The Chmura team recently attended the 2013 National Association of Workforce Boards Forum held in Washington DC.  The event was well-attended by both public and private sector organizations including workforce development agencies, their board leadership, key staff members and community partners such as economic developers, educators, businesses, and elected officials. This year’s big buzz was around businesses-critical and ever-changing need for talent. Workforce Investment Boards and others are talking, now more than ever, about their need to become more relevant to the business community.  To accomplish that, thought leaders are placing a lot of emphasis on the importance of quality, insightful labor market data to shape the strategic direction for WIBs.  Even more exciting was the conversation around the need to connect workforce planning with the larger regional goals of the communities. 

This year’s theme “Dialogue for Workforce Excellence” got to the heart of the matter and the need for workforce development agencies to innovate and deliver relevant programs to support the needs of business and industry.  One speaker built upon that by giving the audience a cautious reminder that “innovation has no value until a customer stands beside it.” The lunch speakers were characteristically amazing and included the inspirational Bill Strickland, President and CEO of Manchester Bidwell Corporation and the insightful Jim Clifton, Chairman and CEO of Gallup. Jim remarked that customers create jobs and not vice versa. 

We met hundreds of passionate professionals, learned a lot and relished the opportunity to share our own labor marketing information solution, JobsEQ. Thanks to those who stopped and chatted with Chris Chmura and Leslie Peterson at our booth. 

We hope you’ll take an opportunity to check out the NAWB Forum 2013 program site (post-conference material is available now) and leave you with the following ruminations.

• Collaboration is no longer an option—it’s the new normal.
• Leadership is critical and the only way to affect real change in systems.
• Passion without planning is like nailing JELLO to a brick wall.
• Technology and big data has the potential to transform the way WIBs operate and affect change in their communities. 

We’ve got an incredible opportunity to get this one right and we’re committed to contributing to the solution. 

The Strategic Skills Alignment report produced a skills gap and workforce supply and demand analysis of the Kirkwood Community College District in Iowa in preparation for strategic plan development. The report was commissioned by ACT and prepared by Chmura Economics & Analytics for the Iowa City Area Development Group (Priority One) and Kirkwood Community College.

In today’s competitive economy, regions are looking for the best way to grow their economy and provide well-paying opportunities for their residents. There is no one-size-fits-all answer. How do regions determine which firms they can attract, and how do they help their residents secure the skills needed for the changing economy?

The Kirkwood Community College District comprises seven counties in eastern Iowa: Benton, Cedar, Iowa, Johnson, Jones, Linn, and Washington. This region includes the metropolitan areas of Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. The district is home to the main campus of Kirkwood Community College and the University of Iowa. Strengths of the region include above-average population growth and employment growth. The manufacturing sector, in particular, has performed better in the region than the nation due to the strength of its local firms with some of the largest being Rockwell Collins, Whirlpool, and Quaker Oats.

Target clusters for the region include advanced manufacturing, biotechnology, educational services, information technologies, and renewable energy. The district’s workforce has an above-average educational attainment, a strength that corresponds nicely with meeting demand for the highly skilled positions required in these clusters. The report, however, illustrates that some growth scenarios are limited by regional occupation supply and postsecondary award output; thus, a close alignment between economic development and workforce and education planners can improve the region’s prospects.

Did you know?

• Analysis of entry-level skill requirements can identify training opportunities for meeting occupation demand in a region.
• Occupation profiles help identify skill levels needed for an occupation across jobs, companies, and industries.
• Educational institutions at all levels influence the skills supply in the regional workforce.

Download the full report

Leslie Peterson was mentioned in the Alumni Buzz section of the LEAD Virginia June 2010 E-newsletter:

Leslie Peterson, '07, was appointed to the Governor's Commission on Higher Education Reform, Innovation and Investment.

Don Zacherl, '07, Leslie Peterson, '07 and Dr. Glenn DuBois, LEAD VIRGINIA Board of Directors, participated in the MS150 Bike Ride for Cycle Times.  They raised $9,006.00 to help make a difference in the fight against MS. They rode 150 miles on Saturday and Sunday May 22 and 23. 

Sara Dunnigan and Christian Booty recently had this to say about JobsEQ:

Sara Dunnigan, Senior Vice President, Existing Business Services & Talent Development, Greater Richmond Partnership, Inc:

“JobsEQ has given us a powerful new tool to support our work in business attraction. The analytics available help us tell the Richmond region’s workforce story in amazing clarity and detail and allow us to present highly customize workforce reports to support a company’s decision to locate and invest in our region. It also helps us understand which industries we’re best positioned to attract based on the characteristics of our existing labor force.

The JobsEQ dashboard and tools help us track the local economy and identify important trends that influence our approach to business retention and expansion as well. It allows us to be a bit more proactive and intelligent in how we make decisions and allocate resources. If we can better support those sectors positioned for growth and change the trajectory for industries expected to contract, we can make significant positive changes in our regional economy.”

Christian Booty, Research/IT Manager, Virginia’s Gateway Region, Economic Development Organization:

“JobsEQ provides us with the tools to make a compelling business case as to why the Gateway Region is good place to do business regardless of the industry sector or company concerned.”

This year’s ACT National Workforce Development Conference is lining up to be the best ever. National speakers, such as keynote speaker Christine Chmura, PhD, will galvanize attendees from the many nodes of labor economics. Chmura Economics & Analytics, headquartered in Richmond, VA with a branch location in Cleveland, OH is on the leading edge of workforce development with their powerful planning tools. JobsEQ® Suite is a national workforce simulator that connects all the dots in an easy-to-navigate system of portals engaging practitioners from governmental, jurisdictional, and private sector into the regional talent planning process. It is ideal for states seeking enterprise solutions to regional workforce planning.

The Hampton Roads, Virginia workforce has a competitive advantage in machinery manufacturing and utilities. The talent underpinning these clusters provides entry points for workers losing their jobs in the declining industry clusters shown in green. ACT’s National Career Readiness certificates help these workers become more mobile with portable credentials.

* The knowledge index shown in the table above ranges from 1 to 5 where 5 is associated with high skill needs. The education and health cluster demands the highest skilled occupations while the manufacturing clusters require workers with the least skills. Similar to the nation, the clusters with the greatest expected job growth over the next decade require more skills than the jobs in the industries expecting to see losses or slow growth. Training displaced workers for jobs in demand industries and providing information to students about demand occupations will help reduce potential skills gaps.

Workforce 2010: ACT's National Workforce Development Conference. The new name brings attention to a holistic approach: the goal is Upskilling America through the use of national work readiness systems that include elements like WorkKeys, Certificates and credentialing systems.

ACT's National Workforce Development Conference – formerly the WorkKeys National Conference – will be held in the historic city of Philadelphia, April 27th to April 30th, 2010, at the Sheraton City Center Hotel.

Update (3/22/2010): Chris Chmura's keynote speech will take place on Wednesday, April 28th, 2010.

Chmura recognizes that the world of workforce development is an ever-changing and complex environment in which to work, but one that is so very valuable to the lives of those individuals, employers and communities that we all serve. Because of the fast-paced world where there is much to be done and seemingly less time to do it, we often forget that there may be others who have "plowed a field" we are currently plowing and could offer valuable insights. We may have a question about something but aren't quite sure where to ask it. We may have an accomplishment to share that could benefit others. It is our hope that the Intersection will serve as a "town hall" for such information exchange. From the comfort of your own desk top, lap top or mobile device, we invite you to visit the Intersection and make it a place where workforce development professionals can come together in manner that is meaningful, virtual and real-time. Please also let me know of any other suggestions for the Intersection.