Labor Market Information in a Flat World

Labor Market Information in a Flat World Presented by Michele Martin, The Widing Group

In 2005, 500,000 tax returns were processed overseas. In 2005, over 400,000 tax returns were prepared overseas.

Radiologists in other countries are reading your MRI.

Someone in India is taking your order or fixing your problem

You can pay your bills, apply for a loan and do all your banking without ever talking to anyone.

You’ve become your own ticket agent, baggage handler and concierge.

Advances in Computer tech, Biotechnology and Nanotechnology are automating everything.

The Internet links workers and work, 24/7.

Companies can go where the talent is cheap And they do.

There are 150 million people in the entire U.S. workforce. Since 2000, 150 million educated workers have joined the global workforce.

In 2005:

3.3 million Chinese graduated from college, 600,000 of them with engineering degrees.

3.1 million Indians graduated, all fluent in English. 350,000 have engineering degrees.

1.3 million Americans graduated, 70,000 with degrees in engineering.

$700 a month provides a solid living for a college-educated call center worker in India. A Chinese manufacturing worker makes $265/month or $3,195/year.

How did we get here?

The Flatteners—Phase I

Berlin Wall, MS Windows

Netscape

Work flow software

The Flatteners—Phase II

Open Sourcing

Outsourcing

Off-Shoring

Supply Chaining

Information Diving

“ The Steroids”

What does this mean for us?

Traditional View of LMI

Workplace is reasonably linear, stable and predictable

We can predict:

What work will be available

What skills/training will be required

Career paths

Pace of change is slow--time to change if necessary

Traditional education/training programs will work

Traditional views won’t cut it anymore.

Chaotic and unpredictable

Decentralized

Collaborative

Technology-intense

Information-rich

Entrepreneurial

Work is . . .

Workers must be . . .

Informed

Adaptable

Literate

Highly Skilled

Entrepreneurial

Three kinds of jobs . . .

Fungible jobs

Anchored jobs

Value-add Jobs

Fungible jobs:

Are easily digitized

Don’t require face-to-face interaction

Rely on “rules”

Require minimal interpretation or decision-making

Can be partially or completely automated

These jobs can be outsourced Bill/Mortgage processing Travel/ticketing “ Junior” accounting and legal Medical testing/diagnostics Computer programming Medical transcription

Anchored Jobs Must be performed in particular geographic location

Anchored-Tier 1 Low skill/low wage

Anchored—Tier 2 High skill/higher wage

But there can be fungible parts of anchored jobs