Fall 2015

SectorR

eady

ORKFORCE

High Tech Meets High Touch for Workforce Strategies

Leadership

Workforce Investment Board of Southwest MissouriP.O. Box 1706 | Joplin, MO 64802 | 417-206-1717 | www.workforzone.net

Chair: Brad Baker, US BankSecretary: Teddy Steen, United WayTreasurer: Albert Johnson, XPO Logistics Past Chair: Marsha Wallace, Empire District ElectricChair-Elect: Susan Adams, Joplin Workshops, Inc.Mary Bader: Carthage School District AELCary Beasley, Joplin Area Chamber of CommerceCorin Berryhill, Carpenters UnionTrish Carroll, Optic Communications/CTCJohn Claybrook, Standard TransportationShiloh Cooper, Preferred Family Healthcare/AOChristopher Corbett, Innovative Objects Jason Cravens, Joplin SchoolsJanet Douglas, Missouri Family Support DivisionMichelle Ducre, Missouri Southern State UniversityJulie Carter, Division of Workforce DevelopmentBrenda Fletcher, All Points RecyclingTeresa Gilliam, Wildwood Ranch DevelopmentSonya Hayward, Arning Canopies, Inc.Dan Hill, Crossland ConstructionClaude Howard, Crowder College Debbie Little, RKL CommunicationsJeff Meredith, Monett Chamber of CommerceLarry Shellhorn, Arvest BankScott Simonds, IBEW Local 95 Jane Sligar, NY Life Insurance Rhonda Stafford, RBC Horizon, Inc. Mark Turnbull, Joplin Regional Partnership Cathee Wolford, Division of Vocational Rehabilitation

Board of Directors

Jasen Jones, Executive DirectorSherri Rhuems, Operations ManagerRobert Shyrock, Fiscal Manager

Regional System Support Staff WIB StaffLeslie Abram, Business ServicesKris Baldwin, Quality Assurance Melinda Carrico, Accounting Tom Evansco, Outreach Projects Frank Neely, Research & LogisticsTroy Roland, Job Center Manager

AWARDS HONOR ROLL

• System-Building Award, National

Association of Workforce Development

Professionals, 2015

• America’s first nationally-certified ACT

Work Ready Community, 2013 (also first

to be re-certified in 2015)

• 2014 Show-Me Award for

Collaboration, MO ACT Council

• Presidents Award, MO Economic

Development Council

• Governors E-3 Award for Excellence in

Employment, Education, and Economic

Development, 2012

• IEDC Case Study on Economic

Development Integration, 2010

• Nation’s first quad-state WIRED

initiative with DOL, 2008-2010

• DOL National Case Study on Labor

Market Innovation, 2008

• DOL National Business Learning

Partnership, 2006-2007

• Numerous invitations for state and

national conference presentations on

WIB innovations

Fall 2015

Employers Get Ahead with SectorReady™;

Next Steps for the Workforce System

Workforce Summit Blazes New

Pathways to Sector Excellence

Monett Honors Employers and Work Ready

Communities for Manufacturing Day

Job Fest 2016 Expands to Meet

Employer Growth

Transition Grant Powers Competitive

Labor Study and Prepares WIOA Partners

New Education Law Mandates Public

Education Alignment with Workforce

We Need to Re-Wire the Labor Market

Guest Feature from Opportunity@Work

Making Regional Impact

Looking Ahead

Regional Workforce Heroes...Unite!

New Partnerships Spur WIOA Implementation

SectorReady™ Leaders Excel at Statewide

Sector Strategies Summit

Crowder joins Missouri Colleges with CMT’s

Empowering Education Initiative

Workforce System Impact and Performance

At Your Service

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The WIB of SW MO is an equal opportunity employer/program. Auxiliary aids and services are available upon request to individuals with disabilities. Missouri TTY users can call (800) 735-2966 or dial 7-1-1. This workforce product was funded by a grant awarded by the U.S. Department of Labor’s Employment and Training Administration. The product was created by the contracting agency and does not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Labor. The Department of Labor makes no guarantees, warranties, or assurances of any kind, express or implied, with respect to such information, including any information on linked sites and including, but not limited to, accuracy of the information or its completeness, timeliness, usefulness, adequacy, continued availability, or ownership. This product is copyrighted by the institution that created it. Internal use by an organization and/or personal use by an individual for non-commercial purposes is permissible. All other uses require the prior authorization of the copyright owner.19

Employers Get Ahead with SectorReady; Partners Prepare Next Steps for Impact

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SectorReadyORKFORCE

Following the region’s economic

shifts ranging from recession

recovery to disaster recovery, the

labor market systems of the past

are not keeping pace with employer

demand. Workforce, economic

development, and education leaders

rose to the occasion with the new

SectorReady™ framework and its

innovative training and credentialing

solutions. This top ten list (at right)

illustrates the major concerns

employers express when looking for

new ways to address the challenges

of new labor market realities along

with how SectorReady™ makes a

difference.

SectorReady pathways use a supply chain approach to business needs and economic development strategies with local education and workforce systems to expand the region’s prosperity. SectorReady brings a new era of workforce excellent to area employers.

