And Now, Extreme Recruiting
招聘竞争白热化
Despite the global crisis, the struggle to hire top MBAs is as fierce as ever - for now
尽管全球处于经济危机之中，招聘顶尖MBA的斗争仍很激烈。
The stock market is plummeting『笔直下落』.The worldwide financial crisis deepens by the day. Corporate profits are slumping『下跌；下降』as companies from Gillette to 3M to Hewlett-Packard struggle with『挣扎；艰难地进行』the double whammy『致命打击』of sharply lowered demand and a higher dollar. And the finance industry— which hired 35% of all MBA graduates in the Class of ’98—has been particularly hard hit, with the worst yet to come.
股市大跌，全球金融危机日益加深 。公司的利润骤然下跌，包括吉列公司、3M公司和惠普公司在内的众多公司，都在产品需求量陡降而美元比价居高不下的双重打击下苦苦挣扎。雇用了35％的98届工商管理硕士毕业生的金融业尤其受到重创，而且最沉重的打击还在后面
Given the carnage『大屠杀』, you might think that the booming『景气好的；大受欢迎的』 market seen in recent years for newly minted『刚完成的』MBAs is collapsing as well. But so far, you’d be wrong. Despite growing fears that the global financial turmoil『骚乱；混乱』could push the U. S. economy into layoffs『失业；裁员』and recession『衰退；倒退』, corporate recruiters『招聘人员』say that for now, the battle to hire top-quality MBAs remains as tough and competitive as ever.
谈到这番惨状，人们可能会认为近年来兴起的工商管理硕士生需求旺盛的市场也将不复存在。然而迄今为止，事实并非如此。尽管对全球金融混乱将给美国经济带来失业和陷入停滞状态的担心在不断加剧，但是企业招聘人员说，迄今为止招聘高级MBA人才的斗争仍像以往一样棘手和竞争力很强.
【背景知识】
工商管理硕士（MBA）教育起源于哈佛商学院，至今已有近百年的历史了。随着经济的发展以及对人才的需求，其规模越办越大。在美国已有700多所大学设有MBA教育，相关的学位有近百种，累计毕业生人数已达100多万人，成为美国工商界不可缺少的高层管理人才。近年来，由于申请入学的总人数减少，而MBA的需求却大量增加，造成对学生的争夺日趋激烈。
And make no mistake about it: It is a battle. Spend a day with Catherine H. Baker, vice-president in charge of worldwide recruiting at Mercer Management Consulting Inc., and that much is clear. Sure, as she and her team of Mercer MBAs head for a Sept. 22 presentation『赠送礼物』to first- and second-year students at the Wharton School, they’re riding a Metro-liner from Washington, D. C., to Philadelphia, rather than a warship『军舰；舰艇』. But there’s no doubt that the Wharton trip is the first shot in a long campaign『战役』for what continue to be some of the most sought-after『受欢迎的』trophies 『战利品；奖品』of the late 1990s: graduating MBAs.
准确地说：这是一场战斗。与莫塞尔管理咨询公司主管全球范围内招聘的副总裁凯瑟琳·H·贝克共度一天后，体会就更清晰了。当她和莫塞尔公司的MBA从华盛顿特区出发，乘地铁到费城的沃顿商学院去向一年级和二年级的学生赠送礼物时，他们象军舰一样浩浩荡荡。毫无疑问，渥顿之行只是长期战役的第一场战斗。这场长期战役的战利品是在90年代后期最受欢迎的：即将毕业的工商管理学硕士们.
The reason is simple. Thanks to a tight job market for top managers in recent years, most of the leverage『力量；影响力』in the job-search mating『相配』dance has shifted『转移；移动』from recruiters『招募人员』to students. The average member of the Class of 1998 at Business Week’s top 25 B-schools boasted『包含；拥有』3.2 job offers, up from 2.3 in 1992. The median starting salary-plus-bonus『奖金；额外补助』rose to $ 91,560 this year, up 19% from two years ago. That doesn’t include extras–ranging『额外报酬』from free rent to stock options to tuition paybacks-worth a median $19,860. “The competition for MBAs has definitely quickened『加快；活跃』,” says David L. Reed, director of global recruiting at Andersen Consulting. “It’s as fierce as I’ve ever seen it"
道理很简单。鉴于近年来人才市场上顶类的管理人员十分紧销，职业市场供求关系的重心已从招募人员转到了学生一边。在《商业周刊》评出的25所最佳商学院中，98届毕业生平均每人有3.2个可供挑选的就业机会，1992年仅为2.3个。中等收入水平的起始薪金加奖金今年已提高到91560美元，比两年前增加了19％。这个数字还不包括平均19860美元额外的报酬－如免交房租、认股权、预付学费等等。安德森咨询公司负责在世界各地招募人才的主任戴维·里德说：“招聘工商管理硕士生的竞争已明显加剧。这是我所见过的最激烈的人才竞争。
5]He and others say that there is little reason to expect change, despite the global gloom『阴暗；昏暗』and doom『厄运；毁灭』. In part, that’s because companies are very happy with the skills today’s MBAs possess『拥有；具有』.They have a rare mix of financial, technical, and communications skills that companies have trouble finding in engineers or other degree holders. As costly as MBAs are, they’re still cheaper than they will be later, when things improve. “You’re making a long-term investment,” says Peter D. Kiernan, co-head of the recruiting committee at Goldman, Sachs & Co. and co-chair of the communications, media, and entertainment banking group. “It’s an illusion『幻想；错觉』to think you can cut bank now and be in a strong position when the markets begin to recover『恢复；复兴』.”
