This Week
It’s not just your imagination. There actually is a talent war going on in America, and indeed across the globe. The old saying “it’s hard to find good help these days” is truer now more than ever. A few things are fueling this.
First, with the unemployment rate profoundly low, it’s a full-employment economy. As a result, people looking for work can find it.
Second, there are generational shifts happening. With Baby Boomers leaving the workforce rapidly and Gen X not far behind, Millennials are by some estimates now 50% of the workforce. By 2025, Millennials will be 75% of the workforce.
Third, there appears to be a skill shortage. Colleges just aren’t pumping out qualified graduates fast enough to meet the needs of the market. Just ask any talented computer engineer, who likely gets multiple jobs offers a month.
In other fields, there’s simply a shortage of leaders. In the church world, for example, the average age of the senior pastor has crept up to 57, and seminaries are not producing a groundswell of young, capable leaders. As a result, it can be difficult to staff in the future.
Organizations that don’t have any competitive advantages simply won’t be able to compete for top leaders. Our guest speaker this week, Linda Cortez will discuss this conundrum and how entrepreneurs can best deal with it.
The format of this course will consist of an approximately 25 minute lecture followed by a Q&A session lasting approximately 10 minutes. Although we model the new EFC format after collegiate courses, we respectfully ask all in attendance to refrain from asking questions during the lecture portion so as to give the speaker(s) ample time to get through the material.
Refreshments will be available for purchase downstairs at the Skyline Café before and after class, but we do offer coffee and baked goods for free at the back of the room. We encourage you to show up a little early to give yourself time to grab a refreshment and fellowship with other attendees. Please exercise good stewardship and help us keep the facility in good order by cleaning up after yourself (trash receptacles provided).
After class we encourage ongoing information exchange and networking amongst attendees, but our guest speaker may or may not have the opportunity for additional dialogue. If you have any questions that did not get answered in class, please email them to us and we’ll either incorporate the responses into a future session or email you back directly.