™

Sparse pool of job candidates with misperceptions about our sector

Strong pool of informed candidates eager to work at an employer of choice

Job applicants missing modern skills needed for basic entry into the sector

Job applicants well-prepared with cognitive and technical skills

Employees difficult to retain, no interest in longevity or growth at our company

Employees eager to grow with new tasks and skills for career advancement

Candidates hard to find with specialized skills for higher level positions

High performers ready to promote from within through career pathway model

Social/family struggles affect productivity and retention

Eligible new hires come from a stronger social support system to alleviate barriers

No way to prove to vendors, regulators, or investors that we hire qualified workers

Verifiable skill levels to prove quality standards for certifications or compliance

THE OLD WAY THE NEW WAY

New hires take longer to train and reach productivity

New hires equipped with entry-level credentials that are easier to train

Working with the public sector means lots of delay and bureaucracy

Improvements in training and talent supply require more funds to participate

High risk and poor past performance of traditional screening and training

Improved leverage for sector employer groups on shared needs and challenges

Shared capacity building as employers join forces to share costs and efficiencies

Preferred provider system for candidate pipelines and training helps manage risk

™

™

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SectorReady™ partnerships are

simple, user-friendly alliances of

employers, supported by strategic

partners, to fuel the demand-driven

design of career pathways and

workforce solutions. Employers

plug in for one-on-one research

and consultation. Sector-wide

gatherings help review research

findings, add collective insights, and

plan potential strategies. Contact

Jasen Jones or Frank Neely at the

WIB, or Mark Turnbull at the Joplin

Regional Partnership, to schedule the

consultation for a winning workforce

of the future.

• Employer interviews and consultations on skill gaps and workforce issues• Job Profile-Plus and Competency Model pilots with participating employers

for skill data aggregation• Sector Partnership meetings and design teams (mix of virtual and in-person)

to develop solutions that shrink skill gaps and boost candidate pipelines• Production of realistic job preview videos and testimonials by sector• Portal online at SectorReady.org with pathways and career planning tools for

student/adult job candidates• Portal and pathway training deployed to job counselors region-wide at

schools and public agencies • Employer Toolkits with pathway and sector resources for employers such

as fast-track recruiting, competency-based interviewing, competitive labor analysis, and more

• Preferred provider network for training and credentialing through SectorReady™ schools and agencies

• Collaboration with educators for design teams to deploy short-term, low-cost training for industry-driven credentials

• Design and implementation of sustainability and performance metrics

Looking Ahead for SectorReady™ Deliverables• Renewable &

Q4 2015 to Q1 2016

Q1 to Q2 2016

Q2 to Q3 2016

Q3 to Q4 2016

The WIB polled 26 employers

throughout the region to gauge initial

interest in sector partnerships and

career pathways. Firms expressed a

wide array of reasons for the hiring

difficulties, with nearly a third in total

citing a lack in skills or competencies.

To dig deeper, WIB and JRP project

leaders refined the workforce

survey to seek additional input on

career progression along with the

certifications and training desired.

Employers are invited to contribute

data and trends through one-on-one

interviews and consultations that

launched in December and will run

through February.

Trends Showing the Need for a New Skills Approach

Talent Shortages Practices

Pay or Location

Undesirable

Factors in Difficulty

Filling Jobs

Applicant

Shortage

Lack

Exper

ience

5%

7%

20%

19%

13%

12%

11%

11%

Lack Technical Competencies

Motivation/Learning Mindset Issues

Lack Industry-Specific Skills/

Certifications

Lack Workplace Competencies

(soft skills)

Flexibility/Adaptability Issues

To address the talent

shortages, 12% of

employers are willing to

try new methods and 9%

specified the use of career

development tools during

the recruitment phase. Half

of the surveyed firms in

total cited three different

approaches to training.

20%Training to

Develop New Skills

Training to Develop

Existing Skills

16%

More Training & Development for Existing Staff

12%

14%

12% Non-Traditional or Untried Recruting

Practices, Both Internal & External

8%

Increase Starting Salaries

9%Providing Clear

Career Development Opportunities to Applicants

Enhancing Benefits

Refine Qualifying Criteria, Skills,Certifications

7%

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The 6 P’s of Pathways: A Blueprint for SectorReady™

In preparation to implement the SectorReady™ framework of career pathways and partnerships, the WIB’s research and

development efforts spanned multiple agencies in economic development, workforce, education, and social services. The

6 P’s approach simplifies the introduction and adoption of the SectorReady™ framework customized to the strengths and

opportunities for the greater Joplin labor market.

Purpose• Passion for the vision

• Improving perceptions of sectors

• Patience for longer-term impact

Probing• Predicting growth and skill needs

• Overcoming paradigms

• Problem solving to remove

barriers to regional growth

Portal• SectorReady.org suite of

interactive pathway tools,

testimonials, career exploration

trends, job preview videos

• Multiple formats of online,

mobile, and print versions for

maximum accessibility

• User-friendly resources for

families, students, school

counselors, and service agencies

Process• Profiling skill standards through WorkKeys® system

• Prioritizing knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors for training and job selection

• Preparation with innovative training that’s high-volume,

high-impact, and cost-efficient

• Proving skill quality and supply through suitable credentials, skill badges, etc.

• Promotion of workers between training and job levels

• Personalized pathways to meet needs of unique populations’ strengths and

weaknesses

• Placement solutions that enhance the human resources system through efficiency,

value, retention, productivity, etc.

