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issue 9 - march 2006 |
kathy.sweeney@state.mn.us |
In this Issue:
- Commissioner's Corner -- Commissioner
Matt Kramer Departs DEED, Returns To Private Sector
Deputy Commissioner Ward Einess Takes Over As Acting Commissioner - Showing How Workforce Services Make a Difference to Customers is Key
- Elsey Shares Workforce Development Division’s Strategic Plan and Local Plan’s Design
- Workforce U: Model Program Meeting the Needs of Businesses and Job seekers
- Business Services Specialists (BSS) Initiative is Celebrated
- Minneapolis WIB Partner Receives $1 Million Grant to Improve Skills of Workers with Limited English Proficiency
- Updates: Grants, Upcoming Events and Publications
- News Notes
- Kudos
Commissioner Matt Kramer Departs DEED, Returns To Private Sector
Deputy Commissioner Ward Einess Takes Over As Acting Commissioner
After more than three years as commissioner of the Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), Matt Kramer is returning to the private sector. His last day at DEED is Monday, April 3, when he will join Now Care Medical Centers, a Minnesota-based healthcare provider.
Reflecting on the high points of his time as commissioner, Kramer said the merger that created DEED remains at the top of his personal list of accomplishments. And the many partnerships – including those formed with the statewide network of Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs) – have consistently been a driving force in what he considers one of the department's greatest successes.
"Collectively we have formed an effective statewide enterprise that to this day serves as a national model for the convergence of workforce and economic development," he said. "Our mission as partners has been to find good paying, good quality jobs for all Minnesotans – to connect workers with employers in ways that create wealth for businesses and, more broadly, prosperity for the entire state. The solid partnership that DEED and the WIBs have built together has been absolutely central to that success, and I’m extremely proud of the strides we've taken together to achieve our mission."
In an e-mail message to all DEED staff on the day his resignation
was announced, Kramer reflected that he considers himself fortunate to have had
the chance to work with a high performing team that had notched several important
accomplishments, including:
"I always knew I would some day return to the private sector," Kramer said in his farewell message. "But I honestly fooled myself into thinking it would be easy. I've enjoyed, far more than these words can convey, working with each and every person in DEED. We have such a strong team and have accomplished so much."
Before joining Governor Tim Pawlenty's Administration in January 2003, Kramer worked for Syntegra USA, a U.S. subsidiary of British Telecom, formerly Control Data Systems, where he managed marketing and communications within specific industries, which included telecommunications, manufacturing and energy.
Governor Pawlenty called Kramer "a fantastic public servant" for
Minnesota. "We will miss him, but wish him well." 
The governor also announced that Deputy Commissioner Ward Einess will serve as acting commissioner of DEED. Previously, Einess worked closely with DEED as senior policy advisor to Governor Pawlenty on economic and employment issues. Before joining the administration, Einess was director of fiscal policy for the Minnesota Business Partnership. He is a licensed attorney who worked as a judicial law clerk before serving as researcher and legislative analyst for the Minnesota Senate Republican Caucus.
From the MWCA Chair
Showing How Workforce Services Make a Difference to Customers is Key
By Trish Taylor
“Think Local /Act Global; Transforming Globalization Challenges into Opportunities for America’s Workforce and Businesses” was the theme of the National Association of Workforce Boards (NAWB) conference in Washington, D.C., February 25 - 28. The next issue of this newsletter will feature an in-depth report on what Minnesota’s delegation learned at the conference and how we can apply those lessons here.
Minnesota’s delegation included 11 members from six Local Workforce Investment Boards (WIB), as well as four state WIB (Governor’s Workforce Development Council - GWDC) members; and staff from local WIBs, Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), GWDC and Minnesota Workforce Council Association (MWCA).
After the conference, many of Minnesota’s delegates paid visits to Minnesota’s congressional delegation. As business leaders, we must communicate to our delegation what our communities and businesses need in workforce development services to stay competitive in the global economy.
