High Tech and High Touch

James E. Coverdill is Associate Professor of Sociology at the University of Georgia. He is coauthor with William Finlay of Headhunters, also from Cornell. William Finlay is Professor of Sociology at the University of Georgia. He is the author of Work on the Waterfront, coauthor of The Sociology of Work, and, with James Coverdill, coauthor of Headhunters, also from Cornell.

• AcknowledgmentsIntroduction1. Getting Clients and Job Orders2. Qualifying Clients and Job Orders3. Constructing Candidates and Securing Placements4. Evolution or Revolution?5. Booms, Busts, and Changing Labor Markets6. Being a HeadhunterConclusionReferencesIndex

From archival and interview data—1,106 industry publications articles and interviews with 33 headhunters, 7 of whom were also informants for the first book—a fascinating case study emerges of an occupation markedly shaped by the evolutions of the last 20 years.... this is a fascinating and consequential look into the behavior of one group who sits on the fault line between the impending forces changing the face of the labor market as we know it. The rich descriptions speak to the evolution of an occupation under the impact of technology.(Work and Occupations) [High Tech and High Touch] provides a fascinating account of an infrequently studied profession at [a] significant moment in time that will deepen your understanding of how labor markets work.(Social Forces) Finlay and Coverdill help shine a light on the social aspects of this market, in which personal characteristics matter more and the actively employed are potentially considered as candidates. Their work highlights that the full implications of the technological and cultural revolution undergirding the "new economy" are only beginning to be understood.(American Journal of Sociology)