!"#$%&## '()$*(% +",)-&)./ ISSUE NO.11
THE CHALLENGE BEFORE US
MANAGING THE TALENT PIPELINE pg. 44
pg. 8
TIME TO DISRUPT CLASS pg.14
PARTNERSHIPS WITH PROMISE pg. 18
CLOSING THE SKILLS GAP WITH A TALENT SUPPLY CHAIN
AN EXCERPT FROM REMARKS BY PRESIDENT GEORGE W. BUSH pg. 4
pg. 32
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!"##"$%& A State-by-State Report Card on K–12 Educational Effectiveness
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The fourth in a series of signature education report cards by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the report grades all 50 states and the District of Columbia on their K–12 school systems. See how your state compares at LeadersandLaggards.org
020885_Leaders_FPA_BHQ_Fall_2014_FIN.indd 1
] 8/28/14 2:04 PM
4 2:04 PM
A note from the publisher This summer, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation hosted a panel discussion on the issue of the current skills gap in America, which I had the good fortune to lead. A key theme of that conversation was how could it be that, despite a stubbornly high unemployment rate, companies were reporting a lack of skilled workers to fill many of their open jobs? A companion to that question was why are our students lagging behind other nations in their knowledge of core subjects, such as mathematics, science, and other key disciplines? Two of the people who joined me in that discussion were the governors of North Carolina and Utah. Both of them touted their respective efforts to ensure that their states’ residents had the skillsets for the jobs of the 21st century. In their view, the economic health of their states was more dependent on education and workforce training than ever before. North Carolina Gov. Pat McCrory said he often fields calls from companies looking to set up shop in his state, but those conversations always begin to trend towards a discussion about the skills of the available labor force. “The first question we get is ‘do you have the talent?’” Governor McCrory said. I can relate to that conversation firsthand. During my own tenure as the governor of Maine, I wanted to make sure our state’s citizens would be an asset to any company looking to locate there. I worked hard to make the state more business friendly and competitive, both nationally and globally. That effort began with a push for investment in public education, more rigorous curricula, the introduction of programs offering real-world learning experiences for students, and workforce development programs to prepare workers for jobs at businesses locating or expanding in Maine. My colleagues in the state, as well as my fellow governors and I, discussed the notion of elevated academic standards long before anyone had ever uttered the words “Common Core.” Yet, despite our best efforts, hardly a day goes by that we are not reminded of how we, as a nation, are falling behind. Our students rank well below average in their proficiency in mathematics and science, and this places us at risk of falling behind competitively in many other areas, including economic growth. This issue of the Business Horizon Quarterly explores the challenges we face in educating our young people and expanding the skillsets of our nation’s workforce. But it also discusses a series of innovative approaches that leaders are using to tackle the problem. I am excited that this issue shares with you some of the public-private partnerships and other efforts that allow students to learn the skills needed for specific high-tech jobs. In many areas, corporate America is taking a lead in creating a talent pipeline to address the skills gap. Many people first saw these corporate programs as purely philanthropic efforts, but to the communities that are using them, they have become an essential part of educating and recruiting great workers. This edition of the BHQ also comes as the Foundation’s Center for Education and Workforce has just released the results of its latest Leaders & Laggards report. This report offers an enlightening analysis of where states are succeeding and where they are failing when it comes to education. We may never find the perfect formula for educating students and preparing them for the workforce, but we should never stop striving. Our nation’s economic future depends on it, and on the pages that follow, we share some of the ideas we believe will make a difference for the better. Sincerely,
John R. McKernan, Jr.
0"!.$#'&) 1('%2)32456&)%,%721)3 &8$-()9$%9:'$&; )$:'2:((0&)2 ,##(:$,-&2&8$-() -$42.&46& :(%-)$!"-$%<2)(.&# !)$,%2<324$..&) SENIOR MANAGER, PRODUCTION :'&)/.2(.8',4 VICE PRESIDENT, CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE, USCCF 4,)628=,.&##$(2 MANAGER, COMMUNICATIONS, CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE, USCCF -(%/24$..#2 RESEACHER 8&#$<%2,%82.,/("-2!/ ,8;&)( A special thanks to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and Chamber teams that made this publication possible through their creative contributions and hard work. Letters to the editor: BHQ@USChamber.com Copyright © 2014 U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ISSUE 11 // BUsiness Horizon Quarterly 1 | Letter from the Publisher
BY J O H N R. McK E RNAN, JR .
4 | EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) is the 501 (c) (3) nonpprofit affiliate of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. It is dedicated to strengthening Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s long-term competitiveness and educating the public on how our free enterprise system improves society and the economy. The Foundation conducts research and produces events on issues facing business now and in the future. Through its initiatives, the Foundation builds skills, drives innovation, and encourages growth.
4 | EDUCATION AS A CIVIL RIGHT
R E M A R K S B Y P R E S I D E N T G EO R G E W. B U S H AT THE CIVIL RIGHTS SUMMIT
8 | THE CHALLENGE BEFORE US
B Y T H E H O N O R A B L E J O H N R . M C K E R N A N , J R ., P R E S I D E N T, U. S . C H A M B E R O F CO M M E R C E F O U N D AT I O N , F O R M E R G O V E R N O R O F M A I N E
14 | TIME TO DISRUPT CLASS
B Y J O E L K L E I N , C E O, A M P L I F Y, E X E C U T I V E V I C E P R E SIDENT, N E W S C O RP O RAT I O N
18 | PARTNERSHIPS, BUILDING SKILLS, AND A 21ST CENTURY WORKFORCE
BY D R. A N N E T T E PA RK E R, P RE S I D E N T, S O U T H C E N T R AL C O L L E G E , M I N N E S OTA
26 | THE REWARDS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD INVESTMENT B Y W I L L I A M J . C A N A R Y, P R E S I D E N T A N D C EO, T H E B U S I N E S S CO U N C I L O F A L A B A M A ( B C A )
32 | CLOSING THE SKILLS GAP WITH A TALENT SUPPLY CHAIN
BY JORGE BENITEZ, FORMER CHIEF EXECUTIVE UNITED STATES AND SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTORâ&#x20AC;&#x201C; NORTH AMERICA, ACCENTURE
36 | INFOGRAPHIC: WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT
!"#$%&#'($#)*+#((#,$"#+#&-$.+#$/"0(#$01$/"#$.2/"0+$.-,$,0$-0/$ OFDFTTBSJMZ TUBUF PS SFnFDU UIPTF PG UIF 6 4 $IBNCFS PG $PNNFSDF 'PVOEBUJPO UIF 6 4 $IBNCFS PG $PNNFSDF PS JUT BGmMJBUFT 1615 H St. NW Washington, DC 20062
FEATURE EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE 38 | A NATION AT THE CROSSROADS OF EXCELLENCE
