Despite what many fans of the ancient Mayan calendar are predicting, the world most likely will not end in 2012. Instead, we need to prepare for positive changes in the economy and labour market.  This is going to be a year of strong growth and revitalization in several important industries such as it’s also going to be a year where many more baby boomers celebrate their 65th birthday and retire, continuing to retire as a generation through to 2029, creating hard to fill vacancies throughout the business world.

  According to RBC Economic Trends hiring is expected to ramp up in the months ahead (Feb 3, 2012). As far as Western Canada is concerned, the past recession is a distant memory and its clear 2012 is going to be a great year for many professional jobseekers.  During 2011 there was a good balance between the needs of companies and employees, but the pendulum is swinging towards an economy where jobseekers are going to have the clear edge in the market. A surge in health, safety, and quality assurance positions are appearing as companies focus more on these priorities as they carve out competitive positions in the market.  The main piece of advice we’re giving companies with jobs to fill is to act quickly and decisively. In this current market, and for the remainder of 2012, organizations are not in a position to be coy in hiring decisions. Finding a qualified candidate that fits the organization will always be priority one, however, any hesitation will likely result in their losing the qualified applicant.

The recruitment experts at Executrade defined the trends of 2012 for both sides of the recruitment equation in the following way:

Kelly Martin (Vice President, Northern Alberta):  “Our search assignments definitely spiked during the first month of 2012. The messages from our clients have been extremely positive. They’re seeing increased demand for their various products and services, particularly in the Oil & Gas sector.  This increase will result in businesses requiring more employees to keep pace with their needs.”

Judy Ham (Senior Account Executive): “There has been a definite surge of new clients phoning in to ask for help filling empty positions. I’m finding that Engineering & Technical roles continue to take a front and centre position in terms of recruitment needs.  Drivers and tradesman are going to be in hot demand and some forecasts that suggest 2012 is going to be busier and crazier than 2006-2008 in terms of labour shortages.”

Mark Gallant (Account Executive): “Our region is literally in one of the most enviable economic environments in the world. Oil is the catalyst, but other sectors, such as Manufacturing, Retail, Healthcare, Nanotechnology and Financial Services are driving GDP. Many employers are really dreading the labour shortfalls.”

2012 is going to see the Western Canadian economy benefit qualified jobseekers who will now have to be quickly wooed by companies that might have once taken more time in the selection process. For skilled candidates this is excellent news, but for companies in the Oil & Gas, Tech, Manufacturing, Retail, Healthcare, and Financial Services industries, prepare yourselves to be more decisive and as attractive as possible.

Simplicity would suggest, if you want a job done right, ask a specialist.

Darryl

Executrade

Your Recruitment Specialists

References:

http://www.rbc.com/economics/market/pdf/ecotrend.pdf

Kelly Martin: http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/kelly-martin/9/b99/214

Mark Gallant: http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/mark-gallant-bsc/21/17b/351

Judy Ham: http://ca.linkedin.com/pub/judy-ham/2b/121/54a