Currently, massive investments are being planned for the next boom in wireless communications. Spurred by the prospect of personal communications services, the race is on to secure a position of leadership.
More wireless sites will be built in the next few years than were built in the previous 10. With all the investment in physical capital, have we estimated the impact on human capital?
With the advent of PCS, thousands of new jobs will be created as the number of wireless sites needed to provide these enhanced services increases tenfold over existing wireless networks. At the same time, cellular networks scramble to keep the edge, while enhanced specialized mobile radio (ESMR) races to capture its own unique markets.
Where are the people who are going to build these systems?
With the growing demand for site development, wireless companies face a drastic shortage of trained and qualified professionals to build their systems.
At last count, it took 10 years and some 40,000 cellular company employees to build nearly 13,000 cell sites to serve 16 million customers. How many people will it take to build 100,000 sites in three years? By the most conservative estimates, the next surge in wireless communications will exhaust the available work force.
For the sake of discussion, let’s say 18 months is the interval to build out a 1,000-site metropolitan trading area, or MTA. Based on industry experience, it would take more than 40 skillful, ready-to-go site development specialists to get the job done. Now add project managers, construction personnel and administration staff. Next, project the numbers for 50 MTAs. Finally, overlay it all with, say, three carriers in each market. The numbers become staggering.
Admittedly, no one starts from ground zero and builds even 500 sites at the same time. And there may be some efficiencies in building PCS not realized with cellular. Yet, the basic problem remains. More site development people will be needed in the next few years than are now employed in the wireless industry.
As the race heats up, qualified site acquisition and construction specialists will become scarce, and shortages of management-level candidates will become more widespread.
Furthermore, shortages of qualified workers may coexist with a surplus of unqualified job seekers. On one hand, there is a large but limited work force in right-of-way and other real estate-related fields. On the other hand, as people move from right-of-way or conventional land acquisition, they need a wider array of skills.
Unlike the right-of-way agent whose primary job is to purchase easement strips from point A to point B, the site development specialist has to contend with a variety of issues like radio signal requirements, real estate negotiations, layers of government regulations and public hearings.
Traditional right-of-way acquisition, for example, has a single focus-negotiating with land owners.
By contrast, the site development specialist has to confer with radio engineers, identify a suitable site, understand zoning regulations, anticipate construction hazards, determine property ownership, coordinate engineering visits, negotiate lease agreements, disarm public opposition, prepare permit applications and represent the client at public hearings.
In addition to being knowledgeable of real-estate, construction and zoning, successful site developers must have the ability to manage multiple priorities. Although site acquisition and construction follows general steps, seldom do the steps follow a linear sequence.
Consequently, the basic skills of real estate simply are not enough. Wireless site development requires a higher level of proficiency in managing multiple priorities, problem-solving and public relations.
Do or Die
Important as skilled workers are, there is a very narrow band of training options in wireless site development. People seeking to enter site development, as well as people seeking retraining or updating of their skills, have little opportunity beyond informal learning on-the-job. For most, learning site development is a do-or-die proposition.
Compared to the impending crunch, however, the current work force has had time to learn, time to make mistakes and mid-course corrections. All of that time will become a luxury in the race to build competitive systems.
To complicate matters, plans are now being constructed on assumptions of what the current work force can produce. In reality, the next generation of site specialists will have neither the level of skill nor the opportunity to learn by trial and error.
There are several resources available today to help employees begin preparing for the pending demands of a better-trained wireless work force, including:
Provide formal training through workshops and short courses.
Capitalize on training offered by original equipment manufacturers.
Circulate industry magazines, newsletters and articles.
Send employees to conferences sponsored by professional associations.
The important rule is that the best options are those that train people in the specific tasks for which they are responsible. When it comes to training, take advantage of on-the-job training through coaching, peer training and tele-training.
Coaching is a tried-and-true approach to on-the-job training. Learning how to handle site development is easier when a trainee can emulate someone who does it well, and even better if that someone spends time observing the trainee and providing insights about his or her approach. Unfortunately, real-time coaching gets more lip service than practice. Few managers are skilled in coaching, and even those who are capable typically have little time to devote to it.
Peer training is a more structured approach to on-the-job training. The peer trainer, whether a boss or more experienced colleague, functions as a learning facilitator. The drawback to peer training is the difficulty of coming up with qualified peer trainers.
Tele-training is training delivered over telephone lines by an instructor. Basic tele-training amounts to a well-planned conference call guided by a subject expert. Trainees in remote locations carry on two-way conversations with the instructor and other trainees.
Workshops and seminars are as useful as they are relevant. Workshops that address specific aspects of site development can save a great deal of time and money.
Unfortunately, most courses are not designed for site development. With a few exceptions, site specialists have to glean from courses prepared for engineers or other specialists. The further a course is removed from the specifics of job requirements, the more waste is produced. With the growing pressure for high-speed, high-quality field work, training in site development must provide realistic, practical material that trainees can apply immediately on the job.
If the projected growth of the wireless industry is even half right, neither a strong recruiting program nor higher wages will do much to bridge the skills gap. Major investments in both on-the-job and off-site training programs are required to shorten the learning cycle and avoid the pitfalls of learning by trial and error.
Short of extended programs in coaching or peer training, the effective near-term response is to take advantage of training programs designed specifically for site development. The cost of not doing so may be faltering performance, limited recruiting options and higher turnover of qualified people.
Site development specialists are to the wireless industry what air traffic controllers are to the airline industry. Without competent, quick-thinking controllers, there would be havoc in the skies. Without highly skilled, resourceful people, site development will be a nightmare.
The race to build new systems may be forfeit. Wireless companies that start now to invest in human capital will have a winning chance. The rest will fall behind trying to make up for lost time, cost overruns and poor quality work. In this industry, the race is won by the swift and smart.
Daniel Rickett, Ph.D., is vice president of human resource development for TEA Group Inc., an international wireless network services and consulting firm based in Atlanta.