B Y B A L A J I G A N A PAT H Y, H E A D O F W O R K F O R C E E F F EC T I V E N E S S , TATA CO N S U LTA N C Y S E R V I C E S ( T C S )
44 | MANAGING THE TALENT PIPELINE
B Y J A S O N T Y S Z KO, S E N I O R D I R EC T O R O F P O L I C Y, C E N T E R F O R E D U C AT I O N A N D W O R K F O R C E , U. S . C H A M B E R O F CO M M E R C E F O U N D AT I O N
52 | PARTNERSHIPS WITH PROMISE–RELEVANCY IN SCHOOLS THROUGH WORKPLACE LEARNING
B Y D R . L A Z A R O L O P E Z , A S S O C I AT E S U P E R I N T E N D E N T O F T E A C H I N G A N D L E A R N I N G AT H I G H S C H O O L DI STR I C T 2 1 4 , AR LI N GTON HEI GH T S , I L L I N O I S
58 | Executive Profile: PENNY PRITZKER, U.S. secretary of commerce 62 | Executive Profile: Bill Hansen, PRESIDENT AND ceo, USA FUNDS 66 | What you should know 70 | BUSINESS LEADERS speak! 72 | FINAL WORD
SEE THIS
BY R I C H C O O P E R , E D I TO R - I N - C H I E F, BU S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A RT E R LY; V I C E P R E S I D E N T, EM E R G I N G I S S U E S & R E S E A R C H , U . S . C H A M B E R OF C O MMER C E F O U N DATI ON
DOWNLOAD BHQ FROM ONE OF THESE DIGITAL STORES: !"#$%&'()**+',,#"$&-*%,./#0123 456&78'()**+',,94*-:;,.#<0="> ?%%@:7(A:#;'()**+',,94*-:;,./4B4CD
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EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
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he 1960s began a limited role for the federal government in American education. The results have been better than some have claimed—and worse than many had hoped. These programs— particularly Title 1—helped break down the dual educational system in the South. Poorer states
have made some progress relative to richer states. Since the 1970s, achievement gaps between whites and minorities have narrowed.
KL.MN7#>O$#C!B>#PH#Q$!.BE# $KL?!>MRN!C#4.R7.$BB#O!B# ;$$N#7$N$.!CCQ#4RBM>MS$T# ;L>#?RU4C$>$CQ# MNBLVVM?M$N>: During the last 50 years, educational progress has been generally positive—but completely insufficient. Education in America is no longer legally separate, but it is still not effectively equal. Quality education for everyone, of every background, remains one of the most urgent civil rights issues of our time. Beginning in the 1990s, many states—including Texas—lost patience with the pace of change. These reform efforts gathered into a national accountability movement and culminated in the bipartisan effort called No Child Left Behind. It is a rare kind of issue that could unite two leading Democrats, the late Massachusetts Senator Ted Kennedy and longtime California Congressman George Miller, with me. We found common ground: Schools must demonstrate improved results on reading and math for minority children—or face consequences if they don’t. It is hard to imagine that anything so basic could be so controversial. It was, and it still is.
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly Between 1999 and 2008, reading scores for African-American 9-year-olds increased about two grade levels. Math scores for Hispanic 9-year-olds rose about the same. The achievement gap
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was closing. Sadly, the gains have stalled. No law is perfect. Every legislative instrument eventually requires adjustment. But the problem comes when people start to give up on the goal. Some have ideological objections to any federal role in education. Some are too comfortable with the status quo. The alliance between ideology and complacency seems to be getting stronger. I fear that the soft bigotry of low expectations is returning. And for the sake of America’s children, that is something we cannot allow. Let me focus on one fact that is uncomfortable even to contemplate. According to the most recent National Assessment of Educational Progress (the Nation’s Report card), the average reading score for a white student at age 13 is about the same as an AfricanAmerican at age 17—that’s a four-year, four-grade achievement gap. In an economy where higher skills are ever more necessary, that is scandalous. In a nation dedicated to equal opportunity, that is scandalous. Among the political heirs of Martin Luther King, Jr., Lyndon Johnson, Everett Dirksen, and Hubert Humphrey, this should be a national scandal, demanding action. None of the solutions are easy. We don’t have, and should not have, a federal education system. Power and responsibility are properly spread on many levels—so the need for reform and creativity is spread on many levels. And sometimes teaching professionals feel trapped in the same massive, immutable structures as parents and children. But whatever difficulties we face, they will not be addressed by weakening accountability. There is a growing temptation among public officials in both political parties, at the federal, state, and local level, to lower expectations. But any education gains we make will eventually be undermined by lowering our sights in the classroom. Without meaningful accountability, our sights into reality will be dimmed. Without meaningful accountability, it is poor and minority children who suffer the most.
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The goal of ending achievement gaps should unite Republicans and Democrats. It should unite teachers and parents, business leaders, and civil rights leaders. It should unite anyone committed to a reasonable assessment program, transparency with results, and holding the system accountable—anyone who believes in unleashing local creativity while maintaining clear measures and objectives. There is a needed federal role—it is not to dictate methods, but to help educate poor, minority, and special education children. But when we invest taxpayers’ dollars, it is only right to insist upon results. And when we find poor results, it is only right to blow the whistle on mediocrity. On the issue of education, we are dealing with the meaning of America, and the extent of its promise. Equal opportunity is a unifying national purpose, but it is not a natural condition. It must be purposely and carefully built by every generation for the next generation. It is the continuing goal of education reform—and it really is the continuing work of the civil rights movement. Q
George W. Bush served as the 43rd President of the United States and is a longtime proponent of improved education standards and academic performance.
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// E D U C A T I O N A S A C I V I L R I G H T #""$
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY THE HONORABLE JOHN R. MCKERNAN, JR. PRESIDENT, U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION, FORMER GOVERNOR OF MAINE
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T
he U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
For the business community, early childhood
has, at its core, a focus on promoting our
education investments also make good economic
nation’s competitiveness, and while there are
sense. Numerous studies have quantified the significant
many ways in which we advance that mission, there
return on investment for these programs, based in part
are none more critical than working to improve our
on increased educational attainment and the reduction
education and workforce training systems.
in the need for more costly social services.
