High demand for smart speakers leading to jump in jobs

When smartphones were first mass produced in manufacturing and distribution centers, millions of Americans said, "I gotta have that." Fast forward to the present, and the vast majority of gadget-crazed consumers own these devices - nearly 80 percent of the country, in fact, according to the Pew Research Center.

Making a strong case for second - if they haven't already caught up - are voice-activated assistant devices, a trend poised to foreshadow an uptick in employment and recruitment in several industries to satisfy buyer demand.

From the iPhone's Siri to Amazon's Alexa, voice-assistant technology is all the rage these days. In fact, approximately 95 percent of respondents in a recent poll conducted by PYMNTS.com and Visa acknowledged owning one or more of these gadgets, which can perform various functions simply by speaking to them.

The uptick in ownership has been particularly notable in recent years. For example, 27 percent of respondents in the survey said they possessed voice-activated speaker systems, up from 14 percent in 2017. Younger millennials - defined as those whose age range between 18 and 29 - are the most likely consumers to be using voice-based tech assistants, more so than so-called "bridge millennials" and early Generation Xers.

"11% of broadband households intend to purchase smart speakers within the next year."

Smart speaker ownership to push higher
Although technologies like Siri and Alexa have been around for several years, it's clear that the novelty factor hasn't worn off. To the contrary, new research suggests that among households with broadband internet connections, 11 percent intend to purchase smart speakers within the next year, according to a separate study from Parks Associates.

"The consumer market first encountered voice control through smartphone-based voice assistants, which consumers report as the preferred method of voice control for smart home devices," said, Dina Abdelrazik, Parks Associates research analyst. "These experiences drive demand for new voice-based experiences."

It comes as no surprise, then, that employment in manufacturing, assembly and distribution centers has risen - a trend that's expected to continue for the foreseeable future. This past summer, Amazon announced its plans to develop a fulfillment center in Eastern Washington, the e-commerce giant's debut in this portion of the Evergreen State. The project is expected to add over 1,500 full-time jobs to the state's economy.

The fulfillment center - projected to span 600,000 square feet - is necessary to keep up with buyer demand, the company stated. Employees at the facility will work in concert with Amazon Robotics to package and prepare orders for customers.

Growth in tech employment
Although consumer technology represents only a portion of what Amazon and other factory settings mass produce for buying customers, it accounts for a sizeable share of annual earnings, evidenced by quarterly sales figures. However, manufacturers and suppliers can only deliver on what tech experts develop. This may explain why employment in the tech industry has proliferated. Through the first six months of 2017, for example, tech companies accounted for nearly half of the square footage office space signings among the leading commercial leases in the U.S. and Canada, according to estimates from Cushman & Wakefield.

Revathi Greenwood, head of research at Cushman & Wakefield, said robust tech employment isn't confined to the general sector itself, but to multiple others, including law firms, media conglomerates and most especially retailers.

What does the future look like voice-assist devices? Thanks to the ingenuity of the people that design them and the employees participating in assembly, vital signs are strong. Amazon, for one, announced added intelligent features in Alexa-enhanced Echo devices in September, including updated email management, video doorbell and step-by-step cooking instructions.

"We've only scratched the surface of A.I.-powered inventions, said Rohit Prasad, head scientist and vice president of Amazon Alexa. "We'll continue to invent ways to make Alexa more useful for our customers."

The Trevi Group | www.TheTreviGroup.com | Executive Search for Technology Professionals

BLS Employment Situation Report: September 2018

Job creation in September 2018, in terms of raw numbers, did not reach the heights of August or some of the year's other most robust periods. The Bureau of Labor Statistics announced that nonfarm payroll businesses in the U.S. brought on 134,000 new workers during the month in its latest edition of the Employment Situation Summary, considerably less than August's 210,000 jobs. Also, the number failed to meet economists' expectations: Bloomberg's survey of economic experts had projected 185,000 new positions created, while The New York Times reported that Wall Street's general estimate was more conservative (168,000) but still greater than the final result.