Also, DEED, GWDC and MWCA wrote a letter to the Minnesota congressional delegation about our concerns with the Administration’s budget and policy proposals related to workforce development issues. The letter can be viewed at www.deed.state.mn.us/agency/congress/budget_letter.pdf.
DEED has summarized the number of persons receiving services and the number of WorkForce Centers by congressional district. This information is also available at www.deed.state.mn.us/agency/congress.
During the last three weeks, Kathy Sweeney, DEED; Brenda Norman and staff of the GWDC; and I have met with four WIBs (Anoka, Washington, Stearns Benton, and Rural Minnesota CEP) to discuss how our organizations are working together to support local WIBs in Minnesota; and to listen and learn from Minnesota’s WIBs about their work.
One of our joint accomplishments is a draft orientation manual for local Workforce Investment Board members that we are reviewing now. If you would like to review the manual, please contact Renee Raduenz at renee.raduenz@state.mn.us.
Changes that DEED has made to the local planning process for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, 2006, were brought up during our visits to WIBs. Much more detailed information on local budgets is being required for this year’s plan. Also, WIBs will be writing business plans to focus both local and state partners’ efforts on the key businesses in their communities.
Those of us who attended the conference can assure you that we must be able to explain how our resources are being used and leveraged, showing how services make a difference for job seekers and businesses. I welcome both of these changes in our local planning process.
I would enjoy hearing from you, so send me an e-mail at ttaylor818@yahoo.com. Let me know what you would like to see in your newsletter.
Elsey Shares Workforce Development Division’s Strategic Plan and Local Plan’s Design
Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Workforce Development Division Director Bonnie Elsey (pictured) recently outlined DEED’s strategic plan for the division, along with local planning guidance for the Workforce Investment Boards (WIBs). Below are key details about the strategic plan and information about the local plans.
Workforce Development Division’s Strategic Plan for Workforce Development Services
Mission:
- Provide effective employment services and resources to businesses and job seekers to improve Minnesota’s global economic competitiveness.
Goals:
- Minnesota businesses have skilled workers and access to resources they need to succeed in the global economy.
- Minnesota workers have the skills to succeed in the global economy.
- Workforce Development Division sets policies that support an innovative and demand-driven, locally defined workforce development system.
- Workforce Development Division, in conjunction with local WIBs, identifies and allocates resources to achieve quality business and jobseeker customer outcomes.
Major Strategies:
- Guide and support local leadership to establish demand-driven approaches for each region.
- Rebuild Minnesota’s Job Bank to create a more robust and efficient
matching system of employers and job seekers.
- Train incumbent workers and unemployed workers in the key regionally identified industries.
- Link business to DEED and other locally identified resources.
- Provide information to job seekers on skills-in-demand.
- Target training resources to key locally identified occupations.
- Build staff capacity through training, performance feedback and recognition.
- Use performance data to improve customer outcomes.
- Seek efficiency opportunities through improving processes, use of technology and collaboration with partners.
- Establish an effective communication strategy between the WIBs, DEED and all partners.
“The purpose of the strategic plan is for all field staff to understand the direction we’re heading,” said Elsey. “We are counting on the expertise of our field staff to create the tactics to support the strategies.”
Local Plans for each Area
For the first time the local WIBs are being asked to develop a business plan, according to Elsey. Each plan allows the local area to describe its own vision and identify key industries and occupations to target resources toward. Each business plan is to be developed in conjunction with DEED’s business services specialist and labor market analyst. The local plans also include more detailed budget descriptions so DEED can better describe the resources committed to the services provided by the system. The business plans adopted by the local WIBs will guide Workforce Development staff in providing outreach to businesses in the local areas.
From the Stearns-Benton Workforce Council Chair
Workforce U: Model Program Meeting the Needs of Businesses and Job seekers
By Les Engel
In response to employers’ needs in St. Cloud and Central Minnesota, the Stearns-Benton Workforce Council has been working in partnership with employers to develop “Workforce U.” We are working with Workforce Councils 5 and 6 to replicate it in their areas.
