CE Pro Magazine Interviews CEO Tres Huber On The Labor Shortage
CE Pro magazine is the leading trade publication for professionals involved in the custom electronics industry. Recently, the magazine featured an article on the “State of the Industry-Tech Trends.” They interviewed Tres Huber, CEO of HD Staffing on one particular trend…dealing with the labor shortage. The article states that “integrators are stretching themselves thin when employees are hard to find, but also have more strategies to turn to for help.” The CI industry continues to prosper and evolve every day. Consumers want smart home technology and integrators have more than enough to keep them busy. The problem lies in finding the candidates to take on the jobs.
The article discusses the rising trend of jobs overpowering the current labor pool. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 6.7 million job openings at the end of last April. Tres notes that this labor shortage is felt particularly in the industries that are relying on skilled trade labor, with the home systems industry among the top few affected.
“When home building bottomed out, many home systems techs left the industry and didn’t come back”. Tres notes that at this point, the economy and home building are in a much better place, leaving the unemployment rate extremely low. While this sounds ideal, it puts us in the position we’re in which is struggling to find techs to take the available jobs. CEDIA reports that a large contributing factor is simply that young people aren’t choosing careers in the trades.
The article points out that recruiting firms have since been trying to adapt to this struggle, focusing their efforts on working with integrators to find, recruit, and place candidates. Tres Huber comments, “Staffing services for other industries have been around for years, nobody thought to develop a vehicle for the home systems trades, until now. The sooner you can get someone on board, the sooner your productivity will get back on track.”
This is the premise of HD Staffing, and why CE Pro chose to interview Tres on the subject. Between his experience in the staffing industry, and Brent’s (COO) experience in the CI industry, it’s more than safe to say they’re fit for the task. The article above gives a glimpse into how that experience translates to what they do everyday. If you’re wondering how they can help you and your company, check out this video.
