Building Partnerships: Workforce and Economic Development

1
Building Partnerships Workforce and Economic
Development

• National Association of State Workforce Board
  Chairs
• 2004 Summer Meeting
• Denver, Colorado
• Scott Cheney, NAWB Senior Advisor
• 202.775.0960 x104
• cheneys_at_nawb.org

2
A Little Background

• Developers
• Design/Modules
• Delivery
• Expansion Next Steps

3
What Were Hearing

• Issues Of
• Awareness/Marketing
• Many from ED and WFD have limited views of
  themselves and the other
• Unclear Value Proposition
• Goals Metrics Differ
• What are the Interrelations between Economic /
  Community / Workforce Development
• Trust/Culture
• Need-to-Know
• Driven by the elephants
• Family rivalries

4
What Were Hearing

• Issues of
• Planning
• Many and competing agendas
• Overlapping and/or uncoordinated RD efforts
• Many and competing messages to the customers and
  stakeholders
• Capacity/Resources/On-the-Ground Service Delivery
• WIBs are see as sources of money not much else
• Both have limited staff and funding
• Truth is that each could do more through
  partnership
• Non-Aligned Service Areas
• Downtown vs City vs Region vs Corridor vs
• One WIBMany EDOs

5
What Were Hearing

• Issues of
• Leadership
• Many state officials dont fully understand local
  issues
• Many local LEOs dont understand ED or WFD, and
  dont know how to create a whole greater than the
  parts
• There are both many potential leaders and few who
  understand that their leadership is needed

6
Economic Development Definitions

• WHAT
• Process over time, not an event
• Enhanced quality of life for citizens
• Rising standard of living
• New community and business wealth

7
Economic Development Definitions

• HOW (Examples)
• Help regional economies grow, diversify, remain
  stable
• Capitalize on location
• Strengthen innovation, entrepreneurship,
  competitiveness
• Minimize poverty, maximize opportunities
• Make productive use of community or firm assets
• Enhance infrastructure to support growth
• Facilitate corporate investments
• Broaden tax base to support local government.

8
Who Does Local Economic Development (LED)?

• LED organizations are often generalists or
  brokers
• LED is result of the collective efforts of the
  public, private and community sectors
• Local governments (elected officials and
  government staff) are major players -- investors
• Models involve partnerships
• Public-private nonprofits
• Public-community based organizations
• Intergovernmental (local/state or
  multi-jurisdictional)

9
Local Economic Development The Basics

• No single model effort, strategy process, or set
  of programs for achieving local economic
  development
• Communities differ widely in their
• geographic attributes social organization
  economic resources, structures and performance
  and capacity of political institutions.
• Responding to unique set of challenges for
  economic development in each community.

10
Core Activities

• Three-legged stool
• Business attraction and recruitment
• Business retention and expansion
• Business creation and start-up

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An Average Local Economic Development
Agency(Economic Development Corporations,
Chambers, Regional Planning Councils)

• 4.1 FTEs
• 660,851 Average Budget
• 261,000 Mean Population of Service Area

Source ACCRA 2004 Survey of Economic Development
Organizations
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Workforce Development Definitions

• Handout
• What?
• Occupational preparation necessary for work
• Recruiting, placing, mentoring, counseling
• Education, employment, and job training efforts
• How?
• Enhance technical, basic, and academic
  competencies
• Coordinate school, company and governmental
  policies
• Strengthen localized talent pool

13
Role in Economic Transitions

• Anticipate trends in regional economy, labor
  force
• Provide layoff aversion strategies, including
  access to broad range of services
• Exchange information about at-risk
  companies/industries, potential dislocations
• Conduct early interventions, pre-feasibility
  studies
• Deliver rapid response when layoffs occur
• EXAMPLES

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References and Cautions

• Specific Citations in the WIA Statute and
  Regulations
• Roles of State and Local WIBs
• Relationship to Economic Development
  opportunities
• Prohibitions on the Use of WIA Funds
• Construction
• Employment generating activities
• Business relocation
• Worker displacement

15
Perceptions vs. Reality

• Old brand (JTPA) vs. new brand (WIA)
• Universal access
• WIB private sector representation
• Funding availability and use
• Incumbent worker training
• Target populations
• Employers as customers
• Methods of engagement

