, so that you're not confined to searching one sector of the economy. "People are frustrated because it's taking them a while to assess the job market," she says. "They'll have to figure out other things they can Ð and want Ð to do." Successful job-seekers will be the ones who can figure out how to take skills learned in one kind of job and translate them into assets in others.
Here are the top eight areas where work can be found in 2009:
1) Nursing & Medical Services
Perhaps the best bet in 2009: Becoming a registered nurse or medical technician. With over 50,000 new nursing jobs to be created this year alone, med techs and nurses will have their pick of jobs and salaries, the latter averaging about $57,000 per year.
Social services jobs will see a boom too, as a swelling number of retirees check-in for medical care, says the most recent Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) report. But not all health care jobs will see equal growth. "The growth here will be more about the services and delivery people--nurses and technicians--than administrators," Varelas explains. "Hourly workers interested in changing roles should get into any role that services the elderly," she suggests.
2) Computing & Engineering
Computer-related jobs are projected to grow by more than 20 percent in the next decade, and 2009 will be no exception. Software engineering is particularly in demand, with network systems and data communications analysis also booming. These jobs also had some of the highest median salaries in 2006, according to the BLS, with computer software engineers earning a median income of $79,000 a year.
These positions are expected to grow at nearly double the rate of other types of jobs, but that won't last forever. "As the software industry matures, and as routine work is increasingly outsourced abroad," fewer computing jobs will be available in the next decade, the BLS notes.
But for now, technology workers are still in high demand, says Varelas. Most of the open positions will be found at smaller companies, where employers will be looking for a versatile, multi-faceted worker that can fill more than one role. "You have to be a business person who's also a tech person," to be an ideal candidate, Varelas explains. That could give an advantage to seasoned workers over recent grads.
3) Education
"To a great extent, education is recession proof," says Roy Krause, President and CEO of recruiting and staffing company Spherion. In 2009, roughly 38,000 of our economy's new jobs will be created in colleges and universities nationwide. As more students wait out the recession in college and graduate programs, the need for teachers, administrators, assistants and other staff will expand.
The demand for primary and secondary-school teachers will be booming as well. "There always seems to be a shortage there," says Krause. Some of the most in-demand teaching roles will prepare workers for the most in-demand jobs. "There are literally not enough educational programs to generate the volume of health-care workers we'll need," Varelas explains. As high schools and universities expand to meet demand for nurses, computer engineers and teachers, the demand for teachers and professors will grow commensurately.
Post-secondary teachers can expect a media salary of about $56,000, according to the BLS, while kindergarten through 12th grade teachers can expect between $43,000 and $48,000.
4) Green Jobs
So-called "green" jobs haven't been measured in BLS reports to date, but some experts have predicted they'll shake up the list of the fastest-growing jobs before the end of the decade. "More and more companies are adding dedicated staff to focus their environmental efforts," says Alison Doyle, About.com's Guide to Job Searching. Green jobs are arriving in two breeds, she explains: some will be at specialized firms that reduce human environmental impact, like environmental consultancies; others will simply be jobs at environmentally-friendly companies looking to improve their eco-image by hiring specialized "green" officers to audit and improve the company's environmental impact.
But the recession might slow the corporate world's eco-makeover, as many companies' transition to green-hood is delayed by financial problems. To see any growth in green job demand, we'll also need to see some "very creative new organizations," Varelas explains. Upstart green-services companies may be hiring, she says, but otherwise this sector will be what she describes as a "slow-growth industry: high demand but high competition."
Companies that can afford to go green will hire staffers like Traceability Managers, who will examine global supply chains and check for suppliers that might be excessively pollutive or carbon-costly to buy from. Environmental consultancies will seek to hire engineers or architects who are LEED-accredited, understand HVAC systems and can help guide developers through the LEED approval process for their buildings.
5) Energy
"There's a big buzz on campus about renewable energy," says Chris Higgins, Senior Associate Director of Career Management at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School. Outgoing students are particularly interested in startup companies, he says. "Biofuels seem to be the biggest area of investment." Those venture-backed businesses should still be in good shape to hire in 2009, since they are more insulated from the broader economy.