However, a number of seasonal and situational factors that do not reflect the broader direction of the American economy are the most direct causes of slowed job growth, not least of which is the impact that Hurricane Florence had on several states along the eastern seaboard. Additionally, the BLS noted that the survey periods during which the agency collected its data on employment and unemployment directly coincided with the storm's landfall, which may have adversely affected initial results. Figure adjustments to account for such anomalies, which routinely occur after the initial release of the Employment Situation, may thus reveal more positive numbers.

Meanwhile, the unemployment rate fell in September to reach a new low for the year: 3.7 percent. As noted by the Times, this figure isn't merely a landmark for 2018, but also the lowest jobless percentage on record since 1969. Speaking with Bloomberg, Alan Krueger, former leader of the White House Council of Economic Advisers to President Barack Obama and a noted economics professor at Harvard University, said mitigating factors impacting the numbers should not detract from an ultimately positive conclusion.

"The markets could give this a little bit of a pass because it's not clear what impact the hurricane had at the moment," Krueger told the news provider. "I would view this as a full-employment jobs report."

The industries responsible for the latest round of job growth should come as no surprise, based on trends within the U.S. economy over the past 12 to 18 months: Professional and business services was well ahead of all other fields for the third month in a row, adding 54,000 positions in September and beating its own gains from the month before by 1,000. Healthcare took second place yet again, albeit with 26,000 new jobs - less than half the growth seen in the No. 1 sector.

Meanwhile, transportation and warehousing surged ahead after several months of no statistically significant activity to create 24,000 positions, and construction was right on its heels with 23,000 new jobs. Manufacturing and mining also added staff to their payrolls in September - 18,000 and 6,000, respectively, with the latter mostly dependent on support-services positions for its job growth. No other sector saw any meaningful increases. In terms of losses, a drop of 17,000 workers in leisure and hospitality stood out as the only notable labor decline, and can be attributed at least in part to Hurricane Florence and the transition from summer to autumn that often produces staff cuts.

Average hourly pay increased by 8 cents, or 0.3 percent, from the previous month, per the BLS's figures. This represents a 2.8 percent year-over-year increase, which is still less than what one might expect given the breakneck pace of job growth during that time. Nevertheless, economists and business leaders can find much to be pleased with in the overall picture that this data paints, including reinforcement of hopes that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates one more time before the end of 2018.

The Trevi Group | www.TheTreviGroup.com | “Executive Search for Technology Professionals”

3 Steps to Sourcing Contract Talent, Even When Going Through an MSP/VMS

A recent NPR/Marist survey reveals that 20 percent of work in the U.S. is fulfilled by contract workers. So, no matter what industry your business serves, chances are you regularly employ contractors to augment your permanent workforce. This reality creates a continual need to source consultants, whether it be through an MSP (Managed Services Provider) / VMS (Vendor Management System) or a boutique staffing firm.

The use of an MSP/VMS has increased dramatically in the last ten years; the threshold for engaging with an MSP used to be approximately $50 million a year in contract staffing spend, but that number has significantly decreased, and many small to medium-sized companies utilize an MSP program. Despite all the benefits of an MSP/VMS, it can present a challenge to internal hiring managers who need to find contractors quickly, with a very specific skill sets.

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"Some companies are much more strict and rigid than others when it comes to MSP utilization," said Tim Ozier, senior director of contract staffing sales for MRINetwork. "Some junior level managers may also be more reluctant to try and work outside the MSP program than their senior colleagues."

Regardless of how your company manages its contingent workforce, Ozier recommends taking the following steps to ensure you have an efficient process for sourcing contractors:

1. Become very familiar with the MSP/VMS program and its nuances. You might find that the program allows you to attract the contract talent you need, in a timely manner, at the right price. However, many managers have previously established relationships with smaller, boutique recruiting firms with whom they want to continue working.
    

2. Try to get boutique firms onboarded as a vendor through the MSP program. This can be time consuming and possibly unsuccessful if the smaller firms cannot comply with the vendor requirements. Essentially, you’ll need to justify why it’s critical to bring in highly specialized talent that can’t be sourced through the MSP program. To accomplish this, learn the internal processes and justifications for using non-preferred suppliers. Exceptions can be made and even when the list of preferred vendors are locked down, there is typically a second tier of boutique providers that the MSP can turn to for meeting mission-critical business needs.
    

3. Utilize the boutique firm for consulting services or SOW projects, rather than staff augmentation since those services frequently fall outside the auspices of the MSP program.