• Practices that shift culture to innovation and growth with competency-based policies

Payoff• Productivity and

other key metrics for

employers

• Performance

indicators to

measure success and

regional impact

• Continuous

improvement cycles

and revisions of

pathway tools based

on market changes

and innovation

Planning• Partnerships of the

right people to keep

the ship afloat

• Perfecting services

and products for

users through

Human Centered

Design

• Prototyping

of models to be

tested by workers,

employers, and

schools

• Pitching the

SectorReady™

model by change

agents to decision-

makers and investors

Workforce Summit Blazes New Pathways to Sector Excellence

Setting the stage for the SectorReady™ launch, Jasen

Jones’ presentation covered job growth trends in the

region’s current targeted industry sectors along with

characteristics of current employment demand and

work readiness credentialing. The trends aligned with

components of the framework introduced in Jasen’s

presentation.

Jim Maher, author of the new book Leaders, Losers,

and Lessons, provided the luncheon keynote

titled, Dynamics of Job Growth and Training. This

highly-interactive program spotlighted leadership

characteristics in highest demand by employers.

Strategies and Techniques for Employers, Educators,

and Community Leaders for Sector-Driven Growth

capped off summit with a collection of promising

practices that motivated summit attendees to take

the next steps for the SectorReady™ launch. Scott

Sheely is the new sector/pathways expert with the

Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture following

his previous post at the Lancaster, PA Workforce

Investment Board. Scott’s story on Lancaster’s

Ready2Work initiative showed summit participants

how training, testing, placement, and pathway

innovations can revolutionize the region’s workforce.

The 2015 Heartland Workforce Summit marked the official launch of the SectorReady™ Toolkit. Powered by the WIB and the Joplin Regional Partnership, the toolkit reflects the region’s framework development and research in 2014-2016 for a robust array of career pathway and sector partnership resources.

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Along with the presenters and attendees, the Workforce

Summit was a success thanks to summit sponsors:

Joplin Regional Partnership, Empire District Electric,

and the Joplin Regional Business Journal. Freeman

Occumed sponsored the summit’s Exhibitor Room

and Downstream Casino Resort helped underwrite the

technical presentation resources. Portions of the summit

are captured on video for those unable to attend or those

wanting to share their summit experience with colleagues.

Dr. Mark Johnson from PSU provided a strong kickoff

for the summit with his presentation Train Smarter, Not

Harder. The talk covered the importance of eliminating

the latency gap between training and practice by

thoroughly integrating key functions of the revised Blooms

Taxonomy.

The Employer Innovation Panel, always a favorite of

summit attendees, featured Mark Haynes of Innovative

Objects, Jeff Merrithew of Owens-Corning, and Zach Ward

of Grasslands Group, LLC. Each panelist gave an overview

of leading-edge practices in critical HR functions such as

recruitment, retention, training, and career progression.

This portion of the summit typically generates the most

audience feedback, as experienced in the dynamic Q&A

with this year’s panel.

Thanks for our 2015 Summit Sponsors

The Monett Area Chamber of Commerce celebrated

National Manufacturers Day with a special ceremony

October 2nd at Playpower. The event included

special proclamations from the Missouri House of

Representatives, the Monett City Council, Barry County

Commission, and Missouri Enterprise. The Workforce

Investment Board also joined the celebration and

presented an award from ACT recognizing Barry

County as a Certified Work Ready Community. Check

out this feature from the Monett Times newspaper

at monett-times.com/story/2239630.html. Pictured

right: Jeff Meredith accepts the ACT CWRC trophy

with Jasen Jones of the WIB and Tracey Kelly with

Missouri Enterprise.

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The success of the National Career Readiness

Certificate® (NCRC) and Certified Work Ready

Communities (CWRC) for the WIB and JRP counties

helped build a solid foundation for the SectorReady™

initiative. The NCRC is the most preferred measure

by local employers for the cognitive skills needed

to be successful on the job. The CWRC designation

shows potential investors and decision-makers that

the JRP and WIB counties rank among the highest

in the nation for work readiness and a collaborative

culture for education, employment, and economic

development. Pictured left: four of the eleven

counties have full certification, including Jasper

County as the first in the nation to achieve both the

initial certification in 2013 and the renewal of the

certification in 2015. Four more counties are nearing

certification at 87% or higher completion of CWRC

goals. See page 17 for detailed progress on each

county goal.

Monett Honors Employers, Work Ready Communities for Manufacturing Day

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

In-ProgressNearing Complete GoalsGoals 100%, Pending ApprovalFully Certified

Registration is underway for employers, resource

exhibitors, and sponsors for Job Fest 2016. Job

Fest gets a good or excellent rating from 94% of

participating employers. Exhibiting employers often

conduct basic interviews with potential candidates

on site at Job Fest with hundreds more follow up

interviews scheduled after the event. Job seekers

were overall pleased with Job Fest as well, with 89%

ranking Job Fest as helpful.

It’s not just the unemployed who benefit from the

event. According to the 2015 survey of participants,

almost a fifth of Job Fest attendees are currently

employed and seeking better opportunities. The

sector interests of job seekers are diverse as well.

Customer service, manufacturing, and sales ranked

among the highest. Interest is strong for healthcare,

construction, transportation, and I.T. as well.