The Chamber understands the clear connection between a strong education system and a thriving economy. Through the Foundation’s Center for Education
While competition and choice of programs and providers play an important role in the delivery of early childhood programs to students and families, this is not the case for
and Workforce, we work to
America’s public K-12 education
strengthen the pipeline from
system—a system we know
early childhood education to
isn’t making the grade. It’s
postsecondary education and
not adequately preparing our
training. This edition of the
students to succeed in college
Business Horizon Quarterly is
or the modern workforce.
devoted to recognizing the
It’s not delivering the skilled
education challenges we face
workers that businesses need to
as a nation while highlighting
drive stronger economic growth,
both public and private sector
and it’s not helping advance
leaders and initiatives that are
America’s ability to compete and
meeting those challenges. While not discounting the importance of
lead in the global economy. Proficiency in fundamental disciplines is also
strong family engagement, a quality educational
slipping. Among the 34 leading industrialized countries,
foundation begins early and is critical for a young
the United States continues to fall behind, ranking 17th
person’s future success in school and beyond. Given
in reading literacy, 21st in science, and a dismal 26th in
that 90% of a child’s brain development occurs
mathematics. It should surprise no one that we’ve fallen
by the time they reach age 5, the importance of a
from No. 1 in the world in the percentage of young
strong learning environment at an early age cannot
adults with college degrees to No. 12.
be overlooked. The positive impacts of high-quality early childhood education are well documented and include improved reading ability by the third grade, reduction in the need to hold students back in kindergarten, and a lowering of the incidence of students’ placement into special education.
These educational rankings and deficiencies should be of genuine concern to all of us, especially with the jobs of the 21st century becoming more and more specialized and technical. In fact, there are more than 4 million jobs going unfilled in this country in part
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
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because there aren’t enough qualified candidates to fill them.
Rigorous college- and career-ready standards are what
Some 90% of the jobs in the fastest-growing occupations
students deserve, what higher education requires, and what
require postsecondary education and training. By 2020,
the business community is demanding. The Chamber
there will be 120 million high-skilled and high-wage jobs.
Foundation supports the business community through
If we don’t have the workers to fill them, we will risk our
expertise, resources, programming, and communications
economic leadership in the world as these positions will go
tools to advance college- and career-ready standards, such
beyond our borders.
as the Common Core, and aligned assessments to ensure
There is a looming national crisis that requires urgent action, and it begins at the most fundamental level: K-12
students are meeting these higher goals. Critical to ensuring high standards across the country,
education. But it doesn’t end there. Our job training systems
as well as other important policy measures that improve
in this country are ill-equipped to close the skills gap, and
our public education system, is transparency around
our postsecondary institutions continue to be out of reach
how states are actually faring when it comes to educating
for far too many Americans.
children and young adults. As the signature education
The Chamber Foundation is tackling these issues headon because we want America’s economy to grow, business to be competitive, and all students to have the opportunity for success. Essential to turning around those dismal international comparisons is setting high expectations for all students. We know from decades of experience that setting low standards in grades K–12 results in high remediation rates in 2- and 4-year institutions and workers without the skills employers require. %&"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
research publication of the Foundation, Leaders & Laggards has for seven years provided the business community with solid data and policy recommendations on K–12 educational effectiveness, innovation in K–12 education, and the state of public postsecondary education. The report is unique in that it seeks to identify national leaders (as well as laggards) on a series of indicators that draw upon and reflect the priorities of the business community.
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The proven success of this report is found in the story of the state of Tennessee. The Chamber’s inaugural Leaders & Laggards in 2007 bestowed the letter grade of “F” in a couple of key areas related to student achievement in the Volunteer State. Rather than hide from those grades, the leaders in Tennessee set out to turn their system around—raising academic standards and beginning a series of reforms that continue today. The actions the state took then have positioned Tennessee as a leader and have resulted in measureable academic gains for students, as evidenced by the most recent scores on “the Nation’s Report Card”—the National Assessment of Educational Progress. All along the way, the business community has played a key role by pushing for reforms and supporting students, teachers, and schools in the process.
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Tennessee’s results are instructive and encouraging. Yet, despite significant resources and the best efforts of many, our education system as a whole is failing to keep pace with the economy, and employers are struggling to find skilled workers. There is a gap between the skills that employers need and the qualifications of today’s job applicants. As a result—despite high unemployment rates—many jobs are left unfilled. If we are to address this skills gap, we cannot ignore the unemployment crisis among youth and young adults. The employment rates for youth, ages 16 to 19, plummeted from 45% in 2000 to just 26% in 2011— the lowest rate of youth employment since post-World War II. The impact on the health of the economy is a nationwide issue, with young adults increasingly unprepared to enter the workforce. What’s more, the consequences for youth development are profound, with studies demonstrating that youth who are employed are far more likely to be gainfully employed later in life while developing the professional skills that will allow them to advance in their careers.
The penalty for failing to address this employment gap is a low-skilled and inexperienced workforce that will fail to grow the U.S. economy and will dramatically increase the demand for entitlement programs. Currently, there are 5.8 million youth aged 16 to 24 who are disconnected from school and work, and there are millions more who lack meaningful pathways to education and career. The Foundation is working to bring national attention to the challenge of youth employment with a particular focus on the business community’s role in identifying and leading long-term solutions. To truly address this crisis, it’s not enough to simply ask employers to hire more youth – we must work to more effectively address the business needs of employers in recruiting, onboarding, and developing youth, as well as measuring return on investment. There are certainly challenges and obstacles, but there exist programs that have successfully married meaningful employment opportunities for youth
// T H E C H A L L E N G E B E F O R E U S #""%%
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
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with benefits for employers. These are the programs that
skills necessary for the 21st century workforce, resulting in
must be replicated and scaled across the country.
either costly training or time out of the labor market. The
At the core of the skills gap crisis is a breakdown between supply and demand. For decades, reform initiatives have sought to improve the education system. The results of such
bottom line is the entire educational continuum in America is in need of reform—and fast. Whether it’s access to quality early childhood education,
efforts, however, haven’t gone far enough to improve high
college- and career-ready standards in our public education
school or college graduation rates—or even the effectiveness
system, the skills gap, or the crisis in youth employment,
of workforce training programs. Consequently, the skills
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation is committed
gap will grow to more than 5 million unfilled positions by
to supporting the business community as it tackles these
2020. The Chamber Foundation is working to close that
challenges. The employer community has a role to play in
gap for employers and for students and workers.
each, and without their active participation, the outcome
We have set out to challenge long-standing assumptions about the role of business in education and workforce systems by providing an alternative approach that enables and empowers employers to engage more effectively with education and workforce partners. Most reform efforts
will fall short of our goal—an educated and skilled workforce today prepared for the jobs of tomorrow. Q Former Maine Gov. John R. McKernan Jr. is president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and a senior adviser to U.S. Chamber President and CEO Thomas J. Donohue. McKernan provides
focus on improving education and training delivery
both strategic and ongoing leadership to the
systems—schools, postsecondary institutions, and worker
U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, which is
training programs. Our approach, called Talent Pipeline Management, presents a new model for collaboration that is demand driven and employer centric. The result will be
dedicated to strengthening America’s long-term competitiveness and educating the public on how our free enterprise system improves society and the economy.
a more engaged employer community, driving partnerships
Until August 2012, he was chairman of the board of directors of
and changing how education providers (from K–12 to
Education Management Corporation where he served as CEO from 2003
postsecondary) prepare students for success beyond their
to 2007 and still serves as a director.
educational experience. The fact is the status quo is not sustainable if America
McKernan served his native state of Maine for two terms in the U.S. Congress from 1983 to 1987 and then as governor for two, four-year terms from 1987 to 1995. During his two terms as governor, McKernan
is to compete in a 21st century global economy. Despite
was chairman of the Education Commission of the States and the
record high school graduation rates, too many students are
National Education Goals Panel and was recognized as an Outstanding
left behind—typically low-income and minority students.