In some cases, it can help the hiring manager make a case for using an outside firm if he/she already has an excellent candidate from the firm. The company will usually have another vehicle outside of the MSP for more strategic or specialized biz needs. Many of those needs can be met by a staffing provider.

“Ultimately, it’s key that managers talk to other internal groups, to gain insight on all the available staffing options,” concluded Ozier. “There are possibilities that are not always made public, and when there is enough pain regarding sourcing contingent talent, these opportunities open up.”

The Trevi Group
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”Executive Search for Technology Professionals”

Big data could create job opportunities in APAC

For the past decade or so, big data has taken the tech sector - and much of the business world overall - by storm. The possibilities afforded by large-scale business intelligence for automation, high-level analysis and increased business efficiency have proved to be all but endless. Now, as nations throughout the Asia-Pacific region develop their economies at a furious pace, the demand for big data in these countries is taking off considerably.

Citing data from IDC, Forbes stated that business analytics tools will experience a compound annual growth rate of 15.1 percent in the APAC region between 2017 and 2022. Analytics data stores and cognitive/AI software platforms represent the most popular product categories in the overarching field of big data, per IDC's projections, with respective CAGRs of 35.4 percent and 32.4 percent.

While most of the demand for this technology is coming from the largest APAC firms, small and medium-sized businesses are also making investments in it. Additionally, there will be a resulting need for more individuals trained in the specific skill sets necessary to leverage such technologies, which could help create tech jobs in these countries.

As far as the region's broader economy is concerned, projections remain quite positive. The International Monetary Fund's Regional Economic Outlook for APAC nations projects growth of 5.5 percent, two-thirds of the world's overall economic progression for 2018.

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“Executive Search for IT Professionals”



BLS Employment Summary for August 2018

August was a strong month for employers across most segments of the U.S. economy, particularly in the wake of a July performance that notably underperformed the expectations of economic analysts, businesses and governments alike. According to the latest Employment Situation Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, American nonfarm organizations in both the private and public sectors added 210,000 jobs to their workforces.

This figure stands well above the 147,000 new positions created in July (downwardly revised from an initial estimate of 157,000) and also exceeds the median prediction by Bloomberg-surveyed economists, who expected to see 190,000 jobs added during the month. Meanwhile, the unemployment rate held fast to its July figure of 3.9 percent (about 6.2 million unemployed persons actively looking for work) in August, and this did slightly fall behind the estimate of economic experts Reuters polled, who predicted a drop to 3.8 percent.

Michael Gapen, chief U.S. economist at Barclays, pointed out in an interview with The New York Times that figures such as these indicated some of the fears over international trade wars were, for now at least, somewhat overblown.

"What's worth noting is that even though there still remains a lot of headline noise around politics and protectionism, underneath that, the U.S. economy - and that includes labor markets - is doing quite fine," Gapen told the newspaper.

Professional and business services remained the top performer in terms of employment creation among American industries, adding 53,000 jobs during August. Healthcare came in second, with 33,000 new roles added, while construction and wholesale trade were nearly tied with their respective gains of 23,000 and 22,000 jobs. (By contrast to its wholesale counterpart, retail trade, after a few months of back-and-forth, didn't see any major change in August).

There were some notable differences between the August and July reports in terms of industries showing statistically significant increases or declines. Transportation and warehousing, which has not risen or fallen much throughout 2018, saw a big jump of 22,000 new positions created in August. Mining also added jobs this past month after showing no significant movement in July, although these almost all came from mining support services, as has been the case for many of the previously reported increases within that particular field over the past year.

Some economists will see manufacturing's decline in employment - a loss of 3,000 positions in August - as the biggest surprise in the BLS's latest jobs report. Considering that the field added 37,000 jobs in July and 36,000 in June, as it has for nearly a year starting in 2017 and continuing through to 2018. Any drop counts as a notable negative change in light of a White House administration under President Donald Trump that repeatedly pledged to bring back manufacturing jobs - and also, with good reason, has cited economic gains as its biggest success. This could be attributable to a slight drop in the labor force participation rate, which fell 0.2 percent to reach 62.7 percent.

That said, a loss of 3,000 roles could easily be offset by even a relatively modest jobs gain for September.

