[Manage IT Newsletter]

The focus of this issue is on how you can prepare a flexible staffing strategy suited to todays unpredictable economy..

Welcome to this months issue of the "Manage IT Newsletter." This monthly publication is dedicated to helping IT managers enjoy a richer career experience so they can reach their full potential.

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With warmest regards, Joe Santana,
Co-author Manage IT
http://www.manageitbook.com

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*********************In this Issue **********************
* Focus Topic - Staffing Plans for 2003
* IT Management News & Trends
* Free Gift of the Month: Staff Plan Tip Sheet
* Closing Comments and Announcements
*********************************************************

--------------------- Focus Topic -----------------------
Staffing Plans for 2003

What's Your Staffing Strategy for 2003? The most recent polls on the topic of the economic turn-around and corresponding IT hiring changes are, to say the least, mixed. For managers these mixed messages present quite the challenge.

Jon Piot COO and co-founder of a technology consulting company called Impact Innovations Group (http://www.impactinnovations.com), based out of Dallas Texas believes that current economic situation and its impact on IT staffing is likely to persist. Piot offers a simple four-step approach for designing a staffing plan that assumes zero growth and has contingencies in place, which can be executed quickly in the event of further decline. Piot's advice is as follows:

1. Hold the line on hiring. Staff based on the demands of the current economic climate. In other words discount all of the predictions and assume that the current economic situation will remain in place for the long run.

2. Create a list of employees with their title, skills, salary, and performance ranking (say for example an A, B, C and D scale). If asked to cut back staff, he advises that you start at the bottom of the list and work you way up.

3. Do an inventory of the skills required to sustain the minimum maintenance for each critical process. He advises that the managers ask themselves "what number of people with what skills would I need to sustain minimum levels of maintenance for each critical process?" He goes on to advise managers to create a list of actions they would need to take to quickly get to those minimum levels.

4. Identify temporary resource suppliers, who can on short notice, help you with a spike in demand (E.g., a special project).

Bill Shulman an SVP of EmployeeROI, a talent management firm based out of NYC, agree with Piot's strategy and adds a few steps just in case the economy suddenly turn's around (http://www.employeeroi.com). To make sure IT managers are ready for rapid growth without taking on headcount that they cannot currently utilize, Shulman recommends adding the following two actions:

5. Work with a talent management company to confidentially identify and pre-qualify a portfolio (pipeline) of passive job candidates. "By identifying top-grade passive (currently working) candidates and aligning them to each of the roles on your team, you complete two-thirds of the hiring process in advance, creating a competitive advantage over those companies who wait. Shulman points out that this is the only option for many companies with hiring freezes and budget freezes still in place. It is hard not see the benefits of this approach when compared to the alternatives: a) absorbing the cost of screening, interviewing and then building and sustaining a relationship with candidates until you need them; or b) paying huge contingency recruiting fees to agencies when the hiring frenzy begins. Some talent management firms will provide the best practices, services, and advanced technology needed to manage this strategic approach for a percentage of future hiring, allowing IT managers to fully prepare while still operating within current budget constraints.

6. Explore creating a relationship with one of the new breed of vendor management service providers, who are "vendor-neutral." In other words, these companies are not temporary staffing firms, so they don't compete with your existing staffing suppliers or any of the companies they represent. Furthermore, they provide your company with business benefits, including: cost savings, timesaving, best practices, and advanced technology systems. (Serventec Incorporated is a good example of a vendor-neutral vendor management company (http://www.serventec.com/).

(The information in this section contains excerpts of my article "How can HR help IT design a staffing strategy for 2003?" Look to the upcoming March 3rd 2003 issue of HR.com magazine for the complete article).

In this month's News and Trends section of the Manage IT Newsletter, you will find surveys and polls as well as the comments by the experts on the economy that are generating some of the perplexity that we see clouding today's IT staffing plans. You will also find in this issue a staff planning tip sheet in the Free Gift of the Month section that we trust you will find a useful tool in determining your staff skill needs and strategy options. Finally, in the Announcement section you will find your invitation to a tele-class on the topic of developing IT staffing strategies for 2003.

JS
------------------ IT Management News and Trends ------------------
To hire or not to hire, that seems to be the burning question in the media this past month? Below are a few key articles and surveys that present the conflicting signals driving this behavior.

In a recent poll the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers asked 6,000 of their Fellows which industries were most likely to recover relative to hiring. The most pronounced finding was . . . considerable disagreement.
http://classifieds.dallasnews.com/employment/it/011303CcCareersTechbits.1c6973db.html

According to one IDC survey, the worst is over with spending on IT and communications expected to resume in 2003, driving a worldwide growth rate of 5.8% for the industry. Among its top ten predictions and advise, Diversiti, an Accenture business that focuses on the provisioning of IT professionals, states that it will remain an employers market for the time being, however companies intending to hire had better be quick to secure the top talent, as the anticipated early rush on demand has already begun due the postponement of hiring decisions in 2002. Top Ten Hiring Predictions published by Diversiti, January 2003. http://www.diversiti.com.au/news/diversiti_news/prediction.htm

Another IDC survey is a bit gloomier and pushes economic recovery and a corresponding increase in IT spending out to 2004. Article titled **Gloomy outlook for IT service. spending, by Gregg Keizer.
http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20030129S0008

According to a survey of 1,400 CIOs conducted by Robert Half Technology, hiring in 2003 will remain close to the levels of the past 18 months. - Article titled "What are your hiring expectations," by Grant Gross.
http://www.techrepublic.com/article.jhtml?id=r00520030207ggg01.htm&page=1&vf=tt

Others believe that IT jobs will be moving out of enterprises and into the outsourcing supplier companies. Article titled "Big shift in IT jobs to outsourcing predicted," by Thomas Hoffman.
http://computerworld.com/managementtopics/management/outsourcing/story/0,10801,77860,00.html

Finally, a few major vendors are seeing activity that they interpret as early signs of the economy turning around. Article titled "Business intelligence bucks economic slowdown," by Rick Whiting.
http://www.informationweek.com/story/IWK20030129S0012

----------------- Free Gift of the Month ------------------------
For your free one-page tip sheet that will walk you through the process of assessing your staffing needs and the development of a sourcing strategy visit the free Tips and Tools page at http://www.joesantana.com/freenewsandtips.htm

-------------- Closing Thoughts and Announcements ---------------

STAFFING STRATEGIES 2003 TELE-CLASS 3/11/2003 at 1pm EST
Join us for a 60-minute tele-class co-presented by Joe Santana, co-author of Manage IT, Jon Piot COO and co-founder of Impact Innovations Group and Bill Shulman SVP of EmployeeROI. Learn how to plan for your future staffing needs in a mixed signal economy. To register, email Elizabeth Margaret at elizabeth_margaretaa@yahoo.com and type "register 3/11" in the subject line and body. The registration fee is $20, but being offered free to the first 25 people to register. (We are almost completely out of free seats, so if you are interested register today). If you cannot attend the program, you may purchase a CD recording for $19.95

NEED HELP WITH YOUR STAFFING STRATEGY
If you are planning for business continuity, business growth (economic recovery), succession planning, business relocation, diversity or other hiring initiatives, visit EmployeeROI's website at http://www.EmployeeROI.com or at 888-654-8845, ext. 8841.

READY TO HIRE!
If you have an immediate need to hire technical and financial resources you can contact eHire Joe Sabrin 212 736-9544 or visit eHire**s web site at http://www.ehire.com

I hope you enjoyed this issue of the IT Managers Newsletter and I look forward to continuing to serve you.