Hear ye, Hear ye...Construction to start again!

You heard it here first (second if you read the NY Times). In 2011 it is anticipated that construction in and around the country should start to begin again. In the Boston area specifically, there are numerous apartment rental buildings in the works and some large private office buildings are set to get underway. While the commercial building sector is still at a stand still, the residential rental market looks strong as many "potential homebuyers" are weary of the real estate market still and opting to rent rather than buy.

How does all this news affect you? Well as we saw some nice boom times in the early to mid-2000's, the U.S. economy truly is driven by the construction industry. The more construction that is going on, the more trickle down effect should be felt regarding jobs and drop in unemployment. It may be too early to jump up and down saying the financial woes are gone, however it is a bright spot on the horizon and I for one am going to use as much optimism as I can muster because it feels much better to think positively than it does to worry.
Check out the article attached below for more information on this:

http://www.boston.com/business/articles/2011/01/02/construction_will_start_to_pick_up/

- Design is what you make it.

Talent, Talent, Where hast thou gone?

The construction industry is in flux to say the least. The talent pool should be rich with desperate, hungry workers...so is it? Many companies are finding these times frustrating, not only in finding new business to stay busy, but also in finding reliable valuable employees to help give the company an edge up on the competition. The dilemma seen everywhere is that the most valued, qualified people are still gainfully employed and swaying them to move companies in a time of financial flux is difficult because of the uncertainty of their new job being a permanent solution. The old adage, "last in, first out" is seen as a deterrent on switching positions.

Many employers are finding themselves in a difficult predicament to offer more lucrative, not less, benefit packages and wages in order to acquire the best talent. So while unemployment is high, finding additional employees to allow companies to keep moving forward and increasing revenue is a truly arduous task. Here is a link to a well written article describing what I just prefaced.

http://www.kimmel.com/construction/const_newsletter/Dec10_Newsletter_Web.cfm

- Design is what you make it.