Governor by the American Society for Training and Development.
And while an 80% high school graduation rate looks impressive on paper, the fact is 60% of first-year college students require remediation in English or math because their secondary school didn’t adequately prepare them for college-level work. Furthermore, only about half of students who start a 4-year bachelor’s degree program fulltime actually finish in six years. Those who do go on to graduate
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EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY JOEL KLEIN CEO, AMPLIFY AND EXECUTIVE VICE PRESIDENT, NEWS CORPORATION
-&:'%(.(</
American
While some schools in America introduced
companies to compete with China
technology into the classroom the right way,
and the rest of the world using
many others got it very, very wrong. Far too
only business strategies from the 1800s. But
often, initiatives I’ve observed over the years
for some unexplainable reason, that’s exactly
treated technology as a panacea. What many
what
of these schools learned—or soon will—is that
W
e
we’re
would
doing
never
to
tell
America’s
public
education system. The
origins
you can’t just throw a bunch of
the
school day as we know it today largely date back to the factory models of the Industrial
Revolution.
With the exception of the blackboard becoming a whiteboard, very little has changed about our classrooms during the past 200 hundred years. In the meantime, the digital age has transformed every
To truly transform public education in this country, we must use technology at scale to empower teachers, reimagine the way students learn, and fundamentally transform the way schools and school districts are managed.
other aspect of society.
of laptops over the fence and hope that things will change. Tech for tech’s sake is the last thing we need in education. To truly transform public education in this country, we must use technology at scale to empower teachers, reimagine the way students learn,
and
fundamentally
transform the way schools and school districts are managed.
At its best, educational technology helps
After serving eight years as chancellor of New
teachers do two things: manage classrooms
York City’s public schools, this is a problem
more efficiently and effectively; and personalize
I know all too well. During my tenure as
instruction for every student by giving them
chancellor, we worked hard to shake up the
what they need when they need it.
status quo by establishing models that blended the best of new technology with classroom learning, like the iSchool and The School of One. Though bold and transformational, these schools were the exception and not the rule.
Today, in most schools, there aren’t enough minutes in the school day to begin with. Every second lost from instruction is learning time we don’t get back. Technology can help free educators up from administrative tasks,
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
like taking attendance, grouping students, or distributing
The revolution in technology has created a
handouts. This gives them more time to do what they do
corresponding revolution in students’ expectations. So
best: teach.
many of the experiences they have online have been
Technology is at its best when it helps teachers address the learning needs of each individual student in real time. The typical teacher has a classroom full of kids with very different abilities. Some are excelling and ready for more challenges; others are struggling and in need of more help. The rest are somewhere in between. For years, the only way most teachers could try to reach a majority of their students was by “teaching to the middle.” Though this approach is well intentioned, it hasn’t had the intended impact. Students ready to move ahead get bored. Struggling students slip further behind. And students in between are left to tread water. Now, thanks to technology, we have the ability to give every educator a digital teaching assistant that can surface critical information in real time. When several students are experiencing a common problem with math, but the rest of the class is ready to move ahead, it is no longer necessary to check in with students, one by one, to find out. And if someone is having trouble with a timed writing exercise and hasn’t typed a word, a teacher can know exactly who needs help and when, without distracting the rest of the class. While using technology effectively may be a challenge for some teachers to master (and ensuring they have the right levels of training and support is critical to getting this right), for their students, it comes as second nature. Children entering the sixth grade this fall were toddlers when smartphones, digital media, and social networks first emerged. These technologies are woven into every aspect of their lives. Yet, as one student recently told me, “when I walk into school, it feels like stepping into a museum.”
tailored just for them. Why should education be any different? Netflix can tell them what movies they might be interested in based on films they’ve previously viewed. Educational technology should be able to tell them which math tutorials they might find helpful based on the problems they missed from last night’s homework. And it’s not just about making instruction more relevant and rigorous. Thanks to technology, deeper learning can be a lot more fun. At Amplify, the education technology firm I head, we’ve worked with some of the world’s best independent games studios to develop educationally enriching games for subjects like math, science, and English Language Arts. Instead of spending hours going to war with an alien planet, our students are learning how to fight off infection inside a human cell. Technology can make learning more engaging, but it can also help transform the way we engage our learners. After a recent report showed that only 39% of firstgeneration college students graduated in four years, the University of Texas turned to a new data science team to help design a program aimed at keeping those students in school and on track toward their degree. A study by Johns Hopkins University research professor Robert Balfanz shows that factors like attendance, behavior, and course performance can by sixth grade predict most of the students who will go on to drop out of high school before graduation. By ninth grade, those same factors can predict “virtually everyone” who will go on to drop out, according to Balfanz. Using data to help identify these students and give them meaningful supports and interventions as early as possible would have a significant impact on the number
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The revolution in technology has created a corresponding revolution in students! expectations.
of students that graduate ready for success in either college
We’ve spent long enough looking at bar graphs showing
or career. This isn’t the stuff of science fiction. These are
our students lagging behind the rest of the world.
actionable steps we can take right now, thanks to the
Educational technology has given us a real opportunity
power of technology.
to transform learning as we know it. The only question is,
Over the next five years, close to a third of our country’s 3 million teachers will retire. This means two things: We’re set to lose some of our best and most experienced educators over a very short period of time, and a huge influx of tech-savvy millennials will be replacing them. We
“Are we ready to embrace and use it intelligently?” I hope for the sake of our children that the answer is yes. Q In January 2011, Joel I. Klein became CEO of the Education Division (now called Amplify) and Executive Vice President at News Corporation, where he also serves on the Board of Directors.
must give these new teachers all the resources and support they need to be successful in the classroom. A big part of that will be making sure they have access to the best educational technology. I am absolutely convinced that educational technology done right—emphasis on “done right”—will have one
Prior to that, Mr. Klein was Chancellor of the New York City Department of Education where he oversaw a system of over 1,600 schools with 1.1 million students, 136,000 employees and a $22 billion budget. He launched Children First in 2002, a comprehensive reform strategy that has brought coherence and capacity to the system and resulted in significant increases in student performance.
of the most transformative impacts on how—and how well—our students learn and perform. Every child in this country deserves access to a world-class public education. Sadly, we know that we’re now giving far too many of our kids much, much less than they deserve. That’s bad for them and bad for the country.