Quick and simple registration is available online at

gojobfest.com. For more information, call the Job Fest

hotline at 855-JOBS-417 (855-562-7417, option #5).

Pictured above, Attendees line up for Job Fest prior to

doors opening to the public.

The region’s largest hiring and resource event celebrates its 5th anniversary in 2016. Job Fest is set for Tuesday, January 26th from Noon to 5:00 at the Joplin Convention and Trade Center, 3535 Hammons Blvd., near I-44 and Range Line in Joplin.

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Job Fest Expands to Meet Employer Needs

Job Fest 2016 is proudly sponsored by:

Transition Grant Powers Competitive Labor Study, Prepares WIOA Partners

The key advantage of an Area Labor Market (ALM)

analysis is that it expands the pool of potential workers

by including workers excluded from the Civilian Labor

force (CLF). It also allows researchers to examine

those individual members of the ALM pool who have

a propensity to consider a job opportunity given their

employment expectations. The study area for this

project includes Barry, Barton, Dade, Jasper, Lawrence,

McDonald, Newton, and Vernon counties in Missouri;

Bourbon, Cherokee, Crawford, and Labette Counties in

Kansas; and Ottawa County in Oklahoma.

The WIB awarded the technical assistance grant to

Inpspiring Innovations, LCC. The desired technical

assistance functions help meet some of the more

complex guidelines around workforce development

reform under WIOA. In developing the Memorandum

of Understanding, the WIB facilitates WIOA resource

mapping to identify partner capacity for direct and

indirect one-stop system contributions. Another

important function is the design of referral systems

that meet confidentiality guidelines, but overcome

obstacles of multiple data systems.

Triple-I will help establish benchmarks for the WIB’s

procurement of the one-stop operator based on

applying WIB, DWD, and DOL strategic priorities

to one-stop Job Center operations, a re-design of

process and mapping for product box and routine

operations, along with common outreach and service

strategies for limited-English populations and those

with disabilities or other unique barriers.

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The Southwest Missouri WIB is poised for a successful

implementation of the Workforce Innovation

Opportunity Act (WIOA) to transform the strategies

and service delivery for the region’s workforce

system. Special grants through the Missouri Division

of Workforce Development helped fill the gaps for

advanced technical assistance and training for the

Southwest Missouri WIB to implement WIOA. The

$50k grant helps cover costs for a regional labor shed

analysis in collaboration with the Joplin Regional

Partnership. Other grant initiatives include WIOA

planning, MOU development, and youth system

training.

The WIB awarded the labor study grant to Growth

Services Group. A primary goal of any Area Labor

Market (ALM) or labor shed analysis is to estimate the

potential availability of workers and determine how

well the surrounding geographical areas are able

to provide a stable supply of workers to the central

focused core of the ALM or labor shed.

A key source of good employees is the category of

the underemployed, those individuals whovare now

working but desire a better job and who possess the

skills, education, and experience tovqualify for better

jobs. Underemployment or underutilization of skills or

experience is a significantvissue in many communities

and is an important element for employers assessing

a community forvlocation or expansion. The

availability of a highly skilled and experienced labor is

among the top threevimportant location factors for

businesses considering expansions or relocations (Area

Development Annual Surveys).

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The long-awaited replacement of No Child Left

Behind passed the U.S. House and Senate and

became law with the President’s signature December

10th. This bipartisan, bicameral bill to replace NCLB

and improve K-12 education is known as the Every

Student Succeeds Act (S. 1177).

The Joplin (MO/KS/OK) region enjoys strong

alignment of public education and workforce/

economic development through initiatives such as

Certified Work Ready Communities, the National

Career Readiness Certificate, and SectorReady™.

Through the Joplin Regional Partnership, the WIB,

and other strategy groups, educators have a stronger

sense of the cognitive and technical skills needed

by area employers. Improvements in the policy

framework through the new federal law can empower

local education leaders to take the next step on

demand-driven training and credentials that move

the region forward.

“Today, we helped turn the page on a flawed law and

a failed approach to K-12 education,” said Committee

Chairman John Kline (R-MN). “But more importantly,

we adopted a new approach that will help every child

in every school receive a quality education. Parents,

teachers, and state and local school leaders support

this bill because they know it will restore local control

and help get Washington out of our classrooms.

I want to thank my Republican and Democratic

colleagues, in both the House and Senate, for their

work on this important effort.”

According to the National Association of State

Workforce Agencies, the legislation fosters better

alignment between workforce development and

education programs. Key features include:

• State education goals align, where possible, with

the state’s workforce development plan and state

career and technical education initiatives to ensure

that students develop the skills necessary for the

state’s current and future workforce needs

• Career and guidance counseling programs as well

as training on local workforce needs join various

options for postsecondary and career pathways as

an allowable use of funds under the Student Support

and Academic Enrichment grants in Title IV

• Ability to use of local education funds that lead

to industry-recognized credentials that meet the

quality criteria established under section 123(a) of the

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act

• State educational agencies must prepare a state

plan that is coordinated with programs that partner

with in-demand fields and ensure career readiness

skills are aligned with the Carl D. Perkins Career

and Technical Education Act of 2006 along with the

Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act

Learn more online at workforcezone.net/?p=1557.