"Obama's talking a lot about green initiatives, so alternative fuels are going to be big," agrees Spherion CEO Krause. But those renewable energy jobs might also see a glut of interest from workers in traditional energy, thanks in part to increasing volatility and competitiveness in the market for oil and gas jobs that has resulted from wild oil-price fluctuations. "We're seeing a slowdown in Texas and Canada," Varelas says of North America's two biggest oil-producing areas. Workers in the energy industry have very specific skill-sets and knowledge that don't translate well to other industries, she notes. She predicts that many of these workers may "be jumping at a green energy job" if they have the opportunity.
6) Infrastructure
With the president-elect vowing to spend hundreds of billions of dollars on internal improvements like roads, bridges, broadband infrastructure and financial oversight, some experts are predicting niche job booms. "We work with a couple of companies that build bridges, and they're expecting a lot more business." says Krause.
Financiers might also find new lives as a part of the government's new regulatory apparatus, which will need auditors, accountants and compliance officers. Obama's energy-independence programs will also require electrical and mechanical engineers, grid managers, biofuel chemists, and civil engineers. Electrical, mechanical, chemical and civil engineers made median salaries of about between $68,000-$79,000 in 2006, according to the BLS Median salaries for power plant operators were about $55,000, or about $70,000 for operators at nuclear power facilities.
7) The New Finance
Financiers should prepare to be especially flexible in 2009. "Those people will need to take a look at reinventing themselves. They'll have to figure out where else they can use their skills, and move into other industries," Varelas says. For many bankers, that will mean applying their middle or back-office operations knowledge in other businesses. How long before they can move back into their former careers? "This consolidation is going to be long Ð at least three-to-five years," Varelas says.
But don't discount finance yet. "We'll simply see shifts. There will be a shift from originating mortgages, for example, to collecting on them," Krause explains. "If interest rates go down to 4.5%, you'll also see a lot of refinancing." This will require underwriters, actuaries, and administrators.
For financial workers switching fields, an initial pay cut may come with the transition. A financial analyst who made the median 2006 income of about $66,000 and decides to become, say, a commercial loan officer will probably net about $10,000 less in 2006 dollars. However, after three years of experience, that loan officer's salary would jump to between $61,000 and $100,000, according to the BLS.
8) Self-Employment & Small Business
Replacing farmers in the self-employment demographic are growing numbers of people "who don't want to be employees anymore," says Katy Piotrowski, a career counselor and author of The Career Coward's Guide to Changing Careers. "I'm seeing a lot of people buying franchises, or setting up arrangements that involve multiple online businesses," she says.
As a career counselor who assists adults interested in mid-life career switches, Piotrowski reports growing numbers of workers "trying to escape the desk job format." Experienced career jumpers are also wary of taking new positions that promise little job security Ð jobs Piotrowski likens to "black holes" of employment. Top prospects for small businesses will be Internet companies that can get funding while the venture market is still well capitalized, as well as green consultancies and international sales, which could benefit from the volume generated by a weak dollar.
The BLS does not calculate income estimates for self-employed workers of any kind.
9) Retirement, Reconsidered
The BLS says that over the next ten years, "the need to replace workers who leave a field permanently is expected to create more openings than growth will." But with retirement accounts losing value, many baby boomers could postpone leaving. Could this affect turnover?
"This recession will delay retirement, but not the traditional way," says Krause. "Retirees will come back into the workforce on contract or part-time basis, but not keep their old positions." Because longevity means larger salaries and a lower cost-basis, companies will still pressure older workers to retire, but will also need their experience to weather a recession not equaled in decades. If retirement is your next stop, look for firms where your wisdom could be useful on retainer.
10) Telecommuting
The first quarter of the year will be rough for job-seekers. But the upside will be more employer flexibility. "Candidates will have to market themselves," says Krause, "but more employers are open to job sharing and telecommuting as gas prices fluctuate and there is more emphasis on getting the candidate with the right suite of skills." Which means that it's wise to expand your geographical search, and inquire about whether working from home on a part-time basis is an option, regardless of the job you are seeking.
