Peter Cappelli on ‘Why Good People Can’t Get Jobs’

Hour 1

Unemployment in the U.S. ticked back up to 8.2 percent in May, one reflection of the lingering effects of the Great Recession and a statistic that includes 12.7 million unemployed Americans. And even now, employers bemoan their inability to find qualified candidates to fill the positions that are open. In his new e-book, “Why Good People Can’t Get Jobs,” Wharton management professor PETER CAPPELLI pushes back against much of the conventional wisdom surrounding those complaints. For starters, he says that many firms are choosing to cut costs by purposefully leaving positions open for a long hiring process, and when they do try to hire, they low-ball the salary range for applicants. Plus, many companies that are hiring are relying on software and automated hiring processes that may be weeding out qualified candidates whose resumes lack targeted key words. Cappelli joins us to discuss systemic problems that are getting in between companies that either could or should be hiring and job-seekers.

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[audio: 061112_100630.mp3]