Upwards Climb

As I’m somewhat between jobs at the moment (I’m working just not getting paid yet. Don’t ask.) directed my attention to this article in my hometown’s newspaper. Now, I’ve no doubt they hoped I would sign up and try and get, you know, a real job instead of whatever it is I’m currently doing. And, well, they might or might not be right. However, I find the article interesting on a few levels beyond simply my material needs.

The first thing I note is that Mr. McCullough is located his new site, WhoToTalkTo in Ann Arbor rather than anywhere else. He’s not the first web startup to relocate there nor, am I sure, will he be the last. And it’s not just startups, either. Google just moved their newly opened branch office to a larger space. As someone who’s spent no small amount of time in the wonderful college town that is Ann Arbor I’m more than pleased by these developments. The region, the state has been hammered in recent years by wave after wave of bad news, buyouts, and layoffs. So the continuing efforts to make Ann Arbor and the surrounding area (which is only an hour’s drive from Detroit proper. I know people who commute longer getting from one side of the city to the other.) a hotbed of research and technology are at least encouraging.

Which brings me to my other point, in the article Mr. McCullough says "One of the reasons I chose Ann Arbor was I once read that when Microsoft moved to Seattle the aerospace industry was in decline, but there were a lot of smart, highly educated people that were available. It's a good comparison to (metropolitan) Detroit. You have a lot of high-skilled and highly technical people here." That’s, I think, a very astute observation. My sources inform me that on the page of the newspaper this article appeared it was placed directly above another article (this one, I think - find) about just what it would take for GM to have not just turned themselves around but fully recovered from their latest slump. Which is, as far as I can tell, going on about twenty, twenty five years at this point. Ford just announced another early retirement package for its white collar workers as well. All of these people don’t just disappear, you know. Just like the manufacturing workers who are slowly being pushed off of the assembly line in favor of cheaper options these people are highly trained, highly skilled, and – being freshly out of work – highly motivated. And these are people who have roots and investments in the community, some how, some way – their kids don’t want to change schools, they like their neighbors, they just bought a house, whatever the reason they’re disinclined to flee the state and seek opportunities elsewhere (Even though it’s very easy for people to move around in this day and age – much more so than it’s ever been, really – most people don’t. They prefer what they’re already comfortable with.). They’re intellectual capital that the region can profit from. And the key would be channeling them into new ventures where their skills can shine.

It’s a long process. A slow one that won’t show results for years to come if then. It’s one that might not ever pan out – most new business fail, after all. But something has to be done because the old ways and the secure jobs with longstanding companies they represented are eroding over time. So, nice to see that someone’s already realized that way before I did.

Anyhow, as for the WhoToTalkTo site itself I’ll have to get back on it. I’m still exploring it a bit. So far, it looks pretty promising. It’s one of those Web 2.0 sites like MySpace or Wikipedia that relies on consumer input to thrive. Basically, the idea is everyone who signs up will be trading their references and job contacts. You give people an in at wherever you’re working (or have worked) and they help you to get a foot in the door. Since it’s been fairly well established that social networks aid those hunting jobs it seems promising. Simply put, in any number of ways it’s not the skills you know so much as it is the people you know. And social networking sites like this one help people who might not have the connections otherwise to develop them. Anyway, I’m going to sign up and I’ll see what can be seen.