There is a new phenomenon in human resources. It is called "employee ghosting." It is described as a candidate accepting an employment offer from a company and then never showing up. They don't call, they don't close the loop. They just go silent. This likely happens because in the meantime they received a better offer. This is how tight the job market is.

People my age are expressing outrage at this, saying they have never heard of such rudeness. Others (my age and other ages) are saying, "not so fast--this is what companies did to us when they were downsizing." Either way, it represents a new era in prospective employee relations.

My advice to candidates--no matter how you feel about the situation, close it out professionally. Corporations keep records; conditions change. It just may be in five or ten years you will want to come back to this company. Employer computer memories are forever, and if you ditch them once, they will remember and look unkindly on your previous actions in another place and time.

My advice to employers--you need to recognize the shoe is on the other foot, now. You need to be careful and nurture you incoming candidates, especially the young ones with little experience in the workforce. You may need to "over offer" to meet your hiring requirements. By this I mean make more offers than you have openings to assure yourself that you will have the staff you need when you need them.

The other solution for employers is more automation, more robots. We are on the cusp of this becoming mainstream even in the sectors where it has not been mainstream. It is essential to protecting your business these days.

Jim Thompson is CEO of Paperitalo Publications. He can be reached by email at jthompson@taii.com.