New Education Law Mandates Public Education Alignment with Workforce

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This guest feature comes from Byron Auguste and Tyra Mariani, co-founders of Opportunity@Work, a civic enterprise housed at New America whose mission is to re-wire the U.S. labor market to enable more Americans to achieve upward mobility in the job market and the workplace.

We Need to Re-Wire the Labor Market

How do we ensure that motivated Americans get the

skills they need to find meaningful work, to thrive in

the workplace, and to move forward in our job market?

We need to ask deeper questions about our labor

market’s role in upward mobility (or immobility),

because the way we assess unemployment and

underemployment doesn’t tell the full story of the

U.S. economy’s loss of dynamism in the past 15 years.

For example, how many people are engaged by the

work they do, and see a career path ahead of them?

Who can clearly say: If I make the extra effort to do X,

I can learn Y, and then be hired or promoted into job

Z? How many can confidently quit their current job to

take a better one?

Too many Americans lack that confidence, because

when it comes to work, they are “stuck” without a

way to translate their best efforts into economic

progress. This situation undermines U.S. economic

dynamism and growth, because human capital — the

most valuable asset on America’s economic balance

sheet — is not realizing its full value.

Right now our job market works best for those

Americans who follow conventional paths to four-

year college degrees and who have the social capital

and mentorship that encourages employers to take

a chance on hiring, training, and advancing them.

It works poorly for the growing number of people

whose journeys are less linear or gilded, including the

35 million people with “some college” but no degree,

mid-career industry switchers, un-credentialed

workers who mastered their skills on the job, full-time

parents re-entering the workforce, the long-term

unemployed, skilled immigrants, and young people

reaching for the first rungs on the career ladder.

With U.S. job openings at their highest levels in at

least 15 years, how can so many American workers

find themselves so stuck? It seems like a paradox, but

a few statistics and recent human resource analytics

research offer some clues.

In the United States, voluntary job changes — quitting

to seek a better job — are down by 28 percent since

2000. While only 19 percent of administrative

assistants have four-year college degrees, consulting

firm Burning Glass found that almost two-thirds of

new assistant jobs require a four-year degree just to

be considered. Less educated workers receive only

half the formal on-the-job training that more educated

workers receive. Employers are only half as likely

to grant an interview to a long-term unemployed

candidate when compared to someone more

recently employed with identical education, skills and

experience — yet, an Evolv study of 20,000 hires found

that this distinction made no difference in likely job

performance.

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With such a broad goal in our sights, we’re starting

with information technology jobs, which constitute 12

percent of today’s open jobs — over 680,000 of them–

in the U.S. As part of the TechHire initiative President

Obama launched in March 2015, we have created a

learning network for 35 communities from Wilmington

to Chattanooga to Albuquerque. This network will

help align employers to hire for middle-class IT jobs

based on competence and readiness, rather than

pedigree.

When President Obama announced TechHire he

said, “If you can do the job, you should get the job.”

LaShana Lewis could do the job, but after being unable

to get a job interview for the IT work that was her

passion, she worked as a bus driver and in customer

support for over a decade. Today, LaShana is a systems

engineer at MasterCard, after being matched by

hiring on-ramp LaunchCode, a TechHire partner in St.

Louis that connects non-traditional job seekers to job

openings.

Opportunity@Work will be part of the movement to

realize the full capabilities of our country’s leading

institutions of technology, education and training,

business services, and workforce development to

enable employers to institute “hire when ready”

practices in communities nationwide, to reach millions

of Americans who could learn and excel at jobs that

employers struggle to fill. Talent like LaShana’s should

never be invisible. Bringing potential like hers out into

the open is essential to bringing America’s founding

promise of opportunity through work into the 21st

century.

Opportunity@Work is a civic enterprise whose mission

is to re-wire the U.S. labor market to enable more

Americans to achieve upward mobility in the job

market and workplace, to facilitate actions by U.S.

employers to develop the talent they collectively need

to succeed and grow, and to scale up innovations that

unlock more fully all people’s potential for higher-

value, meaningful work as a source of economic

opportunity and national competitive advantage.

Learn more online at opportunityatwork.org.

What these startling data — and the dysfunctions

they reveal — all have in common is an origin on

the “demand” side of the U.S. labor market — how

employers recruit, hire, train, and promote. Yet most

policies that aim to improve employment outcomes

focus on the “supply side” — education and job training.

These efforts are important, but they can’t “close the

skills gap” without demand-side reforms. We need

smarter employer practices and the partnerships and

public policies to support them.

Re-wiring the demand side of U.S. labor market is the

goal of Opportunity@Work, our civic enterprise based

at New America. Employers are now experiencing

a classic market failure, in which hiring and training

practices are inadvertently limiting the collective

talent pipeline and creating “skills mismatches” with

economy-wide ripple effects. These mismatches are

a key reason why nearly half of U.S. employers report

difficulty hiring employees who have the skills their

companies need to compete.

While focusing on the demand side, we aren’t

overlooking the many employers who are already

investing in workforce skills by partnering with

educators or unions to shape vocational training

curricula or offering apprenticeships or other work-

based learning. Some are also innovating more

inclusive ways to identify talent. There are now many

pockets of success to emulate but adopting these

strategies remains too slow, costly, and complex — as

each one invents (or re-invents) its own approach.

