MILWAUKEE, Jan. 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- ManpowerGroup (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, says U.S. companies must build up the right business leaders needed to strategically evolve their business across fast-changing industries and regional economies, as the world's talent shortage ensues and the risk linked to business decisions in today's economy intensifies.

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The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics today reported that the overall December jobless rate was 7.8%. The U.S. private sector added 156,000 new jobs last month, while October's jobs figure was revised down from 138,000 to 137,000 and November was revised up from 146,000 to 161,000.

"Developing leaders who can navigate volatility and build the flexible workforce needed to fulfill a business strategy is too often, today, just a concept versus a top priority for executive teams," said Jeffrey A. Joerres, ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO. "The unpredictable nature of today's economy is forcing all business leaders to make quick, yet carefully vetted decisions. All business leaders must think very critically about the complex decision-making skills required by their executive teams in the Human Age."

According to ManpowerGroup's 2012 Talent Shortage Survey results, 49% of U.S. employers struggle to fill mission-critical positions.  Despite this statistic, a substantial proportion of employers indicate unfilled positions are expected to have little or no impact on key constituents, such as customers and investors; this proportion grew from 36% in 2011 to 56% in 2012.

"Complacency does not enable a company to manage risk, find the best talent or make effective business decisions," said ManpowerGroup President Jonas Prising. "Business decisions in the Human Age carry more risk than ever before. A specific mix of skills and mindsets need to be developed in leadership teams to frame the right context for the decision-making process."

Optimism among U.S. hiring decision makers continues to improve, according to the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey's new U.S. results. When seasonal variations are removed from the data, the Net Employment Outlook for Quarter 1 2013 is +12%, a 1 percentage point increase from Quarter 4 2012 and slightly elevated from +9% during the same period last year.  This quarter's research concludes that this quarter is the strongest first quarter data collected since 2008, and is significantly stronger than the weakest first quarter Outlook in the history of the survey, reported in 2010. Full survey results appear here: http://www.manpowergroup.com/press/meos_landing.cfm

About ManpowerGroup
ManpowerGroup™ (NYSE: MAN), the world leader in innovative workforce solutions, creates and delivers high-impact solutions that enable our clients to achieve their business goals and enhance their competitiveness. With over 60 years of experience, our $22 billion company creates unique time to value through a comprehensive suite of innovative solutions that help clients win in the Human Age. These solutions cover an entire range of talent-driven needs from recruitment and assessment, training and development, and career management, to outsourcing and workforce consulting. ManpowerGroup maintains the world's largest and industry-leading network of nearly 3,600 offices in 80 countries and territories, generating a dynamic mix of an unmatched global footprint with valuable insight and local expertise to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, across all industry sectors, small and medium-sized enterprises, local, multinational and global companies. By connecting our deep understanding of human potential to the ambitions of clients, ManpowerGroup helps the organizations and individuals we serve achieve more than they imagined – because their success leads to our success. And by creating these powerful connections, we create power that drives organizations forward, accelerates personal success and builds more sustainable communities. We help power the world of work. The ManpowerGroup suite of solutions is offered through ManpowerGroup™ Solutions, Manpower®, Experis™ and Right Management®. Learn more about how the ManpowerGroup can help you win in the Human Age at www.manpowergroup.com.

ManpowerGroup is the most trusted brand in the industry, and was once again the only company in our industry to be named to the Ethisphere Institute's 2012 World's Most Ethical Companies list for our proven commitment to ethical business practices, including an outstanding commitment to ethical leadership, compliance practices and corporate social responsibility.

In January 2011, at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland, ManpowerGroup announced the world has entered the Human Age, where talent has replaced capital as the key competitive differentiator. This concept of talentism as the new capitalism continues to resonate and was echoed as a core theme of the 2012 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Learn more about this new age at www.manpowergroup.com/humanage

Gain access to ManpowerGroup's extensive thought leadership papers, annual Talent Shortage surveys and the Manpower Employment Outlook Survey, one of the most trusted indices of employment activity in the world, via the ManpowerGroup World of Work Insight iPad application. This thought leadership app explores the challenges faced by employers navigating the changing world of work and provides in-depth commentary, analysis, insight and advice on strategies for success. 

Follow ManpowerGroup Chairman and CEO Jeff Joerres on Twitter: twitter.com/manpowergroupjj. Joerres is one of only 20 Fortune 500 CEOs who leverages a Twitter account to get his message out.

SOURCE ManpowerGroup