Over the past year, as companies' budgets decreased, their demand for workers followed suit. With widespread layoffs and new classes of graduates flooding the job market, there was an excess of available labor. Talks of a "war for talent" subsided, and were replaced with war stories of the unemployed struggling to make ends meet.
That all may change, however, as the economy rebounds and companies take their tech projects and upgrades off the shelves. The IT industry is likely on the brink of a talent war unseen since the early part of the decade.
Computerworld's 2010 Salary Survey confirmed what we've all been seeing since the start of the recession: flat salaries and an increase in individual responsibilities and work hours. So ask yourself this: Are your employees still working for you because they're truly satisfied? Or have they not left because the alternatives are scarce or nonexistent?
As new job opportunities begin to open up, an exodus of talent is not out of the question, especially if you couldn't answer yes to the first question above. With that in mind, I contributed a column to this week's issue of Computerworld offering some creative ways to fight the talent wars.
I'd recommend:
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Offering creative alternative benefits
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Implementing internship-style staffing rotations
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Sharing budget responsibilities
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Promoting personal branding
But most of all, I'd recommend checking out the full article, and sharing your thoughts below! :)