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Comparison Culture/Language

• Economic Developers
• Company-focused (firms and industries)
• Business background
• Tax policy, Financing, Real estate development
• Return on investment, location quotients
• Time is money, deal making

• Workforce Developers
• Individual-focused (occupations and skills)
• Social service background
• Counseling, supportive services
• Eligibility, self sufficiency standards,
  terminations
• Spend quality time with people

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Defining Success/ Performance Metrics

• Economic Development
• Jobs created and retained
• Public investments made
• Private investments leveraged
• Tax revenues

• Workforce Development
• Placement
• Retention after six months
• Earnings after six months
• Skill attainment/Credentials
• Customer Satisfaction

18
Classic Tensions in Economic ( Workforce)
Development

• Equity vs. Efficiency
• People vs. Place
• People vs. Firms

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Mutually Beneficial Activities

• Collaboration on planning
• WIB as convenor, catalyst
• Align planning activities and use of resources to
  advance common goals (Plan in a brochure)
• Include multiple jurisdictions, regional focus
• Rationalize use of resources, avoid duplication
  of services
• Create public awareness, sense of urgency
• Define measures of regional economic health

20
Aligning Workforce and Economic Development Plans

• Reconciling whats required vs. the big picture
• Reconciling different geography, political
  jurisdictions, metrics
• Reconciling short-term vs. long term perspective
• Sharing data on employer needs and opportunities
• Identifying common goals, activities
• Using available resources efficiently

21
Mutually Beneficial Activities

• Collaboration regarding market segmentation
• Convene key organizations to identify market
  targets
• Establish channels for sharing data and
  information among staff
• Package and distribute labor market information
  in manner accessible to employers and community
• Organize supply of workers so accessible to
  employers

22
Cluster and Industry Sector Strategies

• Used increasingly by WIBs and other
  intermediaries
• Organize by similar characteristics (geography or
  industry, expressed needs)
• Understand industry trends and issues
• Identify and address needs in common
• Bring workforce resources and expertise

23
Mutually Beneficial Activities

• Collaboration on service delivery
• Develop single regional website to promote region
  (North Central Indiana)
• Include WIB in discussions about business
  attraction strategies and activities
• Host economic development board meetings at One
  Stop
• Cross train staff re services, work process,
  etc.
• Coordinate or make joint field visits to
  employers
• Include economic development organizations in
  rapid response
• Make referrals of companies for services
• Identify and promote jointly the top 50 critical
  occupations for the region and use as vehicle to
  raise awareness about regional economy, links to
  education providers (North Central Indiana)

24
Business Services Strategies

• Standard WIA services typically include
• WIA services to individuals/employers at front
  end (i.e., hiring) and back end (i.e., layoff) of
  employee life cycle
• Assistance with recruiting, interviewing,
  assessment, screening, placement
• Some additional services to enhance retention
  (orientation, skills upgrading)
• Transition assistance if layoff occurs

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A Broader Array of Business Services

• Initiatives or activities to enhance the
  competitive position of the company, assist in
  staying healthy
• Think beyond providing job matching services or
  training to employers
• Can occur at different phases in the life cycle
  of a company--dont have to wait for crisis
• Even when in crisis, firm may shut down or layoff
  for variety of reasons that dont mean it is not
  economically viable still

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Other Needs of Employers

• Process modernization, equipment upgrades
• Conversion to new products/id new markets
• Operations and cost reviews
• Financial restructuring
• Good management practices
• Good labor-management relations if unionized
• Work-Sharing

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Different Verbs, Different Opportunities

• Level One Governance
• Organizational restructuring (integrate, merge)
• Level Two Strategic
• Aligning mission, functions, resources (align,
  coordinate)
• Level Three Tactical
• Targeted initiatives to achieve specific
  objectives (collaborate, partner, link)

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What Were Hearing

• Issues Of
• Awareness/Marketing
• Unclear Value Proposition
• Goals Metrics Differ
• Trust/Culture
• Planning/RD
• Capacity/Resources/On-the-Ground Service Delivery
• Non-Aligned Service Areas
• Leadership

29
State Board Roles

• What a Commission can Teach Us
• Bi-partisan High Visibility Fact-Based
• Leadership
• Facilitation / Holding the Conversation
• Education
• Connection
• Funding
• Seven Key Questions

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Final Counsel