// T I M E T O D I S R U P T C L A S S #""%$
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY DR. ANNETTE PARKER PRESIDENT, SOUTH CENTRAL COLLEGE, MINNESOTA
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usinesses need qualified employees to succeed. Higher Education wants to provide instruction that leads to employment opportunities for its graduates. Given these two complimentary goals, it should be natural for businesses and educators to want
to partner, right? While there are many such partnerships, the potential is just beginning to be realized. The following illustrates this issue within one of the United States’ largest industries— manufacturing—but the principles could be applied to multiple industries. According to the 2011 Skills Gap Report conducted by The Manufacturing Institute and Deloitte Consulting, 82% percent of manufacturers reported a moderate or serious shortage of skilled workers. More than 75% of manufacturers indicated the skill shortage negatively impacted their ability to expand. With the entry of advanced automation into manufacturing, employees need a higher level of preparation and industry-specific training, but just as important are the “basics” needed by all employees. In 2010, the U.S. Employment and Training Administration (ETA), along with the Manufacturing Institute, National Council for Advanced Manufacturing and Society of Manufacturing Engineers, created an updated model of the competencies required by today’s manufacturers. At the base of the model are the Personal Effectiveness, Academic and Workplace competencies. The next level, Industry-Wide Technical Competencies and Industry-Sector Technical Competencies, is where the skills gap reveals itself, with a shortage of employees specifically trained to meet the needs of today’s sophisticated manufacturing industry.
"#$%&'()*+,(-#./ Looking at examples of successful industry-education partnerships can provide insight for creating future collaborations. The Automotive Manufacturing Technical Education Collaborative (AMTEC) provides a positive illustration of what works. Today, AMTEC boasts a partnership that includes 38 community and technical colleges and 25 manufacturing plants. While huge today, this collaboration started small and grew from the ground up.
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
01203451("036704)6893:( 4;"<5)534=(";15>(
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6#7/-'5801%+')59:%+;#,+"<9()&*%'%#+,%6#7/-'580=,7%9:%+;#,+"<9()&*%'%#+,%Manufacturing Process Design & Development
Production
Maintenance Installation & Repair
Supply Chain Logistics
Quality Assurance Continuous/ Improvement
Sustainable & Green Manufacturing
Health, Safety, Security & Environment
=)5B*<"+%9()&*%'%#+,%Business Fundamentals
Teamwork
Adaptability/ Flexability
Marketing & Customer Focus
Planning & Organizing
Problem Solving & Decision Making
Working with Tools & Technology
Checking, Examining & Recording
Sunstainable Practices
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Basic Computer Skills
Mathematics
Reading
Writing
Communication, Listening & Speaking
Critical & Analytical Thinking
Information Literacy
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Integrity
Professionalism
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It originally started in 1987 when a single
Dependability & Reliability
Lifelong Learning
able to address any problem anywhere in the production
manufacturer, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Kentucky,
line. Toyota turned to Bluegrass Community & Technical
needed trained maintenance technicians to service the
College to provide the multi-skilled maintenance training
production equipment at its Georgetown, Kentucky
they needed to advance the skills of their technicians.
plant. At the time, many manufacturers had a variety
After two decades, this partnership and the expectation
of single-skilled (albeit deeply skilled) positions such as
for multi-skilled maintenance technicians resulted in a
electricians, pipefitters, or millwrights. Toyotaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s approach,
Bluegrass Community and Technical College (BCTC)
on the other hand, was to have multi-skilled technicians
campus located on the site of the Georgetown, Kentucky
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production complex. The campus features a smallscale replica of Toyota’s manufacturing floor, enabling students to apply what they learn right there. According to Caren Caton, retired General Manager of Toyota’s North American regional production and maintenance training center, engaging the BCTC resources to conduct maintenance technician training
4#??#@(',+@$+.$'(A#.(B+'CD( '/C&&'(C@(?+C@,%@+@D%(E#F&$( .%$FD%(,*%(D#',(#A(,.+C@C@G( A#.()#H#,+I'(?F&,CJ&%(J&+@,'( +@$(E#F&$(J.#KC$%(+AA#.$+B&%( ,.+C@C@G(A#.()#H#,+('FJJ&C%.'L( E*CD*(+.%(#A,%@('?+&&(J&+@,'( EC,*('?+&&(,.+C@C@G(BF$G%,'M
on the Toyota site enabled Toyota to efficiently provide high quality training while internal resources focused on identifying additional training demands or improving current programs. When the Kentucky Community
various automotive training programs and services, an
and Technical College System inquired about
idea emerged to develop a cooperative effort that would
Toyota’s interest in a collaborative effort to strengthen
transcend college boundaries, state lines, and competing
maintenance technician training, Caton said yes. In the
company interests. In 2005, the Kentucky Community
interest of using their scarce resources wisely, it made
and Technical College System hosted a planning
sense to partner with other automotive manufacturers
meeting with 28 auto industry representatives and 27
and technical colleges to advance their common goal of
college representatives, and AMTEC was born. Today,
producing highly skilled technicians for the industry.
AMTEC includes six leading auto producers (Toyota, Ford, General Motors, BMW, Honda and Nissan), along
Common standards for basic skills in maintenance
with numerous manufacturers that supply the auto
would reduce the cost of training for Toyota’s multiple
industry. The community colleges participating come
plants and would provide affordable training for Toyota
from 13 states. Numerous government and economic
suppliers, which are often small plants with small training
development agencies are also involved with AMTEC.1
budgets. Additionally, the concept appealed to Caton because it exemplified the “Customer First” philosophy
JoAnne Pritchard, retired engineering manager at
of Toyota that requires actual customer input on what is
General Motors, reports that it is common for GM
needed to ensure customer satisfaction.
factories to use their respective community colleges to conduct various training programs for their workers. She
“It wasn’t necessary or even reasonable for the technical
indicated that what makes AMTEC unique is that rather
colleges to determine our needs in the absence of our input,
than one-on-one relationships, which can create variation
but that was the status quo for many years,” says Caton.
in the product (i.e., the education and training delivered
This initial idea of providing training based on the specific needs of today’s manufacturers scaled up to a multi-state and even multi-national effort. The first step came at a national conference in 2004, attended by community and technical college leaders from Michigan, Ohio, Tennessee, and Kentucky. While discussing
to employees), AMTEC provides an opportunity for collaboration across the industry in defining common standards, curriculum, and assessments. This leads to a much better prepared and consistent workforce. AMTEC has had a positive impact not only on the organizations involved, but also, on the individuals.
