A recent Wall Street Journal article examines “Why Companies Aren’t Getting the Employees They Need.” The article discusses employers complaining about the difficulty of recruiting skilled workers, but points out that the problem may actually be the employers themselves. 
Writer Peter Cappelli, professor of management at the Wharton School of Business, says: “With an abundance of workers to choose from, employers are demanding more of job candidates than ever before. They want prospective workers to be able to fill a role right away, without any training or ramp-up time.”
“In other words,” he said, “to get a job, you have to have that job already.”
Talk about a Catch-22. What does this mean for job seekers? Cappelli says employers should stop looking for perfect candidates, but instead look for candidates who could do the job — after a bit of training. While 52% of companies in the U.S. say they have difficulty filling jobs because of a talent shortage, Cappeli argues that it’s more of a training shortage.
As a job seeker, you need to anticipate this prejudice and be able to sell yourself the right way. If you don’t have enough experience to jump in right away and do the job perfectly, highlight the reasons why you know you’ll be able to learn quickly and get up-to-speed as soon as possible.
Cappelli says employers should work with education providers, bring back aspects of apprenticeship, and promote from within. Job seekers should complement these ideas by:
- If you’re still in school, talk to companies you’re interested in and see if they have any suggestions of classes you might take. A senior VP at my last internship suggested I should take a broadcast writing class — he has an idea of how he would like me to be prepared if he were to hire me. If you’re out of school, continue training courses and education to stay up-to-date while you’re job seeking.
- While many companies lack an apprenticeship program, get training and experience in your field or desired position by taking internships, freelance/consulting gigs, or even volunteer positions while you’re searching for a full-time job.
- If you’re already employed but seeking a different position, you could start by looking at open jobs within the company you already work for. Maybe there’s a different sector of the business where you’d fit better.
Job seekers may have the short end of the stick with employers thinking that they can find the “holy grail” of candidates that will be perfectly trained, but there are steps you can take to make yourself more in line with what employers want.
What do you think about Cappelli’s analysis of employers? Do you agree?
