Labor Crisis Looms

Brand-name vendors such as Microsoft, Cisco and Hewlett-Packard are skimming the best university graduates while solution providers face a labor shortage so severe it's impacting their ability to grow their businesses. Much of the disparity rests with marketing. Vendors have deep pockets and thus a huge advantage in their marketing and recruiting efforts. Students know the big technology vendors and what they do. By contrast, the channel and its vital role in building and delivering technology solutions to businesses is an enigma to most young people. I know because I have two kids in college and periodically I have to explain to them what the channel does and what I do for a living.

That should be a wake-up call to solution providers. Many already are working with their local technical colleges and universities to design curriculum and set up intern programs so students can experience firsthand the opportunities available in the channel. Solution providers who have active relationships with local schools and universities view their efforts much like the battle Apple and IBM once waged to place their PCs in the classroom: Hook them early and you have them for life. More solution providers must do the same with proactive marketing and recruitment efforts starting with local K-12 schools. We need to explain that outsourcing isn't sucking all the good technology jobs overseas and that there are, in fact, an abundance of well-paying technical jobs in the channel here in the United States.

If we are to avert a labor crisis, we need to show young people that the channel offers an entrepreneurial upside they won't find at large corporations. And we must set the bar high. Students need to have a technical background, but they also need to understand business and be able to communicate how technology can solve business problems. Sure, our educational system should emphasize math and science to remain competitive, but unless American students learn English, we're toast. And unless solution providers can more effectively educate students about the channel and the opportunities it affords, they'll lose the one direct vs. indirect battle that matters most.

Are you having trouble finding technical talent? Contact me via e-mail at [email protected].