// P A R T N E R S H I P S , B U I L D I N G S K I L L S , A N D A 2 1 S T C E N T U R Y W O R K F O R C E #""'%
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
Participants report that one of AMTEC’s greatest benefits
Pritchard concurs, saying that “the automotive
has been the opportunity for informal learning about
manufacturers are highly competitive about our products.
one another’s organizations, resulting in close company-
But we all recognize that making sure our community
to-company, college-to-college, and company-to-college
colleges are providing the right training and education
connections. Caton recalls:
to our future manufacturing workers is good for
“The effort required to understand the problems of the larger industry was tremendous. The work sessions were intense and didn’t always result in consensus on action plans. Because our goal was groundbreaking for the automotive industry, as well as for the college
everyone. This isn’t where we compete…We share an interest around preparing and employing highly capable, qualified workers, which allows us to talk together, share information, and build great friendships.” The engagement of AMTEC participants has been so
partners, we persisted until we achieved a shared sense
great that when it came time to select the collaboration’s
of purpose. The collaboration was based on a common
current Executive Director in 2013, they chose Director
goal and everyone contributed something of value,
Danine Tomlin, who was part of AMTEC’s successful
whether it was designing work simulators or providing
implementation at Alamo Community Colleges. The
skilled technicians to review training materials. Some
experience of Tomlin, as well as the many others driving
of the best examples of our collaboration were AMTEC
AMTEC initiatives, will assure the collaboration’s
workshops hosted by industry to share their manufacturing
sustainability and future success.
and training facilities with competitor partners—events that strengthened the common foundation of our partnership.” ''"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
What worked with AMTEC can work in other industries as well. Most important to the success of
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AMTEC was its continual focus on the value of the
modules online when appropriate, and taking
partnership, with companies and educators working
modules out of sequence when needed.
together toward the common goal of producing employees with the skills needed by today’s auto manufacturers. This required a focus on developing those employee skills needed by all industry partners. This means focusing on these core skills rather than how they might be applied at an individual company. The result is training that prepares students to work anywhere in the industry sector.
• Ongoing assessment and certification processes focus on making sure that workers, companies, and educational institutions are all engaged in a continuous learning process so that the skills and the curricula stay current at all times. These principles proved successful for AMTEC and its participants. According to a 2008 survey cited in an NGA
According to Tomlin, AMTEC’s continuous improvement approach for its content and assessment tools lends itself to the same concepts that drive industry—using data to drive improvements for all stakeholders. A 2010 case study by the National Governor’s Association (NGA) identified key principles of the successful AMTEC model that may be transferable to other industries: • A real-world curriculum is developed collaboratively with the relevant industry so that skills being taught are precisely those that the industry needs—international occupational standards that are common to that industry worldwide. • Education occurs in a contextual setting (i.e., a worklike environment rather than a traditional classroom). • Content knowledge and critical thinking are taught together so students learn problem-solving skills not as part of a separate academic program but at the same time they learn technical skills. • The curriculum is broken into the smallest possible components (“modules”) to ensure the actual skills an industry requires are taught and that students master each required competency.
case study, 50% of automobile industry participants introduced changes in the training and education of their workers. In addition, 50% of community college participants revised courses and 56% introduced a new course to deal with the needs of the local auto industry. AMTEC has also received several major National Science Foundation (NSF) grants, including one establishing a National Advanced Automotive Manufacturing Center of Excellence in 2009.2
( ((((((<;N9)925()8531N( In recent years, government agencies and lawmakers have increasingly recognized the value of aligning education with the needs of industry. Here are just a few of the many recent examples of progress happening at the national level:
0$K+@D%$("+@FA+D,F.C@G( <+.,@%.'*CJ' In 2011, the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology (PCAST) issued a Report Ensuring American Leadership in Advanced Manufacturing, calling
• Learning occurs on the most flexible schedule possible: a module at a time, with options to learn
for “a partnership across government, industry, and academia to identify the most pressing challenges and
// P A R T N E R S H I P S , B U I L D I N G S K I L L S , A N D A 2 1 S T C E N T U R Y W O R K F O R C E #""'(
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
9@(.%D%@,(H%+.'L( G#K%.@?%@,(+G%@DC%'( +@$(&+E?+/%.'( *+K%(C@D.%+'C@G&H( .%D#G@CQ%$(,*%(K+&F%( #A(+&CG@C@G(%$FD+,C#@( EC,*(,*%(@%%$'(#A( C@$F',.HM
advanced manufacturing fields. Often, these certifications build upon one another (called portable, stackable credentials), which offers employees the flexibility to obtain each credential at a time that is right for them. The national certifications also provide employers throughout the country with a means to evaluate a current or potential employee’s skillset based on the national certifications they have, regardless of where they earned them. In this way, it levels the playing field for both employers and employees, with all speaking the same language. The AMP team’s efforts will expand on and increase adoption of the national “NAM-Endorsed”
transformative opportunities to improve the technologies, processes, and products across multiple manufacturing industries.” As a result of this work, President Obama established the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP), creating the first AMP Steering Committee in 2011. In 2012, the AMP Steering Committee released its report, Capturing Domestic Competitive Advantage in Advanced Manufacturing, which proposed priorities and initiatives to strengthen the U.S. advanced manufacturing sector. In 2013, the AMP Steering Committee “2.0” was established to build on the work of the inaugural committee in a renewed, cross-sector, national effort to secure U.S. leadership in the emerging technologies that will create high-quality manufacturing jobs and enhance America’s global competitiveness.3 To this end, the AMP Steering Committee “2.0” set up work teams to address specific areas aimed at driving advances in U.S. innovation and workforce capabilities. One of these teams focused specifically on “Demand‐ Driven Workforce Development.” The team’s action plan included the use of a common certification system used by both education and industry. Fortunately, this work had already begun in 2009, with the Manufacturing Institute of the National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) launching a certification system for a variety of
')"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
certification system, as well as establish national apprenticeship standards.