Re-wiring the US labor market at scale will require

more than replicating best practices. We need to build

a flexible, dynamic, and common “operating system”

for the labor market that employers, educators,

workers and job seekers can plug into as a tool to

better align their own investments with each other’s

priorities, recognize potential, and respond to

market needs. If achieved at scale, such alignment

would result in higher-value education and training

programs; more inclusive and better-matched pools

of candidates to hire; and a more engaged and

productive workforce.

Regional Workforce Heroes...Unite!

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and retention outcomes through the SectorReady™

model for career pathways, sector partnerships, and

competency-based hiring.

The Regional Workforce Partners zero in on the

supply side of the employer-driven SectorReady™

strategy. This group optimizes the human capital for

the region’s economy by modernizing the operations

of workforce programs. The partners seek to make

their solutions available to more residents than

ever before through a no-wrong-door approach

to pooling resources, referrals, a tele-health pilot

for job counseling, and easier access. The group is

probing the successful principles of the United Way’s

CIRCLES initiative to improve job counseling and case

management of students and transitioning adults.

Likewise, the WIB is working with United Way to link

workforce solutions with long-term career pathway

goals for CIRCLES participants and stakeholders.

Representatives of the two new task force groups

encompass the ultimate who’s who of regional impact.

Joining the Workforce Board and Job Center crews

are colleagues from Adult Education and Literacy

(AEL/GED for Crowder College, Carthage, and Joplin),

Alliance of Southwest Missouri, Crowder College

Training and Development Solutions, Department of

Economic Development’s Workforce Development

Division, Economic Security Corporation, Experience

Works, Family Support Division, Joplin Chamber

of Commerce, Joplin Regional Partnership, Joplin

Schools, Missouri Enterprise, Missouri Work Assistance/

TANF, Preferred Employment Services, United Way,

and Vocational Rehabilitation. The Business Services

Roundtable and the Regional Workforce Partners are

currently meeting monthly. For more information,

contact Jasen Jones at the WIB, jjones@jomowib.com

or 417-206-1717, Extension 106.

The new partnerships emerged through the WIB’s

implementation of WIOA, the Workforce Innovation

Opportunity Act. The new WIOA law allows workforce

leaders more flexibility and encourages thinking

outside the box on strategies and operations. Taking

advantage of WIOA for the Joplin/Southwest Missouri

region, many long-time partners and colleagues

organized around two new task force groups, the

Regional Workforce Partners and the Regional

Business Services Roundtable.

The Regional Business Services Roundtable seeks

to improve the quality of user-friendly services to

local employers. By sharing leads and coordinating

solutions, firms can increase their efficiencies

through a single partnership of employer services

rather than dealing with multiple entities and extra

red tape barriers. Even though Roundtable agencies

represent a wide array of workforce programs,

members aim to cross-train one another in order to

co-broker services and increase the reach to help

more employers throughout the region. Roundtable

members rally around increased skills, hiring, earnings,

The super heroes that lead local groups to put people to work and fuel the region’s most powerful economic engine began gathering recently at the Hall of Workforce. Okay, they’re not really super heroes and the Hall of Workforce is simply the Southwest Missouri Workforce Board, but the mission of economic prosperity is just as important.

15

SectorReady Leaders Excel at Statewide Strategy Summit

Local Workforce leaders represented Southwest

Missouri for the Show-Me State’s kickoff of sector

strategies in a planning/training event held recently

in Osage Beach. Tucked away on the banks of the

Lake of the Ozarks, about 130 professionals from

the state’s workforce system and their partners from

education, economic development, and workforce

worked over two days to plan for advancing sector-

based work in the ten economic regions of the state.

“I am always amazed to see folks from different silos

come together around a common goal and witness

them break down traditional walls in favor of creating

new opportunities for the common customers we

all have,” said Richard D. Maher, President & CEO of

Maher & Maher. “With thinner budgets every year,

our work is getting harder and more complex in a

globally competitive world. The old ways of working

are not going to get it done any longer, and the folks

in Missouri clearly understand that. Although the

goals of the session were to learn more about sector-

strategies and plan to use sector-based approaches to

guide the workforce system’s work, ultimately it is all

about working collaboratively to help develop talent

for high-yield sectors within regional economies – and

that is really at the core of WIOA.”

Southwest Missouri leaders included Mark Turnbull

and Cary Beasley from the Joplin Regional Partnership,

Tom Franklin from Crowder College, Mary Bader from

Carthage Schools, Leah Barber and Troy Roland from

the Joplin Job Center, Janet Douglas from Family

Support Division, Cathee Wolford from Vocational

Rehabilitation, along with Jasen Jones and Sherri

Rhuems from the Workforce Investment Board.

Participants worked together in regional teams over

the course of two days. The efforts started with an

objective self-assessment around the Six Critical

Success Factors that Maher and Maher developed for

world-class sector work, and continued with action

planning around priorities for the development of

sector strategies on a selected target sector. Skilled

Maher & Maher facilitators were assigned to each

regional team and will continue to work with regional

and state leaders to advance each plan moving

forward. Consulting facilitators for Southwest

Missouri included Rodney Bradshaw previously with

the Houston WIB and Scott Sheely previously with the

WIB in Lancaster, PA.

Southwest Missouri had a head start on the two-

day assignments given the WIB’s early work in

research and development of the targeted sectors in

collaboration with the Joplin Regional Partnership.