The August BLS report also contained other significant positives. Wages grew by 0.4 percent when analyzed by average hourly earnings, rising 10 cents to reach $27.16. When looked at on a year-over-year basis, the gain is even more impressive - 2.9 percent between August 2017 and 2018.

Indications also exist of some trade tensions between the U.S. and other nations beginning to abate somewhat. CNN reported Aug. 28 that President Trump and outgoing Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto agreed on several adjustments to the North American Free Trade Agreement, most of them meant to ensure both nations were able to maintain strong involvement in auto manufacturing. Peña Nieto expressed hope that Canada would accept the revisions, which would further advance NAFTA renegotiation efforts. However, according to another Reuters report, Canada and America still remain at odds over several industries, most notably dairy, lumber, media and steel.

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"Executive Search for Technology Professionals"

Video: How to Implement an Effective Contingent Workforce Recruitment Strategy

According to Staffing Industry Analysts’ Workforce Solutions Buyer Survey 2018, respondents report that 22 percent of their staff is currently contingent, and project that by 2028 that figure will rise to 30 percent. As the blended workforce continues to grow, it's becoming increasingly important to perfect your company’s recruitment strategies to consistently hire strong permanent and contract candidates that will drive business growth. No matter what industry you focus on, the ability to implement an effective contingent workforce recruitment strategy that is part of your overarching hiring plans is essential for success in today's competitive job market.

Click to watch the video.

"Many newer companies make the mistake of assuming that coming up with an effective contingent talent acquisition strategy can happen overnight," said Tim Ozier, senior director of contract staffing sales for MRINetwork. "The reality is that identifying hiring needs, searching for right-fit candidates and screening takes extensive time and consideration. Generally, the most successful strategies unfold with the help of staffing companies."

Whether you are running a startup tech company or managing a team of long-time engineers, you and your organization are going to need a strong recruitment strategy, ensuring that you are focused on the talent decisions that will actually affect the organization’s ability to reach its business goals. Consider these methods for executing an effective plan that works for your team:

Strive to maintain balance

No matter how good your retention rate is, changes in employment are expected within any company. New projects, changes in strategy, new market opportunities can all have an impact on the staffing levels and skill requirements of any organization, big or small.

However, it’s key that your organization is always thinking two steps ahead when it comes to your contingent workforce recruitment strategy. While not all exits from the company can be anticipated, workforce planning is most effective when it resolves talent gaps while maintaining a balance of labor surpluses and shortages. This is best accomplished by using predictive analytics to monitor workforce trends inside your business, as well as in the external environment. When a company can accurately forecast future job openings, analyze current demand and talent, and measure predicted resources, it improves talent acquisition. "This ability to look ahead and recognize what your company will need and when, can enhance the success rate of recruitment," said Ozier. “Keep one eye on current challenges - and one eye on future needs that your organization must prepare for.”

Encourage a blended workforce

Today's workforce looks much different than it did even several years ago. With the onset of remote work, the gig economy and the appeal of telecommuting, it's becoming rare to find a company filled completely with full-time, in-office employees. From the top down, organizations and employees can reap the benefits of a mixed workforce but first, your company needs to be on board with this kind of work environment.

One way to do this is by including discussions around the blended workforce during planning sessions with the entire organization. Demonstrating how contingent workers can help drive the organization's bottom line, while cutting costs at the same time is key. In many cases, contingent workers are hired for projects that could not be completed by existing staff. Overall, creating clear means of communication across all sources of workers is beneficial.

Expand expectations of contract workers

In the past, contingent workers were mainly brought on for short-term projects with an official deadline in place. Today, not all of these employees operate on fixed-term contracts. In fact, there are long-term contracts that can last up to several years, or even indefinite contracts with no official end date.

If companies continue to view this pool of candidates as merely temporary, they are largely missing out on the talent that is today's world of extremely skilled top performers. While you may only think of contingent workers as one-time fixers, merely filling a gap in talent while saving on costs, you’re losing out on the wealth of knowledge these highly skilled workers have to offer.

According to figures from a recent study published by Oxford Economics, IT, healthcare, public service agencies, financial services and professional services are among the top sectors using contingent labor as a solution. These organizations that require niche expertise can highly benefit in the long-term by sourcing from this top talent.