1%J+.,?%@,(#A(>+B#. In April 2014, the Employment and Training Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) announced the availability of approximately $450 million in grant funds for the Trade Adjustment Assistance Community College and Career Training (TAACCCT) grant program. The grant program’s goal is to “increase the number of workers who attain certificates, degrees, and other industry-recognized credentials.” Other DOL grants provide funds for programs that provide training and support services to specific populations, including women and Native Americans.4
-#./A#.D%(+@$(9@@#K+,C#@( ;JJ#.,F@C,H(0D,(O-9;0P In late July, President Obama signed the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), following approval by the U.S. Senate in June and the U.S. House in early July. WIOA, a bicameral, bipartisan act aimed at modernizing and improving existing federal workforce development programs, will help workers attain skills for 21st century jobs, provide support for workers
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with disabilities, and foster the modern workforce
Dr. Annette Parker was among those who
that evolving American businesses rely on to compete.
started the Automotive Manufacturing Technical
The bill’s overwhelming bipartisan support in the Senate (95 to 3 vote) and the House (415 to 6 vote) demonstrates federal leaders’ commitment to this issue. 5
Education Collaborative (AMTEC), which, under her leadership as Executive Director, was awarded a National Center of Excellence in 2009. In 2013, she became President of South Central College, a comprehensive Community and Technical College with campuses
With so many recognizing the importance of educational and industry alignment in effective workforce development, the time is right to act. Spurred on by the support of agencies and policymakers alike,
in Faribault and North Mankato Minnesota, which is part of the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. She is also on the national Advanced Manufacturing Partnership (AMP) 2.0 Steering Committee and is co-chair of the AMP’s Workforce Work Group.
there is a significant opportunity, and it is now up to
1 “About Us,” Automotive Manufacturing Technical Education
educational institutions and employers to capitalize
Collaborative, 2014, http://autoworkforce.org
on this positive trend. The steps taken today will have a tremendous impact on the future of our country’s workforce, businesses, and collective economic prosperity as a whole. Q
2 “A Sharper Focus On Technical Workers: How to Educate and Train the Global Economy,” National Governors Association Center for Best Practices, June 2010, http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/ pdf/1007TECHNICALWORKERS.PDF 3 “About the Advanced Manufacturing Partnership 2.0,” Advanced Manufacturing Portal managed by the Advanced Manufacturing National Program Office, hosted by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), 2014, http://www.manufacturing.gov/amp.html 4 “Grants for 2014,” U.S. Department of Labor Employment and
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Training Division, 2014, http://www.doleta.gov/grants/find_grants.cfm 5 “Overhaul of America’s Job Training Programs Headed to President’s Desk Following Strong Bipartisan Support from Congress,” U.S. House of Representatives Education and Workforce Committee, July 9, 2014, http://edworkforce.house.gov/news/documentsingle. aspx?DocumentID=387219
// P A R T N E R S H I P S , B U I L D I N G S K I L L S , A N D A 2 1 S T C E N T U R Y W O R K F O R C E #""'*
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
THE REWARDS OF EARLY CHILDHOOD
INVESTMENT BY WILLIAM J. CANARY PRESIDENT AND CEO, THE BUSINESS COUNCIL OF ALABAMA (BCA)
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labama business leaders agree that increasing the education investment in our youngest children is and will continue to be a top state priority. This belief picked up steam seven years ago when others and I started advocating early
childhood education investment as a way to combat the alarming school dropout rate and the inability of some children to get significant work or continue their educations after high schoolâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;if they finished high school at all. It is in the best interest of business to invest in quality early education, since business is the greatest consumer of our education system, seeking students who can lead productive lives through more secure futures after their initial education ends. In 2007, former Miami Herald publisher David Lawrence Jr., an early childhood education advocate, was recommended to me. He had an incredible message: present education to children at an early age and not only will they excel, but as adults, they will also be productive citizens. Lawrence was instrumental in Florida passing a statewide constitutional amendment in 2002 to provide pre-kindergarten for all 4-year-olds. His was an enlightening experience for the Business Council of Alabama (BCA), the stateâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading business advocacy organization, of which I serve as the board of directors president and chief executive officer. In Alabama, it was like a light switched on. As a business advocacy organization, we knew that the future of economic success and prosperity depended on the education we provide our children today.
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
MATCHING SKILLED WORKERS WITH GOOD JOBS Alabama is blessed with major enterprises, including automotive manufacturers Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, Honda, and Toyota engines; Austal, a naval warship
It hasn’t been automatic. It took planning and teamwork. GOING FOR FIRST CLASS In 2009, we hosted a business leadership summit on
builder; research and development work done by
early childhood education with Robert Dugger and
Boeing in Huntsville; a world-class medical center at the
Governor Bob Riley as our keynote speakers. Dugger, an
University of Alabama at Birmingham; and now a premier
investment manager, is the manager of the Pew Charitable
commercial passenger aircraft manufacturer in Airbus that
Trusts’ Partnership for America’s Economic Success.
is about to begin assembling up to 50 modern jets a year in Mobile.
After his energetic kickoff of the effort, Governor Riley took the ball and ran with it, announcing his plans to
For any of these enterprises to have a long and successful
expand voluntary pre-kindergarten education in Alabama
future in our state, they need to have access to world-
to benefit more 4-year-olds, an accomplishment that
class talent, which begs the question, “Where will the
would change Alabama’s history.
employees come from to fill those demanding and highly skilled jobs?”
The program, called First Class, would ultimately build on the state’s existing Pre-K program, which has been rated
It became a responsibility of the business community to engage in preparing our students for bright futures,
the best in the nation by the National Institute for Early Education Research for its high quality standards.
not dismal failure. Our board of directors showed a keen interest and took action. We urged state funding for a
In Birmingham, the summit was a full action-planning
total voluntary pre-kindergarten for Alabama’s 4-year-
day and included business, education, and child education
olds. We had a long way to catch up. In 2012, only 6% of
advocacy groups. This collaboration would establish pre-
approximately 68,000 4-year-olds were enrolled in Pre-K,
kindergarten as a fundamental piece of the foundation for
not including Head Start, the federally funded assistance
adequate early childhood development in Alabama.
program for low-income families. Now, thanks to the 2013 and 2014 legislatures and
We knew this effort had to be broader than just the BCA. Fortunately, we had board of directors’ member
the signatures of Gov. Robert Bentley, the appropriation
Bob Powers, the BCA’s Education Committee chairman
increased by about $19 million to $38.5 million over 2 years,
and a supporter of our educational role in the childhood
more than doubling the funding available for our program
education arena. Powers ran with our theory that if you
(First Class Pre-K) within the Office of School Readiness.
can bring a child into school prepared, his or her chance of success is greatly enhanced. The BCA helped fund a
In the 2012-13 school year, there were 217 classrooms
study on early childhood education and presented it to the
and teachers. This year, there were 410 classrooms and
State Legislature for action. The concept was that in order
teachers. In the 2014-15 school year, there will be even
to compete in today’s economy, every person moving
more. This will enable about 1,800 more 4-year-olds to
into the career-ready workforce needed to have at least a
attend Pre-K.
13-grade education.
'+"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
:'$.828&>&.(04&%-
It became a responsibility of the business community to engage in preparing our students for bright futures, not dismal failure.
The Public Research Council of Alabama, in partnership
BCA is a proud partner with, and an investor in, ASRA.
with the Office of School Readiness and the Alabama
For years, expanding Alabama’s Pre-K has been a top priority
Department of Children’s Affairs, concluded that students
of the BCA. Alabama already had the award-winning
participating in Alabama’s First Class Pre-K program
Alabama Reading Initiative. It’s being enhanced with related
academically outperformed their peers once they reached
early childhood education ventures. And that takes money.
elementary school. PARCA said advantages in Pre-K participation persist at least through the sixth grade.
