Atlanta top metro area--for job losses (Washington: foreclosures, loans, house)

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by Mutiny77

There you go again. Why would race have anything to do with it when even Detroit has posted a respectable gain????

Detroit?

[neil0311]

One comment I would make is that if you listen carefully to both public and private sector experts, there are actually millions of jobs available in the US, but a lack of qualified applicants with the necessary skills.

Maybe what we need to do is focus on why people don't have the requisite skills?

[xavier132487]

Originally Posted by rcsteiner

Companies seem to want drop-in units. No training required.

For certain positions that isn't an unreasonable expectaton, since it's the hard experience a person possesses that adds value (technical skills by themselves are not always enough), but you're right that some positions could be filled right out of college.

I personally think that HR departments are the bane of the IT industry, or at least of most IT employees. They seem to look for keywords without appearing to understand the relationship between various skills.

I learned this long ago, and it has been extremely valuable knowledge. I don't have to actually know the system like the back of my hand, just mention it in a resume as a keyword. Then, when/if I get the job, just ask for "a little more training for new guy," and most IT managers are willing to comply with the nitpicky of their systems. Simple example: MySQL vs MSSQL vs Oracle. I put down all three even though I have more experience with MySQL and MSSQL than Oracle, but SQL is almost the same across all three with a few quirks. HR departments don't get this because most of the time, they have liberal arts degrees and are technically inept. Remember who you're selling yourself to :-D

[RandyWatson13]

Originally Posted by neil0311

One comment I would make is that if you listen carefully to both public and private sector experts, there are actually millions of jobs available in the US, but a lack of qualified applicants with the necessary skills.

Maybe what we need to do is focus on why people don't have the requisite skills?

I find this to be bull****. I find companies listing jobs they have no intention of filling or they eventually get canned or filled internally. The fact of the matter is companies have gotten productivity up as people are walking on eggshells and they have no intentions of back-filling if they can do more with less payroll.

The B.S Unemployment rate here is basically 10%, which means it really is 15-18%.

Now the other problem is wage issue. Since the govt also has a B.S Inflation index/data, wages do not match the REAL WORLD. $10-$12 an hour with a family of 4 is basically poverty level. Yet these are the jobs that are growing, low wage jobs.

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by neil0311

One comment I would make is that if you listen carefully to both public and private sector experts, there are actually millions of jobs available in the US, but a lack of qualified applicants with the necessary skills.

Maybe what we need to do is focus on why people don't have the requisite skills?

Also most companies hire from within and maybe 15 to 25% of all job openings are posted to outside sources. Its an employers market right now and there are jobs that need people, but so many things go into play. HR departments look at so many things now. Google being many peoples biggest enemy. Social networks HURT many people and they dont even know it. Resumes can hurt more than they help, the personal info you provide on your resume can be sold, if you live in the WRONG zip code that can also hurt you. Honestly the HR departments dont even need your full address. HR departments also do something we call...auto assurance, where we like to see what the prospect is driving, what kind of car, what shape it is in and if the car is clean. These things say a lot about a potential employee. Now the question is...Do Atlanta employers need employees Yes or No? Are the people that are applying the people that these employers want Yes or No? Those two answers will explain these terrible numbers.

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by Lagwagon113

I got my start in IT in Atlanta. Hard to believe it's so bad though. As far as ATL having high tech employees I find it hard to believe that no graduates from our top universities are worthy. Often what happens is the person hiring has no technical background and just tries to look for keywords for certain technical skills. However any CS grad should be able to pick up on any technical skill. It's sort of like not getting a job as a pharmacist because you only know Walgreen's system and not CSV's. In reality you could pick it up because you have that foundation. It's really just an excuse to hire cheaper overseas workers IMO.

In IT its REALLY about Certifications, Certifications & CERTIFICATIONS. Yes there is cheap labor over seas, but that hurts the entire country, not just the Atlanta market.

[cityfilms]

stop switching topics, people. This is an Atlanta issue, not a national issue. This statistic is FACT.

Let's stop bickering because that takes away from the FACTS.

WHY is Atlanta such a horrible job market?

Tell us Johnatl... i'm waiting.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by neil0311

One comment I would make is that if you listen carefully to both public and private sector experts, there are actually millions of jobs available in the US, but a lack of qualified applicants with the necessary skills.

Maybe what we need to do is focus on why people don't have the requisite skills?

In some cases, people don't "have the desired skills" because the positions being posted require a significant amount of on-the-job experience that one isn't easily able to acquire outside of the workplace. If you aren't trained in on the job, you will never be fully qualified for those positions.

In other cases, plenty of people exist who could perform the required duties with a few days or weeks of training, but companies prefer to reject those with years or decades of other relevant experience because they are missing one of two keywords in their resume.

I have found this to be especially true in an IT context.

For some companies, it's a black or white proposition: either you fit a given position perfectly, or you have no value. There is seemingly no middle ground, and since it's an employer's market, companies can afford to be very very picky about who they bring in for an interview.

Of course, this results in a limited pool of candidates, but it's limited due to corporate policy, not due to an actual lack of qualified candidates.

It's a classic Catch 22 situation. Companies who are more interested in lists of skillsets than in quality employees will always have a harder time finding and retaining resources. I've been in corporate IT now for 25 years, and some of the hiring practices I've seen are really quite self-destructive.

[FlyiMetro]

Originally Posted by cityfilms

stop switching topics, people. This is an Atlanta issue, not a national issue. This statistic is FACT.

Let's stop bickering because that takes away from the FACTS.

WHY is Atlanta such a horrible job market?

Tell us Johnatl... i'm waiting.

Hes gonna quote you bro!!!

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by runningncircles1

I learned this long ago, and it has been extremely valuable knowledge. I don't have to actually know the system like the back of my hand, just mention it in a resume as a keyword. Then, when/if I get the job, just ask for "a little more training for new guy," and most IT managers are willing to comply with the nitpicky of their systems. Simple example: MySQL vs MSSQL vs Oracle. I put down all three even though I have more experience with MySQL and MSSQL than Oracle, but SQL is almost the same across all three with a few quirks. HR departments don't get this because most of the time, they have liberal arts degrees and are technically inept. Remember who you're selling yourself to :-D

You're right that it's all about marketing, and that the target audience is usually someone in HR who isn't savvy enough to tell the difference. What I have an issue with is the potential dishonesty involved when I know I could do the job with the skills I actually possess, but that's probably why I'm a techie and not a sales guy.

As to why Atlanta itself is having issues, I'm not really sure.

Outside of the real estate industry, what else has a large presence here?

I work in the airline industry, and I know we have a strong presence in Atlanta between Delta, Worldspan, and other companies, but I also know that airlines and related companies haven't really been hiring much for the past decade or so. Some transferring of people between related companies, but not a lot of new blood.

What else would attract well-educated workers to Atlanta? I know it was completely off my radar 10 years ago when I was starting to spread my employment search nation-wide, and those were better times. Why would someone come here now?