“Workforce U” classes will be offered in key regional industries – healthcare; printing and publishing; manufacturing; wholesale trade and business services. These strategic industries have been identified through a comprehensive assessment of employers’ needs. “Workforce U” training will meet employers’ and job seekers’ needs in a more comprehensive system than ever before.
The purpose of “Workforce U” is to build community capacity in economic development, and to meet the workforce needs of business and job seekers, building prosperity by acquiring, advancing and transferring skills in strategic industries.
Those who attend “Workforce U” receive an opportunity to investigate the career pathway of a strategic industry to determine if it is suitable and if the student (job seeker) can meet employer needs and expectations by participating in six to eight weeks of skills assessment, career exploration, and short-term training, thereby demonstrating job readiness. Courses are offered at 100, 200, 300 and 400 levels. Classes at the 300 and 400 levels are offered in partnership with St. Cloud Technical College and St. Cloud State University. Each course has employer-identified prerequisites, purposes, outcomes, competency standards and measurements.
“Workforce U” provides a framework and a language that is understood by employers and students. It integrates the assessment, career exploration, labor market information, career counseling, training and placement activities that are common to our WorkForce Centers and so difficult to explain. Benchmarks and standards (credentials) are identified that result in a value-added referral of a student (jobseeker) to an employer.
“Workforce U” and its predecessor “Business & Industry 101” developed as a result of employers repeatedly telling us that job applicants lack the ability to:
- Pass a reading and/or math test
- Pass a drug test
- Come to work every day and on time
- Problem solve
- Understand how their job performance impacts others, including the employer’s bottom line
In response, the Stearns-Benton Workforce Council convened an Employer Advisory Group of manufacturing employers and developed “Business & Industry 101,” an eight-day, 40-hour class, held during second shift hours (2 to 7 p.m.). The first 30 hours focus on issues common to all industries: Expectations of the workplace; reading/writing/math review; labor market information; tours of industry; and business speakers on customer service, workplace ethics/culture, safety, and related topics. Another 10 hours are specific to manufacturing in technical math, technical writing and teamwork strategies.
Students must pass a drug test and demonstrate the ability to perform the physical requirements of the job. Students learn about careers/jobs that match their skills and interest in manufacturing. Members of the Employer Advisory Group help to teach the class and get to know the students. All those who completed “Business & Industry 101” are guaranteed a job interview.
After the initial class, the Employer Advisory Group expanded to include representatives of other strategic industries in the region and the program evolved into the more comprehensive “Workforce U” program.
“Workforce U” students currently include dislocated workers, older youth, public assistance recipients, and selected other eligible adults. It is our goal to use this model to integrate services and customers of WorkForce Centers and community partners. Program/model evaluation and change are ongoing.
Our continuous challenge is getting this program to scale with the resources currently available.
For more information about “Workforce U” please contact Kathy Zavala or me at (320) 229-5702 or kzavala@sbetc.des.state.mn.us.
Business Services Specialists (BSS) Initiative is Celebrated
The Department of Employment and Economic Development’s (DEED’s) Business Services Specialists (BSS) joined Commissioner Matt Kramer and others in St. Cloud for a daylong event in celebration of the year-old BSS initiative. Commissioner Kramer reinforced DEED’s vision of employers as its primary customer, and applauded the Business Services Specialists for their vital role in providing a statewide “business solution network.”
The event, held at the Kelly Inn, was designed to allow BSS staff to share their progress in working with businesses – and to recognize their significant accomplishments over the past year.
“The business services specialists continue to build strong partnerships with local WIBs and ensure they are working in ways that are aligned with the goals of their respective local board,” said DEED Business Services Director Erik Aamoth. “Through this initiative we’ve already seen good results and we’re equally excited about the business services specialists’ future success.”