"Both organizations and contingent workers benefit greatly from contract staffing," said Ozier. "Many times, the relationship and outcome is so great, these employees are later hired as permanent workers."

Work with a staffing company

Industry focus is key for finalizing your recruitment strategy and the best way to do this is by working with a staffing organization. Not only do these agencies have working relationships with top talent, but they understand the specific skill sets needed in your given industry. When it's the top candidates within your sector you're looking for, staffing organizations can help you find them. Instead of training an inexperienced worker, you gain access to the right candidate for the job at hand. The recruitment firm takes care of all the talent sourcing, background checks, and preliminary interviewing activities to deliver highly qualified workers. For both permanent and contract work, this single-source solution can help you implement the best contingent workforce recruitment strategy.

The Trevi Group
"Executive Search for Technology Professionals"

BLS Employment Situation Report - for July 2018

The job gains initially estimated by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics for June were recalculated from 213,000 to 248,000. As such, some economists consider the total increase in nonfarm payroll employment for July - 157,000 jobs - an even more significant decline from June's numbers. Other analysts see it more as a regression to the mean: a more typical and sustainable pace of healthy job growth than the almost hyper-real gains that long stretches of 2017 and 2018 have seen.

That said, the July figure is considerably less than what some experts predicted: Economists surveyed by Bloomberg expected a mean increase of 193,000 jobs, while a similar questionnaire from Reuters came up with an average prediction of 190,000 new positions. The unemployment rate, by contrast, was widely expected to fall from June's 4.0 percent - which it did, to reach 3.9 percent in July. The labor force participation rate held steady at 62.9 percent.

Many of the industries that saw notable increases in positions added were the same between June and July: Professional and business services once again took the No. 1 spot, with 51,000 new positions created, while manufacturing took second place with 37,000 jobs added. Both of these sectors also saw a month-to-month uptick of exactly 1,000 jobs from June to July. Healthcare came in third again this July, but with stronger numbers than what was seen in June - 34,000 new roles created as opposed to 26,000 the month prior.

Food services and drinking places was a new addition to the list of statistically significant job gains, with 26,000 new workers added to its payrolls. Seasonal factors likely drove this, given the tendency of July and August to serve as primary vacation time. Construction and retail trade were the last two sectors to see any notable uptick in employment, with 19,000 and 7,000 jobs added, respectively.

No broad sector of the American economy experienced significant labor force decline, though retail's gain would've been much greater if not for a loss of 32,000 positions in sporting goods, hobby, book and music stores. Clothing, general merchandise and food and beverage stores offset that drop with healthy job growth.

Speaking with Reuters, Omair Sharif, senior U.S. economist at the New York branch of the multinational bank Societe Generale, expressed a sentiment common among various experts: slight disappointment, tempered by broader optimism.

"The story is pretty much the same," Sharif said to the news provider. "Job growth is still very strong. It's still a disappointment on wages still with the unemployment rate this low. We are still fluctuating between 2.5 percent and 2.8 percent in year-over-year wage growth. The labor story hasn't changed very much. Everything else looks pretty solid. We are just waiting for wages to accelerate. We can't seem to budge out of this range."

BLS figures show that wage growth increased from June to July, jumping from 5 to 7 cents in terms of additions to average hourly earnings - a 0.3 percent jump, as predicted by the economists Bloomberg surveyed. Measured year-over -year, it's not quite as positive, with a 2.7 percent increase between July 2017 and 2018, identical to June's year-on-year wage gain.

The Federal Reserve increased federal benchmark interest rates in July, as expected, with many predicting another rate hike in September. Sharif cautioned against assuming this was "a done deal," however, noting that the Fed will examine "more than just the labor market to determine further hikes."

In big-picture terms, the U.S. economy remains considerably solvent, but this could change somewhat if trade tensions with other nations - especially China - become more intense.

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Video: 4 Ways to Plan the Growth of Your Company in the Instant Information Era

Today’s senior business managers face not only traditional business planning tasks when driving growth within their organization, but also the need to understand new marketing challenges and opportunities presented by technologies that were not taught in business schools even five or ten years ago.

Click to watch the video.

