Silver Linings on the Jobs Market

The worldwide recession is responsible for huge numbers of job losses daily and there’s currently little sign of things easing. In the USA The International Labour Organization (ILO) is predicting 20 million job losses by the end of 2009, mostly in construction, real estate, financial services and the automobile sector. In China over 20 million workers have lost their jobs since Christmas.

Whilst no sector is immune from the negative effects of the global downturn there are areas of employment with better job prospects than others and in fact some business sectors – mobile technology for example is actually thriving. If you are looking for a new challenge in 2009 you might want to consider focusing your efforts on areas that might offer the best potential opportunities in landing an interesting and rewarding position.

o Security – Homeland security, national and international intelligence services hold rich employment pickings currently with no signs of any imminent slackening in demand for those holding appropriate skills. Analysis, languages and admin for example. Government pledges to increase police numbers also offer opportunities in law enforcement, customs and other public service type roles.

o Healthcare and welfare – Spending on social housing remains high, for personnel ranging from accountants to construction workers. There is also a continuing need for healthcare professionals, social care workers and teachers. Opportunities for skilled nurses, doctors, psychologists and psychotherapists, analysts, caregivers, medical assistants, physical therapists, home health aides, medical records staff and health information technicians may even grow during the recession. Such is the current shortage of social workers that the Local Government Association (LGA) is urging recently retired social workers to return to the profession in a bid to solve staff shortages.

o Financial and Legal Professions- Skilled professionals in the claims and compensation sectors as well as cost saving, or those dealing with bankruptcies, and contractual disputes. Auditors and procurement managers, purchasing specialists, internal auditors and senior finance interims are in demand and as more companies review their business models so consultants, managers, lawyers and bankers with expertise in making businesses leaner during a downturn are proving invaluable.

o Environmental Sector – While many commentators have in the past dismissed green as a ‘nice to have’ luxury, it’s now becoming a business essential as many organisations now have ‘kilowatt budgets’ alongside traditional monetary ones. New Green jobs, including renewable energy specialists and energy efficiency advisers offer plenty of employment opportunities with renewable expertise the best skill to have. Energy efficiency advisers, employed by cost-cutting and green-conscious companies alike, are also in demand as the UK tries to reduce its dependence on gas and oil from overseas.

o IT – Telecoms and technology – Many technology and telecoms maintenance professionals will keep their jobs as companies think about upkeep rather then upgrades. Some IT areas are robust and even experiencing growth: Here’s a list of the top 10 most secure IT sectors according to businessreviewonline.com

o Virtualisation
o Open source
o Green IT
o Cloud computing (and SaaS)
o Data loss prevention
o Mobile computing
o Integration & BPM
o Information management & search
o Business activity monitoring (BA)
o Social networking & online collaboration tools

o Underwriting – Demand for all classes of underwriters amongst the insurance companies is still strong, since evaluating potential clients is key to managing risk. Interestingly Admiral whose Confused.com website accounts for more than 15 per cent of all new motor premiums in Britain has recently announced record profits and plans for expansion into the U.S market.

o Engineering -There’s continuing strong demand for qualified engineers in construction, project management and civil engineering, in particular for work related to the 2012 Olympics.