Aamoth said the BSS initiative is important because:
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It is a statewide and consistent approach by staff in the field to identifying employer needs and providing solutions.
- It connects employers more effectively with all available resources in state, county and city governments which saves employers time and may increase their productivity.
- An increasingly global competitive society requires that governmental agencies provide demand-driven seamless solutions to employers and requires employers to maximize use of all existing resources.
Business Services managers were recently hired to help oversee the initiative.
Wayne Anderson, Business Services Specialist – St. Cloud WFC (formerly Monticello WFC) shared one of the day’s many success stories. During a tour of a tire equipment plant owned by a member of the local Workforce Investment Board, Anderson learned that the owner was having difficulty finding a market for a new piece of equipment that put nitrogen into tires. (Nitrogen has two advantages over oxygen in tires: It maintains a more even pressure whether the tires are hot or cold, and Nitrogen molecules are larger than air molecules and don’t leak through the sidewalls of the tires.)
A few days later, Anderson saw a story on WCCO-TV that featured a representative from Firestone Tires who was interested in the benefits of using nitrogen in tires. Anderson immediately contacted WCCO, tracked down the Firestone representative’s contact information, and gave it to the WIB member/plant owner so they could connect. The two quickly agreed to test one of the nitrogen machines at the Firestone Tire store in Hopkins. So far, the manufacturer has sold 25 machines!
“If you keep your ears open, sometimes you can help business in unusual ways,” said Anderson.
Workforce Development Director Bonnie Elsey provided an overview of the President’s vision for the one-stop system, and its impact on Minnesota. Julie Remington, the event facilitator, helped participants come up with words and themes to capture the goals and “the story” of the BSS initiative.
Minneapolis WIB Partner Receives $1 Million Grant to Improve Skills of Workers with Limited English Proficiency
The U.S. Department of Labor announced a $1 million grant to RESOURCE Inc. to improve the skills of individuals with limited English proficiency. The grant will fund the Career Launch! Project that will deliver training to approximately 200 Somali, Ethiopian, Southeast Asian and Hispanic participants living in the metro area for positions in customer service and healthcare office support. In the second year of the grant, an additional 25 job seekers in the St. Cloud area will be served.
“Workers need to be able to communicate in English to advance at the workplace and in their careers,” said Secretary of Labor Elaine L. Chao. “This $1 million grant will equip hundreds of workers in Minnesota with English skills so they can succeed and provide growing industries with the workers they need.”
RESOURCE, Inc., based in South Minneapolis, is a nonprofit organization that operates a family of human resources programs. It runs the Employment Action Center, Minnesota Resource Center, Recovery Resource Center, and Spectrum Community Mental Health.
“We are very excited to be able to serve more job seekers with limited English proficiency,” said Deb Bahr-Helgen, Director, City of Minneapolis Employment and Training, the administrative body that serves the Minneapolis Workforce Investment Board.
The City of Minneapolis Employment and Training Program will be one of the organizations providing participants for the program. “In Minneapolis there’s a great need for this type of training,” said Bahr-Helgen.
Minneapolis Employment and Training Program serves job seekers, generally city of Minneapolis residents, including those who speak English as a second language. Participants will include workers from employer partners including Allina Health Care Systems and Park Nicollet Health Care System.
The City of Minneapolis Employment and Training Program wrote a letter of support for the grant to RESOURCE, Inc. “We’re glad to be a partner in the project,” said Bahr-Helgen.
Project partners, including area business partners, will develop a curriculum that incorporates customer service, communication, computer and other technical skill building, as well as enhancing interpersonal skills. A focus will also be placed on medical terminology and other health-care curriculum for those preparing for entry-level health care careers. Other services include case management, English as a second language testing and tutoring, online work readiness lessons, job placement and career advancement services.