"What's heartening," Krause says of the incoming administration, "is that there's a recognition that there's a problem." If the president-elect's stimulus package works as intended, American job-seekers could see the creation and preservation of about 2.5 million jobs before 2010.

1. Of these 10 jobs, which grab your attention the most?
2. Is your desired career field listed, if not, then research it and find out where it stacks up in today's economy.
3. What skills would you need to have to pursue the career you are looking for?

S.C. open jobs, jobless often don’t match up

There were nearly 40,000 job vacancies in South Carolina last month and more than 200,000 people who were unemployed in the state.
Why can’t at least some of those jobless workers be matched with the open jobs?
Gov. Mark Sanford has asked that question repeatedly as he has warred with the S.C. Employment Security Commission, saying he should have control of the state’s jobs agency.
“It makes no sense to have an unemployment rate that is higher than we all would like while at the same time there are ... unfilled job postings across the state,” Sanford said during his State of the State speech.
Sanford argues the state’s high unemployment rate — 9.5 percent in January and expected to be higher when the latest numbers are released Friday — could be lowered if the state employment agency did a better job of placing people in jobs.
Others say the state’s unemployment problem is not a black-and-white numbers issue. Instead, they say it is complicated by other problems, including:
• Too many untrained workers who lack the skills wanted by employers who are hiring
• Too few jobs in rural areas
• And, some Sanford critics say, the state’s failure to attract enough new jobs
The task of putting the jobless to work is complicated by a gap between the skills of jobless workers and the skills wanted by companies that are hiring, said Stephen Marshall, deputy executive director of the S.C. Employment Security Commission.
There also is a geography gap, Marshall said. Many rural areas lack jobs, but many rural South Carolinians are reluctant to move to larger cities to find work.
“We still have two very distinct South Carolinas,” Marshall said. “We have metropolitan areas and the rural areas. Most of the openings are concentrated in the metro areas.”
THE NUMBERS
To understand the debate, it’s important to know where the number of jobs reported as being open comes from.
Each month, The Conference Board, a New York-based nonprofit economics think tank, releases a report on the number of job vacancies in each state.
The report is an estimate. But it is intended to be an indicator of the job market, said June Shelp, a Conference Board vice president. The board collects online job ads and eliminates duplicates to arrive at its number.
Last month, 44,100 jobs were advertised in South Carolina, 7,000 fewer than in December, according to the Conference Board.
That number is not an exact counting of job vacancies, Shelp said. Some openings are not advertised. In other cases, a company may post one job ad but have several openings for that job description. Also, some employers constantly advertise because of high turnover rates, so there may not be actual openings.
Over time, though, the survey presents a fair picture of a state’s job market, Shelp said.
Right now, it’s not a pretty picture.
“For every advertised vacancy online, there were a little over four people looking for work,” she said. “It’s an indication of how difficult the market is.”
The report also breaks down the number of ads by sector.
In January, the largest number of ads posted was for jobs in the professional sector. That sector, which includes teachers, engineers, nurses and financial specialists, showed 16,023 open positions in South Carolina.
The smallest number of openings was in construction and manufacturing. Each category had a little more than 800 jobs available.
Those are the same two categories that are eliminating the most jobs in South Carolina.
In December, the state lost 22,000 jobs — 1,400 in construction and 2,100 in manufacturing. Construction — where an unprecedented boom took place between 2005 and 2007 — has lost jobs for 14 straight months. Manufacturing has lost them for nine consecutive months, the Employment Security Commission reported.
Therein lies part of the problem in filling job vacancies in South Carolina, said Marshall, who oversees job training at the employment commission.
THE SKILLS GAP
There is a skills gap between workers and the jobs that are available, he said.
People who hold the disappearing jobs — construction and manufacturing — are not qualified for many of the jobs that are open.
Or, as the Conference Board’s Shelp said, “Obviously, if someone is looking for a registered nurse and they were kitchen help, they are not qualified.”
