Published: December 19, 2006 08:25 am            

Headhunter focuses on region’s perks

Chris Marshall of AEC Group has taken on the task of answering one of the burning questions asked frequently in this region: Who would want to come to Johnstown?

One of Marshall’s roles as Johnstown regional director of business development for AEC is to act as a corporate headhunter for area businesses. In that capacity, Marshall, a Southmont native with 15 years experience in professional staffing, said he’s enjoyed a level of success that might surprise some people.

“You would think it would be pretty tough,” Marshall said.

AEC offers specialized staffing services and is located at 239 Main St.

“For a lot of the staffing agencies that don’t have any type of connection to the Johnstown area, they have found it difficult to finding people willing to come to the area. A lot of the companies that have come into Johnstown from the larger metropolitan areas have used services local to where they came from and haven’t had success,” he said.

“Having grown up here, it’s a little easier for me to understand the people, this region and what type of person will fit in well here.”

Marshall said he has been working with local companies to fill staffing needs for about five years. During that time, he has seen a transition in what the region’s businesses are seeking.

Initially, most companies used Marshall’s service to help locate workers with engineering skills.

Now, in addition to engineers, more companies are looking for employees with more technical expertise in the field of information technology.

And he said locating individuals interested in coming to Johnstown isn’t so difficult because of the manner in which he conducts his search.

He said he frequently begins exploring for candidates by seeking out those with resumes posted on the Web who have ties to Johnstown or western Pennsylvania.

But Marshall said his searches aren’t always so exclusive.

In fact, he said of the people he has placed locally, only about 50 percent have ties to Johnstown or western Pennsylvania.

“I start looking for people with ties to this region, but I’ll also look for just about anyone from the East Coast,” Marshall said. “They have an understanding of what a town like Johnstown is like.”

“Someone who grew up on the West Coast or in Texas may not have an understanding what life is like in Johnstown: The values, the quality of life and other perks the region affords. I think with people who grew up here or somewhere similar, there is a comfort level that draws people to the area.”

That doesn’t mean Marshall’s job is easy by any measure. He said there are still plenty of challenges to luring talented individuals to the Johnstown market.

Most of the hardships he encounters are the product of certain stereotypes of Johnstown and western Pennsylvania. The general view of the region by the outside world is still that of an area where blue-collar jobs thrive and the old economy dominates.

“The general impression of western Pennsylvania is still of steel mills or the Johnstown Flood,” Marshall said. “They don’t necessarily consider it to be a high-tech area or an area that is growing.

“And when it comes to education, they don’t think that they’re going to find anything even similar to what they have in the bigger cities. When I tell them we have a number of nationally ranked public schools right here in the immediate Greater Johnstown area, they’re shocked.

“The perceptions and stereotypes are by far the hardest things to overcome.”

While it may seem odd to some that companies in a job-starved area such as Johnstown are seeking outside help, Marshall said it’s simply a product of the industry.

Most of the companies that he works with locally – such as DRS Laurel Technologies and Northrop Grumman – are interested in finding employees who have experience working in the defense field.

But that doesn’t preclude locally raised individuals from taking advantage of the opportunities that exist.

For young people interested in staying in the area, Marshall suggested pursuing academic disciplines such as engineering and computer science. They also should be aggressive in seeking internships with local companies.

“A lot of the companies in Johnstown offer internship programs,” Marshall said.

“I have found that people from the schools in the area with engineering or computer science degrees who get involved in the intern programs have a big advantage over others in landing these jobs. If young people in the region really want to stay in the area, that is probably the best way to go about it.”

        

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