DAVOS, Switzerland, Jan. 26, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN), world leader in innovative workforce solutions, advocated for solidarity between educators, governments and industries in the movement toward overhauling education and mitigating widespread unemployment as the world enters the Human Age, during a CNBC live debate on why "The West Isn't Working" at the 2011 World Economic Forum Annual Meeting in Davos.

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Jeffrey A. Joerres, Manpower Inc. Chairman and CEO, argued in favor of the motion "Education is Failing Industry," in part two of the debate and was challenged by Amy Gutmann, President of the University of Pennsylvania. As skills taught by institutions fail to meet today's business needs, western countries will increasingly struggle to source critical talent, Joerres warned.

Joerres emphasized that the chasm growing between education and industry demands could be filled with high-quality problem-solving education and "on the job" degrees. Earlier today, Manpower announced that it had identified that the world is now entering the Human Age. In this new reality, companies must work with their people to ensure they are developing and unleashing the human potential within their reach, while skills will rapidly become outdated and individuals will need to maintain a "learning mindset" to ensure they continue to develop and unleash their human potential throughout their career.

"Teaching intellectual curiosity and problem-solving starts at a very young age, and these are some the most critical skills and behaviors that will determine an individual's ability to adapt in the rapidly changing world," explained Joerres. "In order to instill a mindset of lifelong learning in tomorrow's workforce, education and training needs to be less episodic and more iterative. To be successful, this requires a collaborative approach on part of governments, educational institutions, corporations and individuals."

Other high-profile thought leaders addressed how to mitigate jobs losses in advanced economies, as global power shifts to the emerging markets and western workers lose out on opportunities.

Debate challengers included Mukesh Ambani, Chairman and Managing Director, Reliance Industries; Arianna Huffington, Co-founder and Editor-in-Chief, The Huffington Post; and Phillip Jennings, General Secretary, UNI Global Union. Front Row VIPs include Peter Loscher, President & CEO, Siemens AG; Min Zhu, Special Advisor, IMF; and Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairman & Managing Director, Biocon. The debate was moderated by Maria Bartiromo, anchor and co-producer of CNBC's Wall Street Journal Report.

Manpower Inc. is proud to be a strategic partner of the World Economic Forum 2011 Annual Meeting. Jeff Joerres, Manpower Inc. Chairman and CEO; David Arkless, Manpower Inc. President of Corporate and Government Affairs; Françoise Gri, Manpower Inc. President of Southern Europe; and Jonas Prising, Manpower Inc. President of the Americas, are all participating in high-profile panels at this year's annual forum. Manpower partners with WEF on several initiatives, and in 2010, Joerres co-chaired the World Economic Forum on Europe meeting, Arkless is Chair of the Global Agenda Council on Skills & Talent Mobility. For more information about Manpower's presence at the World economic Forum 2011 Annual Meeting, go to: www.manpower.com/press/wef2011.cfm. Joerres will also be sharing regular insight and expertise via Twitter on events in Davos and transformational implications for the world of work. Follow Joerres' tweets at www.twitter.com/manpowerceo.

Enter the Human Age at: www.manpower.com/humanage.

About Manpower Inc.

Manpower Inc. (NYSE: MAN), world leader in innovative workforce solutions; creates and delivers services that enable its clients to win in the changing world of work. With over 62 years' experience, Manpower offers employers a range of solutions and services for the entire employment and business cycle including permanent, temporary and contract recruitment; employee assessment and selection; training; outplacement; outsourcing and consulting. Manpower's worldwide network of 4,000 offices in 82 countries and territories enables the company to meet the needs of its 400,000 clients per year, including small and medium size enterprises in all industry sectors, as well as the world's largest multinational corporations. The focus of Manpower's work is on raising productivity through improved quality, efficiency and cost-reduction across their total workforce, enabling clients to concentrate on their core business activities. Manpower Inc. operates under five brands: Manpower, Manpower Professional, Elan, Jefferson Wells and Right Management. More information on Manpower Inc. is available at www.manpower.com.

SOURCE Manpower Inc.