A Bartender’s Predictions for 2010

Last year, I made my first attempt at writing predictions for the coming year.  And, I must say I was a little nervous about it.  You always want to feel you’re in touch with what’s going on and nail every prediction.  Then at some point, I realized life is all about throwing curve balls.

I’ll let you guys decide how well I did with last year’s prognostications.  My feeling is some were dead-on.  Some were way off and some are still under discussion.  (How’s that for a non-committal evaluation?!  Ha.ha.)

Since the sportscasters are already making their predictions for the playoffs and Super Bowl, I figure it’s not too early to publish my thoughts for next year.  My predictions for 2010 revolve around simplicity.  I believe people are looking for good – but good doesn’t necessarily mean lavish, expensive or intricate.  It just means quality.

1. Outsourcing and contract work will gain momentum.  Before companies make commitments to hiring more staff, they’ll use external resources for projects. This means management teams need to understand the principles of vendor and project management.  And, they need to be prepared to hold an external consultant accountable for results.
2. Professional development is going to look different.  We need conferences to stimulate business travel as part of our economic recovery.  But what events will people attend?  I believe it will be the ones that figure out how to balance the traditional conference structure with the topic timeliness of unconferences.
3. Corporate training will change in the upcoming year as well.  Participants will want to talk about their issues on their time.  This means training agendas will need to include some free flowing discussion time.  And, trainers will need to not only have good platform skills but be savvy in the art of facilitation as well.
4. Time will trump money.  If employees can’t have money, then the perk they will want is time.  Look for this to take shape in terms of telecommuting, flextime, and possibly job sharing.  Managers will need to get educated on managing a virtual workforce and building virtual teams.
5. Management coaching will become a key retention tool.  When the mass exodus starts (and it will), companies will have to figure out a way to show key employees they care.  Giving them a coach will send a positive message to the employee regarding their future and yield significant results for the company.
6. And the buzzword word for 2010 will be ‘trust.’  We all know that people buy from individuals and companies they trust.  Companies will develop marketing strategies around building customer trust.  Human resources will develop programs to create employee trust.

So there you have it, my forecast for 2010.  Drop me your thoughts (and your own predictions) in the comments below.  This year has been a real adventure for us all.  Thank you so much for being here, reading the blog, and sharing your thoughts. HR Bartender is such a rewarding experience for me and it’s all because of you.

Oh and P.S. …my food prediction for next year?  Well, I believe staycations have played themselves out.  People want to do something but still need to economize.  I’m thinking camping might make a comeback.  Look for s’mores (maybe in some different gourmet varieties) to be the food buzz in 2010.

Image courtesy of doug88888

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