Employer and partner engagement got underway in

September with the WIB’s annual Workforce Summit

and the launch of the SectorReady™ framework.

“We believe states need to take the lead on sectors as

they consider how they are going to integrate around

WIOA,” continued Maher. “Sector-based work requires

collaborating, working regionally, and focusing on

both job seekers and business. If you do sectors right,

you’ll do WIOA right. States need to define regional

economies and put policy in place, but the work and

decisions happen regionally and locally – and that’s

what our process is designed to foster and advance.”

For more information about Maher and Maher, visit

mahernet.com or call 1-888-90-Maher.

ROI Calculator Shows Skill Gap’s Cost to Businesses

The ROI Calculator points out that investing in a long-

range strategy leading to quality workers takes time

and money, but the reward in having a steady pipeline

of workers with the right skills more than makes up for

that investment. Consider what happens if a company

can’t fill a position – or if a new hire doesn’t meet its

expectations or doesn’t last. Not only do companies

have to start the recruiting process again, but in the

meantime they will likely pay overtime, increase use

of staffing agencies, or simply reduce production until

they are back to full strength.

As you try to increase companies’ involvement in

education and training programs in your region,

you may find this ROI Calculator useful in your

recruitment efforts. Even though some of the specific

calculations in the tool are geared to manufacturing,

the components will probably have validity for other

business sectors as well, and just discussing the

concepts raised in the tool with the businesses you are

trying to recruit will help you make the case for their

involvement.

Companies of all sizes have reported positive returns

on their investments in education and training

programs. A company in Northern Kentucky that

partnered with a workforce intermediary on a

subsidized on-the-job training program reported a

more than 800 percent return on its investment. The

biggest savings came because participants required

less training on-the-job and had a lower turnover rate.

Workforce professionals can be an important link

helping companies to 1) understand the range of

workforce solutions available to them, and 2) decide

on a strategy that works for them – and for job

seekers. You can make the ROI Calculator an important

tool in your arsenal as you work with companies in

your area.

Training and competency-based hiring doesn’t cost – it

pays! That’s the value proposition of the SectorReady™

initiative echoed in this article by Brent Weil of The

Manufacturing Institute published in the NAWDP

Advantage.

The mismatch between the skills required by companies

and the skills of individuals looking for work is a critical

issue today. According to a study by The Manufacturing

Institute and Deloitte, over the next 10 years there are

expected to be 3.4 million job openings in manufacturing

– and an expected shortage of 2 million workers to fill

those jobs. A range of strategies are required to fill that

gap. These include partnering with education and training

programs leading to industry certifications, strengthening

work-based learning programs, and investing in

incumbent workers.

Why don’t more companies participate in these solutions?

One reason is they have had a hard time quantifying the

impact of the skills gap on their business operations – in

essence, the cost of doing business as usual.

That’s why The Manufacturing Institute created a Return

on Investment (ROI) Calculator at www.costofahire.

com. It helps capture, in one place, a range of savings

that companies can expect by building solutions in

partnerships with workforce boards, community colleges,

and other community resources. These savings include

hard costs, such as recruitment and on-the-job training

– as well as productivity costs that companies may not

always be factoring in. Some of these include the cost

of overtime when companies run short of qualified

workers, and the cost of turnover from having the wrong

workforce in place. The potential savings can be tens of

thousands of dollars per employee. The ROI Calculator

balances these costs against the investment of time and

resources that a community partnership entails.

16

Crowder, Missouri Colleges Join CMT Workforce Program

Hazard Community & Technical College (HCTC) in

Hazard, Kentucky was the first to host such an event,

and spotlighted coal miners who returned to school

and found success re-training for different careers.

Since HCTC held its CMT Empowering Education event

in 2014, the school has added additional programs to

accommodate increased demand.

Larry Jeffers, a coal miner for more than 17 years

before being laid off, said “Through education and

completing [the radiologic technology program

at Hazard], I now have a job that provides me with

opportunities for future employment as well as

retirement. You can have success through education

and with hard work and determination.”

CMT Empowering Education is a comprehensive

educational campaign that provides both an online

resource, www.CMTEmpoweringEducation.com, and

on the ground support to aid prospective students

in overcoming the most commonly perceived

obstacles to furthering education. The initiative is

founded on education research and insights through

a partnership between Viacom and the Bill & Melinda

Gates Foundation. Advising partners for the CMT

Empowering Education campaign include Achieving

the Dream, the Association of Career and Technical

Education, The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the

Center for Workforce and Economic Development at

the American Association of Community Colleges, the

National Skills Coalition and Skills for America’s Future

(the Aspen Institute).

Cable network CMT continues to add partner colleges

to its CMT Empowering Education initiative including

Crowder College and other schools in the Missouri

Community College Association. The program aims to

increase the number of residents with postsecondary

credentials including degrees and certificates in

economically-depressed communities. For the first time,

CMT Empowering Education will expand into Arizona,

Arkansas, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Missouri, Nebraska,

Oregon and Texas, bringing the total reach of the

program to 25 colleges across 17 states.

“Although the number of available jobs is on the rise

nationally, many go unfilled to the lack of applicants with

the necessary skills or credentials, Rural areas are among

those which struggle the most,” said Folk. “Through

this initiative, we’re working in smaller communities

to highlight the available tools and resources to earn

degrees and certificates. In less than two years we’ve

nearly doubled our reach, but there’s still much more to

do.”