Participants will be recruited through the Minneapolis Employment and Training program, the Minneapolis Adult Education programs, and other metro-area English language learners and workforce development programs. In St. Cloud, participants will be drawn from the St. Cloud Public Schools’ Adult Education Program and the WorkForce Center in St. Cloud.
Updates: Grants, Upcoming Events and Publications
Grants
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The Minnesota Job Skills Partnership Board has approved $4.7 million in Special
Incumbent Worker Training Grants to be awarded in June 2006.The grant’s
emphasis is to demonstrate "innovative practice" or "creative training models" that
incorporate English as a second language, English used in the workplace, and
Centers of Excellence. Applications are due on May 15, 2006. Proposals can be
submitted by organizations other than education and training providers and funds
may be used for services in addition to education and training. The request for
proposals is listed on the DEED website under Job Skills Partnership Board at www.deed.state.mn.us/mjsp/PDFs/StateRegAncmt.pdf
- The U.S. Department of Labor - Employment and Training Administration
(ETA) on March 23 announced that it would provide up to 70 grants of between
$50,000 and $75,000 to grassroots faith-based/community organizations that
help under-served populations prepare for and succeed in employment. Applicants
are expected to create their program in conjunction with their local One-Stop
Career Center. Also required is a memorandum of understanding signed by the
One-Stop Center that is part of the applicant’s proposed program.
The competition for grants will close on May 2, 2006. Visit www.doleta.gov/usworkforce/documents/misc/fbo-cbo.cfm for information on this competition.
- Jobs to Careers; Promoting Work-Based
Learning for Quality Care will award grants to partnerships that will advance and reward the skill and career development of incumbent workers, providing services on the front lines of our health care systems. This four-year national initiative of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will support projects that involve emerging or existing partnerships of at least one health or healthcare employer and at least one educational institution that provides academic credit or an industry-recognized credential.
An informational Web conference for interested applicants is set for April 3, noon to 1 p.m. (CST) and April 5, 2 to 3 p.m. (CST). Proposals are due May 18, 2006. For more information, go to www.jtcp.org.
- The Economic Development Administration (EDA) is soliciting proposals for investments that support long-term coordinated regional economic development, innovation, competitiveness and entrepreneurship. Proposals are accepted on a continuing basis and applications are processed as received. Requirements for application are listed in the February 23rd Federal Register.
Upcoming Events
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Greg Newton Teleconference on Designing and Delivering
Responsive Business Services will be held on Tuesday, April 11 from
10 a.m. to 12 p.m. at the Association of Minnesota Counties Board Room, 125 Charles
Avenue, St. Paul, Minn. Greg Newton is a nationally-recognized expert on demand-driven
workforce services. This teleconference will focus on business service teams,
and the role of the business services representative. You’ll get practical advice
on how to make businesses effective system partners.
Participants can ask Newton questions and get his responses (in real-time). You can borrow DVDs of the past two sessions; "Creating and Implementing a New Workforce Vision" and "Reinventing your One-Stop System and Centers" at no cost. Contact Anne Olson at aolson@mncounties.org or (651) 224-3344 if you wish to attend this free event or borrow a DVD.
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Energizing Entrepreneurs Workshop will be held April 27 at the Kelly Inn in St Cloud. Online registration and agenda information is available at Minnesota Rural Partners website: www.minnesotaruralpartners.org. Call Denise Pfeifer at (507) 828-5559 if you have questions.
- The 3rd Annual Twin Cities Small Business Fair will be held on Tuesday, May 23 at the Earle Brown Heritage Center in Brooklyn Center. The free event is open to the public and will feature more than sixty exhibitors and workshops from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. For event details and registration go to www.mnsbdc.com. Smaller regional versions of the event are planned for May 10 in Mankato; October in West Central Minnesota; and November in Rochester.
Publications
- InDemand Magazine connects students and their parents, teachers and guidance counselors with the careers of tomorrow. Each issue explores careers in a different high growth industry. Go to www.careervoyages.gov to check out the magazine.
