Our Blog

BY Joel Junker

The Economy, Leadership, & The June 2016 Career Conference

The June 2016 Career Conference is upon us!  Hard to believe that we are half of the way into 2016 and 5 months from election night.

You probably saw the recent economic numbers where the US had 38,000 job growth but had expected well over 100,000 new jobs.  Additionally, the “R” word, recession, is starting to creep into the media.  We are not economists at C-B, and anyone that can tell you with certainty where the economy is heading is fooling you and him or herself.  Economics are backwards looking.  But, here is what we know.  While we had a softer economic report and it appears the economy is growing about 1 to 2% annually, our June candidates will average approximately 12 interviews at this Conference.  Since I joined C-B in 2010, the average number of interviews has ranged from 11 to just over 13.  So, we are still experiencing strong demand for leaders.  We did hear from some companies about slowing their recruiting, but then because we have such strong and deep relationships with so many clients, other new clients and existing clients confirmed to attend the Conference.  In fact just this week, days before the Conference, two FORTUNE 500 companies signed up to attend the conference.  With brand recognition and opportunities in very desirable locations., they certainly could fill these positions without using Cameron-Brooks, but they talked about wanting to find someone with strong leadership skills that can deliver immediate value to the organization, take the position to another level, and grow within the company.

Now, what will the economy look like next month?  in six months?  in a year?  We certainly do not know and won’t try to predict.  But what we do know is than in over forty-seven years of helping JMOs successfully make the transition to Corporate America, companies will continue to have both the need and the desire to hire strong leaders.  We experienced this in the 2001 and 2009 recessions.  Companies always need leaders.

Because we can’t predict the economy, we can’t predict the average number of interviews beyond just this Conference.  We can only give you historical data.  However, what we know with 100% assuredness, company recruiters will be selective and have a high bar.  Preparation, business knowledge, and good communication skills will be critical.  Take time to invest in your development and prepare for a successful transition.  If you’d like to gain some historical perspective, I’ve included the link at the bottom of this blog post that  my colleague, Joel Junker, posted in the middle of the financial crisis in 2009.

As for the upcoming June Career Conference, here is a quick snapshot of how things are shaping up:

Sample industries represented at the June Career Conference include: Medical Device, High Technology, Energy, Industrial, Health Care, Building Materials, Consumer Products, Retail, and more.

Sample companies include:  Corning, Campbell Soup Company, Carrier Corporation, FedEx, Medtronic, Boston Scientific, Asurion, SC Johnson, DaVita Healthcare Partners, Foster Farms, and many more.

Same positions include:  Process Development Engineer, Field Clinical Representative, Customer Strategy & Insights Manager, Global Sales Engineer, General Manager, Distribution Operations Manager, Plant Manager, Network Partner Program Manager, Manufacturing Supervisor, Senior Quality Supervisor, Territory Development Representative, Maintenance Planner, and many more.

Sample locations include:  Boston, MA; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Nashville, TN; Cincinnati, OH; Minneapolis, MN; Charlotte, NC; San Bernardino, CA; Memphis, TN; San Francisco, CA; Philadelphia, PA; Dallas, TX; Oklahoma City, OK; Tampa, FL; Los Angeles, CA; and many more.

We are very excited for the June Career Conference candidates to help them conduct such a high quality and broad career search as they take their next steps towards launching a great career in Corporate America. Stay tuned next week when I post the results of the June Conference!

Rob Davis

Why Companies Hire the Cameron-Brooks JMO Despite the Current Financial Crisis