EVOLVE Business and Professional Magazine February 2020 | Page 32
High Potential
T
C A R E E R S
by Brigitte Hoarau
he economy is good, and unemployment is on the decline seekers are looking for high potential careers—available jobs that
for continuing prospects for those already employed and As a general rule, higher-paying careers usually require
in the Volusia County region. But what does that mean
career potential for the region’s graduating students?
Nationally recognized economist
and Director of the University of
Central Florida’s Institute for Economic
Competitiveness, Dr. Sean Snaith says
that in today’s economy, “‘job security’
is a bit of an anacronysm. This is not
our grandparents’ economy where you
Dr. Sean Snaith
get out of high school or college and
you go to work for the same company
for your entire career and retire with full benefits, a pension,
and a gold watch. It’s very likely that people that are entering
the workforce today are going to have to have multiple careers,
potentially changing fields altogether at some point in their life
which will necessitate ‘upgrading their software,’ if you will,
for the new position.” Nowadays, many new and seasoned job
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provide desirable compensation with room to grow.
higher levels of education or more skilled training. But knowing
where the job demand will be requires tracking the trends, work
done by the University of Central Florida’s Institute for Economic
Forecasting, which is also directed by Snaith. Much of the job
growth in the state and region follow megatrends that began in
the middle of the last century, according to Snaith. He reminds us
that “the US economy continues to evolve from a manufacturing-
centric economy in the 40s-50s to a more service-based economy,
and [this region’s] professional and business services growth is
a part of that larger trend and nature of the U.S. economy.” The
solid growth in the professional and business services sector—a
projected average of 1.8% annually—yields promising potential
for upward mobility, as well as an average annual salary
beginning at $58k, making it a high potential market for career
seekers. Snaith adds that similarly-skilled careers in technology,
such as software or application development (average pay range