Minnesota’s Job Vacancies are Up
Things are looking up for Minnesota’s job seekers, according to results from the latest Minnesota Job Vacancy Survey released by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) Labor Market Information office. Job vacancies in the state are up by 22 percent from about one year ago to 60,954 or 5.8 job vacancies for every 10 unemployed people.
Twice a year, DEED conducts the Minnesota Job Vacancy Survey. The goal of this survey is to identify the number, location, and characteristics of open-for-hire job opportunities in the state. The survey estimated 60,954 job vacancies in Minnesota during October to December 2005.
WorkForce Centers Score Big with Security Services Recruiter
Connie Smith, a recruiter for Securitas Security Services USA, Inc., told Kathy Sweeney and Irene Connors, Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), how valuable the Minnesota WorkForce Centers (WFCs) have been to her. Sweeney met Smith at the Minnesota WorkForce Center – Anoka County in Blaine recently.
Smith said, “We have accounts across the state of Minnesota, and I have traveled to Fergus Falls, Willmar, New Ulm, Austin, Faribault, Cambridge, Marshall, Montevideo, Mankato, and of course the Twin Cities to fill job openings, so I use the various WorkForce Centers. WorkForce Center staff members in all these cities are so friendly and helpful. I frequently need a place that I can meet and interview job applicants. And nearly all the time the WorkForce Centers will accommodate me with a suitable conference room for the interviews.
“Minnesota’s Job Bank is my choice for posting a majority of our company’s job openings, and I enter these at computers available at the WorkForce Centers. The system is very user-friendly and there is no charge for posting jobs, unlike other online job banks.
“I like to make sure WorkForce Center staff members have our company’s job applications and most will collect the applications and mail them to me, so I can go forward with the recruitment process.
“When I moved to Minnesota, I wasn’t aware of this valuable resource for job seekers as well. I’m sure it would have taken me less time to find a position had I used them (WFCs). I highly recommend that other businesses and job seekers use the WorkForce Centers – on a scale of one to 10, I give them a 10!”
Ireland and Myhre Present Outstanding Webinar to National Audience
Connie Ireland, Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) - Regional Administrator for Southwest Minnesota, and Mike Myhre, DEED - Small Business Development Centers (SBDCs), did an outstanding job for Minnesota by presenting how DEED is integrating services between the Small Business Development Centers and WorkForce Centers, according to Kathy Sweeney, DEED, who was a participant.
The presentation took place on March 16 in the form of a webinar for workforce and economic development professionals nationwide organized by the U.S. Department of Labor - Employment and Training Administration (ETA).
The improved services to customers as a result of the integration of economic and workforce development at DEED were well articulated, according to Sweeney.
John Scott of ETA said spaces for this webinar were filled at the fastest rate of any webinar held previously. Plus organizers had a longer waiting list for spaces compared with any other webinar (other than the one they did on Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development).
Myhre attended a DEED - Workforce Development Division (WDD) field staff meeting on March 15 to introduce himself. He will be inviting WDD staff statewide to meet with SBDC staff this spring to take this team approach to the next level.
View a copy of their presentation (slides) on the Website and review the actual webinar at www.workforce3one.org. (Note: You must be registered on the site before you can access this webinar material. For links to the information, type “webinar” and “small business development centers” into the search dialogue box.)
Key Contacts:
Kathy Sweeney Stephen Larson Connie Ireland |
Rick Roy Dave Niermann Jim Wrobleski Joan Danielson |
We Need Your Feedback
We're trying to make this newsletter as timely and useful as we possibly can and, to accomplish that goal, we need to know what you want to know. We need and welcome any feedback you can offer – especially concerning topics of broad statewide or regional interest to the WIBs and all other partners. To register your questions, comments, complaints and suggestions, simply send an e-mail to Kathy.Sweeney@state.mn.us. We'll do our best to address your concerns directly and use your feedback to help us develop articles for future editions of the newsletter.
Thanks.