| January 2007 |
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| With manufacturing suffering, service industries are the bright spots |
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| No matter how bleak things may look, there's always reason to smile when Google comes to town. The arrival of the formidable Web giant, which has set up shop at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and hopes to hire 1,000 people, is but one sign that Detroit and Michigan are committed to getting past their manufacturing woes by creating a service and technology-based economy.
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According to local tech group, Automation Alley, tech jobs accounted for 15% of all jobs in Southeast Michigan and 25% of the payroll in 2004, and the numbers have likely risen since then, with growth in the advanced automotive, advanced manufacturing, chemical and material, IT, and especially the life sciences industries.
That's encouraging, and recently elected officials are saying all the right things about tech growth and attracting new business. AT&T is about to hire 2,000 people and spend $620 million to bring advanced communication services to Michigan customers. But times are still tough. Detroit has a troubling 6.9% unemployment rate, and the quarterly Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, which covers all industries, is pessimistic, reporting that from January to March, only 10% of the companies interviewed plan to hire more employees.
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| "Employers have considerably more positive hiring intentions than they did a year ago" |
| - Denise DeSantis, Manpower Employment |
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And yet, IT staffing consultancy Robert Half Technology just released its first-quarter IT Hiring Index, which found that an astonishing 29% of Detroit CIOs plan to make new hires this quarter, by far the highest percentage of all 30 cities that Robert Half tracks, and far above the national average of 16%. So perhaps it's true: technology may be Detroit's ultimate salvation.
Vic Serraiocco, branch manager for IT recruiter Sapphire Technologies, said the most promising industries in Michigan right now are healthcare, financial services, and education. He added that the most in-demand positions include all levels of consulting and project management, SAP, Oracle, system analysts, and network administrators. "In Michigan, there are definitely more available jobs than qualified candidates," he said. "The challenge is many of the positions require very specific skill sets that include the latest technologies. There are many opportunities here for job seekers who possess these skills. In general, we have seen the most increase in opportunities in the small and medium-size companies."
"2006 was a steady year for Detroit," said Scot Melland, CEO of Dice. "Listings were down in the fourth quarter, in part due to seasonality, but the city held its own throughout the year overall, and we expect that to continue into 2007."
Average salaries in the Detroit market are cause for both concern and optimism. While the 2006 Dice Salary Survey found that the average IT salary in Detroit, $67,080, is the lowest among the 20 major metro areas that Dice tracks, it was actually up 4.5% from 2005. Take the relatively low cost of living into account, and the numbers look fairly good.
Sapphire's Serraiocco summed it up: "The manufacturing sector is obviously constricting and redefining itself, but Michigan has begun to diversify and attract employers in many other sectors. Healthcare and financial services are areas that have shown steady growth in our area, so many jobseekers are being drawn to Michigan to take advantage of their niche skills."
If you would like to be interviewed for the next Dice market report, or if you have comments about this article, please contact us at feedback@dice.com.
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