Within the next 12 months 64% of respondents to a recent survey anticipate hiring. This compares to a rate in 2009 of 48%. The 2010 fourth quarter report, Operations Management Employment Outlook, is conducted by APICS, The Association for Operations Management, and the Cameron School of Business at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington.
This high level of expected hiring, when combined with a 50% decrease in expected layoffs (from 14% in 2009 to 7% in the fourth quarter report), indicates the highest level of net job growth in the operations and supply chain management professions since the global recession began.
"Throughout 2010, we saw incremental improvements in expected hiring in the operations and supply chain management professions," said APICS CEO Abe Eshkenazi, CSCP. "This significant increase in expected hiring and decrease in expected layoffs in the fourth quarter of 2010."
The report also showed that 49% of survey respondents with hiring responsibility are planning to hire within one or more of the following operational areas: execution and control of operations,
purchasing/customer relationship management, quality, resources planning and supply chain management.
"Often, supply chain and operations management are a bellwether for the global economy as a
whole. Increased expected hiring at this level across job functions has positive implications for a
variety of sectors, including manufacturing," said Drew Rosen, professor of operations management at the University of North Carolina-Wilmington and a member of the research team. "This quarter's results are very promising for professionals seeking employment."
