Longer term, however, Roger Herman, a Certified Speaking Professional, Certified Management Consultant, and author (see side bar) who specializes in employee retention, sees building a stable workforce as critical. With the aging and retiring population – 1 billion people world-wide age 60 and older by 2020 – according to figures in “Top Ten Forecasts From Outlook 2002” in The Futurist magazine and fewer available younger workers, retention of current employees and their knowledge is a priority. According to Herman, “The top executive in the organization has to see workforce stability as a key strategy for organizational success, or it won’t happen as strongly as it should.”

According to a report forwarded to me by Eric Snyder of TCM, Recruiting for Canada's Future Public Service: Changing the System, “... the youth population is decreasing; by 2010, the retiring population will outnumber youth, creating conditions for major labour shortages. Private sector firms already talk about a 'war for talent.' Every day, newspapers predict a shortage of candidates for professional and skilled employment.”

With an eye to creating a stable workforce under these circumstances, Susan Ward, the About Guide to Small Business: Canada, says, “Many HR departments are much more concerned about ‘the whole’ employee. Instead of just being hiring and firing departments, they're extending their mandate to providing all kinds of services to employees, such as training, counselling, and coaching. I view this one as really positive, because it gives HR staff more interaction with employees and much more of a chance to see them as people, rather than just ‘resources’ or ‘bodies.’”

“More workers will become independent contractors, operating as contingent workers in response to ever-changing needs of employers. Like nomads, they will move from workplace to workplace without constraints,” says Herman. “These free agents will decide when they work, where they work, and why they work.”