Key among those business planning elements are marketing and public relations planning that leverages the latest technologies to communicate your company’s mission, focus and differentiated, competitive advantages. Leaders also need to plan digital defenses against issues that can arise virtually overnight even as they deploy new marketing tools and techniques.

Here are four ways you can promote your business more effectively using the latest marketing and public relations techniques:

1. Stick to the 1 in 7 posting principle

A spin on the "Rule of Seven," which stipulates that a buyer should hear a marketing message at least seven times before buying, the 1 in 7 rule relates to social media. As noted by American Express, whenever you post something on Facebook, Twitter or other social media website, one out of every seven of the posts should promote your business. The other posts should be some piece of content that your customers will consider interesting or valuable. This balance helps your customers view your business as an industry thought leader.

2. Target your audience with search engine optimization

What are your customers searching for when they log on? What websites are they going to for information? Search engine optimization can help you decipher the type of questions your customers want answered and what key search terms they're using to find them.

"Find out who's talking about what, where they're talking about it, and then start listening there," Amy Vernon, marketing consultant at Predictable.ly, told Fast Company.

3. Form a crisis management team

How would your company respond if an employee mistake or a cyber security attack tarnished the organization’s image? Time is of the essence in today's digital world where word travels fast, and the immediate strategy you employ determines how you'll bounce back. You may want to appoint some of your existing employees to serve as crisis managers. The team should consist of individuals who have a knack for staying cool under pressure and thrive at problem-solving in a digital environment. Once the team is assembled, map out a process that can be followed, should a crisis arise.

4. Connect with influencers

Influencers are the people who move the needle and whose endorsement of your product - or contribution to your blog - elicits more clicks. That’s the social media component of leveraging influencers. However, your association with influencers goes far beyond the online world. Connecting with industry influencers can lead to additional marketing opportunities, such as guest speaking at your corporate conferences or appearances in promotional content.

“From guest blog posts to interviews to podcasts, influencers can legitimize your organization and significantly raise the company’s profile,” explained Vince Webb, vice president of marketing for MRINetwork. “Influencers allow you to reach target audiences, as well as those that you might never have expected, through a vast assortment of interactive mediums.”

Establishing a solid brand and spreading the word about your company has never been easier, thanks to cost-effective measures like social media, digital marketing and public relations. The key is striking the right balance between traditional and new marketing and public relations techniques that can propel your business to new heights.

The Trevi Group
Executive Search For Technology Professionals
www.TheTreviGroup.com

Employment Summary for June 2018

The U.S. saw yet another considerable monthly surge in the size of its labor force in June 2018. According to the Employment Situation Summary from the Bureau of Labor Statistics, nonfarm payroll across all American industries added 213,000 jobs during the month.

This is slightly less than May's tally of 223,000 new positions, but a strong number exceeding the median figure projected by a Bloomberg survey of economic experts, who expected approximately 195,000 jobs added.

Although the unemployment rate rose from May to June - coming in at 4 percent after May's remarkably low figure of 3.8 percent - many are attributing this to growth in the labor force participation rate, which most recently jumped 0.2 percent to reach 62.9 percent. This indicates an uptick in jobless individuals actively seeking work, particularly among prime-age workers (Americans between the ages of 25 and 54). Brookings Institution senior fellow Gary Burtless confirmed as much in an interview with The Washington Post.

"This trend has been well underway," Burtless told the news provider. "We had a very, very long recovery from an extremely deep recession. It wasn’t spectacularly fast, but it has been spectacularly long.”

The field of professional and business services stood well above other sectors of the U.S. economy in terms of increased employment for the month, adding a total of 50,000 jobs. Manufacturing saw the second largest gains, creating 36,000 new positions once again on the back of durable goods manufacturing. This smaller category of the field has reaped major overall benefits for the American manufacturing industry, in terms of both revenue and employment.

Healthcare - another consistent performer on the U.S. job market and general economy over the past few years - added 25,000 new positions to its labor force in June. Meanwhile, construction rounded out the group of sectors with five-figure job gains due to the 13,000 new roles it created, and mining was the only other industry with statistically significant employment growth for the month, adding 5,000 jobs altogether.

