The 2010 Meltdown: Solving the Impending Jobs Crisis

The 2010 Countdown grabbed my attention from the moment I opened it. It is well researched, data based, and yet exciting to read. Ed Gordon masterfully weaves facts, quotes, and anecdotes that engage readers of all learning styles through a history of the past, the reality of the present, and the hope of the future in dealing with the impending job crisis. While the book brings forth the start reality of labor shortages now and in the future, Gordon leaves the reader with a variety of solutions to consider. He draws conclusions from data that are not self evident but powerfully enrich his message. This is a book that when you finally put it down and reflect, there is a sense of clarity that urges you to take action in your own way to be part of a hopeful future.

My coworker Herb Schumann righfully implored me to purchase this book. It is compelling, stark and a call to action. Even in the realm of Human Resources, America has a shortage of professionally trained and experienced people to handle human relations. Our educational system still continues to be incorrecly rooted for an outmoded agrarian society. This is a counterproductive disaster and by the year 2010 it will be catostrophic. Dr. Edward Gordon is renowned in educational and training environments. He is reputed to be an oustanding lecturer on these subjects. This book was magnificent and in light of the monumental subject matter, it is imperative for Dr. Gordon to continue writing, updating and illuminating us in reference to the all-important educational/employment crises.

The global.economy faces a paradox: too many people untrained or trained for the wrong jobs simultaneous with a increasing lack of people to fill the jobs that support the world's leading high-tech economies.The author explains how this crisis has developed but looks beyond it to innovative initiatives being taken in the U.S. and other nations in education, training, and community development to meet the challenge. This is a big-picture book that connects many economic, demographic, and technological dots. The book is loaded with facts and insights, and provides a balanced and optimistic picture of economic realities.

Ed Gordon has accurately predicted a catastrophe that will soon strike America, as well as the rest of the world. The huge influx of baby boomers into the workforce helped many countries shoot their economies forward, but now the following generations are millions less than the boomers. The real scary crux of the problem however, is that even while the next generation of American workers are 10 milllioni LESS than the baby boomers, they also aren't trained for the right jobs. There will be shortages of millions of doctors, dentists, nurses, air traffic controllers, technicians, plumbers, you name it. What does that mean? Gordon shows, with rock-hard facts and examples, that the skills needed for job's in the very near future simply aren't there. Imagine not being able to find a doctor in your state. Your flight has been canceled indefinitely, not only because there aren't enough mechanics to fix the plane, but also because there aren't enough FAA traffic controllers to make sure it flies and lands safely. But, you'll be able to find a lawyer no problem. When the baby boomer generation has more than 10 million workers in it than the ones that follow it, there will be a demographic problem. But when people aren't being trained for the right jobs, the effect will be ten times worse. Gordon offers solutions, and wants to get the message out NOW: Wake up and smell the aging baby boomers, or by 2010, it'll be too late.

Ed Gordon, a business author whose books are filled with examples, illustrations, and explanations that flow from extensive research, has done it again. In this thought-provoking book, Gordon lays out the critical situation employers will face-do face-in finding and holding employees who have the education and training to get the job done. I'm very familiar with the severe shortage of skilled labor, as lead author of "Impending Crisis: Too Many Jobs, Too Few People." Ours was the trail-blazing book that exposed the shortage. Gordon has taken our theme to the next level. This book is a tightly-written work that will, hopefully, stimulate productive discussion in board rooms, meeting rooms, bed rooms, and school rooms across the country. It is the kind that should be seriously discussed by corporate executives, educators, community leaders, and parents. Discussion should be followed by decisive action. The time for idle chatter has passed. The book is organized into three sections. The first part presents our current situation in terms that will grab your attention. Part Two takes you deeper and will build a strong motivation to do something. In Part Three, Structuring Renewal, your mind will move toward the solutions to this vital problem. Extensive notes and a comprehensive index will support your investigation of this issue. I titled my review, "Open this book." You can open this book to practically any page and be instantly drawn into to story. Before I read the volume cover-to-cover, I flipped through the pages to just take a sneak peek at what was there. Reading just a paragraph or looking at organization wasn't enough. I wanted more. I was pulled in to keep reading. Gordon brings this issue to life. Recommended for business leaders, educators, human resource professionals, politicians, and enlightened citizens who are dedicated to making a difference for the generations that will follow us.