Part of the problem is South Carolina’s shift away from a manufacturing economy.
Twenty years ago, people quit high school and earned a decent living by working in their town’s textile mill, Marshall said. Those plants have closed by the dozens during the past decade.
“All of a sudden, they’ve lost their manufacturing job, and the jobs that are there to replace it require an associate’s degree,” he said.
Jack Canter, senior development officer at BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina, experiences the skills gap firsthand.
At any given time, his company has 70 to 100 openings in information technology. It searches across the country to fill the jobs, he said.
Why?
A laid-off mill worker can’t walk out the factory doors and into BlueCross’ information technology department.
There also are occupations where the differences are more subtle.
For example, BlueCross always is looking for information technology project managers, Canter said. There’s even a Project Management Professional certification that is given to people in all sorts of fields. But someone with that certification who worked as a construction project manager probably won’t fit Canter’s job description.
“They don’t have an aptitude and an understanding of the inner workings of IT,” he said.
HELP WANTED: A BETTER MATCHMAKER?
Joel Sawyer, the governor’s spokesman, says part of the problem is the Employment Security Commission is not doing enough to match job skills with job openings.
“The Employment Security Commission should be using every resource available to marry people with the jobs that are opening out there,” Sawyer said.
He pointed to a six-month report from the commission’s OneStop offices, charged with placing workers in jobs. The report shows the state’s OneStop offices had 35,839 jobs that companies had asked for help in filling. Of those, 14,386 — only 40 percent — were filled through the OneStops.
“Where I come from, 40 percent is an ‘F’ many times over,” Sawyer said.
Sanford has demanded the employment agency hand over information so his staff can figure out why the commission isn’t doing a better job, Sawyer said.
Earl Capps, a board member of the Trident Workforce Development Board in Charleston, which works with OneStop centers in that area, said the governor’s criticisms are wrong.
The centers are a catchall for unemployed people and businesses looking for workers, Capps said. And they operate with limited resources.
“We don’t have the resources to recruit specialized for job openings,” Capps said. “We have people coming in the doors, and we hope we can fit them into a job. Sometimes, it’s fitting a square peg into a round hole.
“The governor’s argument is missing the point.”
And, the jobs agency says, it eventually finds jobs for about 70 percent of the jobless workers who walk in its doors. That’s better than the national average of 67 percent, the agency adds.
... OR A BETTER JOB RECRUITER?
Other say Sanford shares the blame.
Lawmakers, including House Speaker Bobby Harrell, R-Charleston, have said Sanford has not done enough to recruit the right jobs to South Carolina.
When Sanford began his second term in January 2006, there was one state-advertised manufacturing job for every 5.9 unemployed factory workers, according to Employment Security Commission data. For every state-advertised sales job, there were 6.3 unemployed salesmen.
By July 2008, those rates had grown to one job for every 17.8 unemployed factory workers and one job for every 15.7 unemployed salesmen.
(Skilled workers — including those in finance, math, engineering or science — have done better. The rate only increased from one job for every 2.2 unemployed workers in 2006 to one job for every 4.2 unemployed workers in 2008.)
While critics say the state has failed to land enough jobs, the state Commerce Department, which reports to Sanford, says it is has done exactly that.
Commerce has recruited 49,079 jobs to the state over the past three years, said spokeswoman Kara Borie. Of those, 29 percent were in rural parts of the state, she said.
A skills gap does exist, said Peggy Torrey, the Commerce Department’s deputy secretary for work force. But there are plenty of opportunities for people to learn a new craft, she added.
Now is the time, Torrey said, to go back to school, and there are programs that pay for laid-off workers to do that. “We really believe there are some opportunities in this very difficult time.”
Marshall, Torrey’s counterpart at the Employment Security Commission, said his agency has the same goal.
“We want these people to go back to work,” he said.
But, he added, “We want there to be viable openings for them to go back to.”

1. Post your thoughts.
2. What could be done about the growing number of jobless that are not meeting the specifications of the open jobs in South Carolina.