The only notable drop in total jobs for June occurred within the sector of retail trade - a loss of 22,000 positions. However, because this field of the American labor force added 25,000 jobs during May, any impact on the businesses within it would be minimal. Additionally, seasonal labor shifts, which are common in retail, are almost undoubtedly responsible for some of June's job losses. This reduces the likelihood that the drop-off is the beginning of any alarming trend - though it's too early to know all of the exact causes.

Speaking with Bloomberg, Michael Feroli, chief U.S. economist at JPMorgan Chase & Co., offered a largely positive but nuanced take on the newest numbers from the BLS.

"This is a good job-creation number, but on the other hand we see still continued soft wage growth," Feroli said. "It's positive in the sense that we still have some capacity to grow above trend without triggering too much inflation worry." He added that the Federal Reserve could interpret these indicators as reasons to maintain its current schedule of increases to federal benchmark interest rates, rather than expanding to four rate hikes for 2018 as many economists have anticipated.

Growth in average hourly earnings did slow somewhat during June, with the month's 5 cent increase representing a 0.2 percent decline from May's wage gains. Also, concerns persist among some American businesses regarding potential adverse effects of the recent U.S. tariffs on numerous imports, including $34 billion in new levies placed on goods from China as of July 6, 2018. Yet the full effect of those measures remains to be seen, and in the meantime, the American economy is in a positive place, as it has generally been for the past several years.

The Trevi Group
"Executive Search for Technology Professionals"

IT job creation sizzling this summer

The U.S. economy is in the black in terms of job creation for 92 months in a row, according to The New York Times, and the unemployment rate hovers at lows not witnessed in nearly 20 years. Virtually every industry is in hiring mode, and this is particularly true in the information technology sector - where employers are filling positions at breakneck speed.

With the summer's arrival, approximately 25 percent of business are hiring for their IT departments, according to a newly released survey conducted by The Harris Poll for CareerBuilder. That's tied with customer service and office support for the highest percentage among individual employment sectors. Engineering came in second at 18 percent and manufacturing at 16 percent.

Irina Novoselsky, CareerBuilder president and chief operating officer, noted that given companies are competing with one another to woo an increasingly smaller pool of job-seekers, they're dialing up the incentives.

"Employers are becoming more competitive with pay and offering more long-term employment opportunities to summer workers," Novoselsky explained. "It's a great way for workers to add new skills, build up their resumes and expand their professional network."

Most companies expect seasonal jobs to turn permanent
Although no two hiring environments are the same, the summer is traditionally a hot period for recruitment, both for seasonal help as well as for positions businesses are looking to fill for the long haul. The survey found that 41 percent of employers intend to hire seasonal workers during the summer, with 88 percent expecting these positions to segue into permanent roles by the time late September rolls around. That's up from 79 percent in 2017.

Businesses are looking to shore up their cybersecurity with IT professionals as permanent staff members.

The IT sector is one of the more dynamic out there. Technology is developing rapidly and becoming cheaper for consumers to purchase, making lives more comfortable and easier to manage. At the same time, the internet of things era has led to a dramatic uptick in security breaches, fueled by identity thieves looking to steal consumers' personal information. They're also after the sensitive data of businesses, as seemingly not a week goes by without hearing about a company experiencing a cyberattack.

IT employee demand to outstrip supply within four years
It's these security concerns that have contributed to the uptick in IT-related hiring. As reported by The Wall Street Journal, the demand for cybersecurity professionals in outpacing supply. Indeed, by 2022, the U.S. is expected to have 265,000 more data security jobs than skilled workers available to fill them, based on estimates from Frost & Sullivan.

The need is so great that job-seekers don't necessarily need to be specialists. Recruitment expert Ryan Sutton told the Journal that what businesses really want from hired help is superior critical-thinking skills, but a basic knowledge of computer networks and programming are big pluses also.

"There are just not enough certified professionals out there to fulfill the needs," Sutton further stated.

Meanwhile, the Department of Homeland Security has developed an online tool that techies can use to sharpen their skills. The National Initiative for Cybersecurity Careers and Studies offers formal education programs, training utilities and how-to articles that help individuals apply some of their knowledge to managing their data.

In short, if you're looking for work in IT, your dream job may be waiting for you.

The Trevi Group  |  "Executive Search for Technology Professionals"  |  www.TheTreviGroup.com