CMT first announced the community college initiative in

2014 at the Clinton Global Initiative-America meeting.

Working in collaboration with the American Association

of Community Colleges (AACC), CMT Empowering

Education experienced early success as the 10 pilot

partner schools hosted local events, bringing star-power

and helping to put a face on education by highlighting

success stories of students. Prospective students learned

about solutions to some of the biggest obstacles they

face, including financial aid and part time programs.

17

Employer Engagement: Getting It Right

• To help participants gain appropriate skills and

experience: Employers can help participants gain

skills by informing program design, but they can also

play a more direct role. This can include activities

such as participating in mock interviews or offering

opportunities to build skills at the work site through

internships or apprenticeships.

• To establish credibility and access networks:

By involving employers, workforce development

programs can heighten credibility not only with other

potential partners, but also with program participants.

Employer involvement sends a message about a real

link to jobs.

• To effect change for workers: Although helping

participants access jobs may be the ultimate goal of

employer engagement activities, some programs also

aim to achieve broader improvements for workers,

such as better wages or working conditions.

• To generate resources: Employers can pay directly

for education and training, but also can contribute in-

kind resources like training space or industry-relevant

equipment.

By starting with these goals, workforce development

programs can identify how to best involve employers

in their programs. They can also work toward

developing deeper partnerships so that they can

help participants build the skills they need to secure

employment.

Learn more and download the 15-page policy brief,

Goals and Dimensions of Employer Engagement

in Workforce Development Programs, by visiting

workforcezone.net/urbanbrief.

(Urban Institute, December 15, 2015) Last summer,

Congress passed the Workforce Innovation and

Opportunity Act (WIOA), the new law of the land

governing public workforce programs—programs that

help match workers with jobs and provide training. One

notable change from the preceding Workforce Innovation

Act is that WIOA puts a stronger focus on engaging

employers as partners in these efforts.

Although making employers a part of public workforce

programs is not a new idea, there is mounting evidence

that this leads to better outcomes for jobseekers. Public

and private funders are increasingly expecting service

providers to have employers at the table.

But due to issues like resource constraints, reluctant

employers, communication challenges, and competition

among providers, workforce systems and programs have

long struggled to bring employers into the fold. What will

it take to overcome these obstacles?

The first step is thinking through strategy. In a new brief,

we lay out a framework for thinking about the goals and

dimensions of employer engagement, and how providers

and other stakeholders can be strategic about their

reasons and methods for engaging employers.

Beyond the obvious goal of helping program participants

prepare for and secure jobs, there are many other reasons

why workforce organizations should strive to partner

with employers. Understanding these intermediate goals

can help workforce organizations figure out how to best

involve employers in their programs:

• To build knowledge of industries or occupations:

This can be to inform program design, but also to help

participants make informed choices about program

participation or to engage in career planning.

18

Workforce System Impact and Performance

19

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

McDonald

Newton

CherokeeJasper

BartonDade

Lawrence

BarryOttawa

Labette

Crawford

Metrics: Goal Actual % Met

Entered Employment (Got a Job)Adult 63% 57.7% 91.6%

Dislocated Worker 64% 59.4% 92.9%

Employment Retention (Kept a Job)Adult 80% 74.5% 93.2%

Dislocated Worker 85% 78.2% 92%

Average Earnings (Six Months)Adult $10,341 $10,903 105.4%

Dislocated Worker $11,443 $11,498 100.5%

Youth Program (VOICES)Placement (job/school) 67% 68.9% 102.8%

Educational Attainment 67% 74% 110.4%

Literacy/Num Gains 60% 60.9% 101.4%

All individual metrics scoring 80% or higher are judged as

meeting the mandated workforce system performance

measures established for Southwest Missouri by state and

federal authorities. Performance period is July 2015 to

present.

Customers Served by County

County Customers Served NCRCs Awarded

Barry 536 564

Barton 152 243

Dade 41 63

Jasper 3,361 5,407

Lawrence 313 561

McDonald 183 312

Newton 757 1,550

NCRC™/CWRC GoalsThe WIB tracks and assists county-level programs for

NCRC® and employer engagement goals to help each

CWRC-in-progress county attain its full certification.

The overall percentage of goal attainment reflects

NCRCs for emerging workers (students), current and

transitioning workers, as well as supporting employers.

Results are posted through November 30, 2015. Goals

in green are fully met for that county’s category.

Monthly progress for each county may be tracked with

the mapping tool at workreadycommunities.org.

County % Emerg. Current Trans. Emplyrs.

Barry 100% 171 109 188 45

Barton 100% 57 53 73 22

Dade 59% 21 7 16 13

Jasper 100% 1356 780 1424 126

Lawrence 100% 134 108 233 41

McDonald 80% 74 65 84 22

Newton 100% 353 298 481 73

Cherokee 91% 119 104 161 19

Labette 87% 104 33 115 22

Ottawa 95% 366 247 757 21

Customers Served covers the period of July 2015 to

present. NCRCs Awarded reflects 2006 to August 2015.

Workforce Performance Summary

In-ProgressNearing Complete GoalsGoals 100%, Pending ApprovalFully Certified