IT TAKES MONEY In a New York Times article last year featuring Alabama’s top rated Pre-K program, Alabama School Readiness Alliance (ASRA) Executive Director Allison de la Torre said Alabama is trying to invest in a workforce
To give children a quality and meaningful education, the funding goal has been to secure anywhere from $10 million to $13 million more each year, with a target of about $120 million a year for a fully funded, voluntary Pre-K. This year, the Alabama legislature appropriated an additional $10 million to the program. As President and CEO for the BCA, I give about 40
that, within 20 years, will be able to compete with other
speeches a year throughout the state and about 4 or 5
states and other nations.
outside it. A common theme I mention in each of those
The Alabama School Readiness Alliance works to close the student achievement gaps in Alabama by helping children enter school ready to succeed.
remarks is early childhood education and career readiness. In one of those speeches this year, delivered to a chamber of commerce group in Selma, I said the theory of early childhood education isn’t very complicated; it’s only good stuff.
// T H E R E W A R D S O F E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D I N V E S T M E N T #""',
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
We believe that no person stands taller than when he or she bends over to pick up a child.
Here’s a good-stuff statistic. The National Conference
enabling students to read and gain access to the workforce.
of State Legislatures cites a Minneapolis Federal Reserve
Our voluntary Pre-K has them reading at grade-level by
Bank paper showing a rate of return of more than $8 for
the third grade, and we’re talking 100% of them. We
every $1 invested in early education in Minnesota. Children
complement it with science, technology, engineering, and
with quality early learning opportunities are more likely to
mathematics (STEM), our ACCESS Distance Learning, and
read at grade level, graduate from high school, earn more
by highlighting robotics in our high schools.
money, and contribute more tax dollars. This is a win-win scenario for everyone. But here’s a startling national statistic. Every 26 seconds, a child drops out of school. That’s 1.2 million a year, as sobering a statistic as that cited in the excellent 2010 documentary “Waiting for Superman,” where one school saw that of the 60,000 students going through its doors, 40,000 dropped out. That 40,000 is kryptonite to any measure of progress. As business leaders in our State, we see our role as having a significant effect in defeating that dropout rate and in (&"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
HELPING YOUNG AND OLD It’s not just for 4-year-olds. The BCA also helped develop a dual-enrollment program for qualified high school students to enroll in two-year schools to learn a skilled trade. They graduate with a high school diploma and a two-year technical degree with the opportunity to immediately go to work or seek more education, or both. Legislation this year authorizes limited tax credits for personal or corporate donations to the dual-enrollment scholarship program. The legislation caps the scholarship
:'$.828&>&.(04&%fund at $10 million, an amount that will allow 9,542 new
president is Dr. Joseph Morton, the outstanding former
students to participate in dual-enrollment.
state superintendent of education. Assisting Morton
We supported Alabama Future Workforce Initiative legislation because it will help students gain the skills and education that business needs and secures our state’s future with some of the country’s and world’s most important enterprises. In addition, the BCA in 2011 created the Manufacturing
is Montgomery businessman Jay Love, a former state legislator who had headed the important and powerful House Ways and Means Education Fund Committee. You need to have something to continue efforts to transcend current personnel. A foundation is exactly that vehicle. Many are surprised that a group representing businesses
Advocacy Council (MAC). It is a select group of members
(ranging from Alabama’s largest manufacturers to “Main
with the experience, skill, and an innate understanding of
Street” storefronts) focuses so much of its attention on
the manufacturing process that helps promote and enhance a
public education, but the reason is actually quite simple.
positive business message for state manufacturers. The MAC is comprised of a cross-section of Alabama’s
The business community in Alabama is, by far, the largest consumer of a product called education, so it
manufacturing community, manufacturers who are
is imperative that we work hard to improve it so all of
members of BCA (which is a significant part of our
Alabama’s graduates possess the skills and education that
membership), its board of directors, and members of its
the 21st century workplace demands.
regional advisory committees.
INVESTING IN WHAT WORKS
The story of the entrepreneurial spirit, visionary leadership and corporate citizenship all begin in a classroom. Investing in our children is a one of our
Alabama’s leaders are investing in high-quality Pre-K because they know it works. Just as builders who work with mortar and stone use pillars to support a structure down to its foundation, in much the same way, the business community is working to make economic development and education the pillars of Alabama’s freemarket success. This holistic approach is probably the best way to dramatically reduce the dropout rate while making a difference in the lives of students and their families. We believe that no person stands taller than when he or she bends over to pick up a child.
greatest achievements. As President Theodore Roosevelt once said, “Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.” Q William J. Canary is President and CEO of the Business Council of Alabama (BCA), the state’s foremost advocate for business. The BCA is a non-partisan, statewide business association representing the interests and concerns of nearly one million working Alabamians through its member companies and its rewarding partnership with the Chamber of Commerce Association of Alabama’s 120 or so chamber members. BCA is Alabama’s exclusive affiliate to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers. Canary serves on the advisory board of directors of
Knowing that people come and go, last year we created
ReadyNation, an America’s Project Alliance project that identifies and
a lasting foundation to perpetuate the holistic approach
mobilizes hundreds of business leaders who support early childhood
to total childhood education. The foundation is the
policies such as the Strong Start for America’s Children Act.
Business Education Alliance of Alabama. Its chairman and // T H E R E W A R D S O F E A R L Y C H I L D H O O D I N V E S T M E N T #""(%
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY JORGE BENITEZ FORMER CHIEF EXECUTIVE UNITED STATES AND SENIOR MANAGING DIRECTOR – NORTH AMERICA, ACCENTURE
-'&2#6$..#2<,0
!
ew readers will be surprised to learn that
• In partnership with The Manufacturing
a skills gap is affecting the U.S. economy.
Institute, Accenture studied the effects of
U.S. employers are not able to find
the skills gap on U.S. manufacturers. Our
employees with the skills needed for open positions,
Out of Inventory: Skills Shortage Threatens
and most unemployed job seekers agree they need
Growth for U.S. Manufacturing study found
additional education and training to get the jobs they
that 75% of manufacturers report a
seek. While this gap isn’t new, it is growing and will affect
moderate-to-severe shortage of skilled
standards of living if we don’t start addressing it now.
resources. These shortages are directly
At Accenture, we tackle difficult business challenges by establishing collaborative partnerships with government agencies, clients, nonprofits, alliance partners, and strategic third-party service providers. We have seen time and again that when you build partnerships and apply different perspectives and
impacting manufacturers’ bottom lines: the median survey respondent is projected to lose 11% of annual earnings (EBITDA) or $4.6M for a company with $500 million in annual revenue. • As reported in Great Expectations: Insights from
experiences to solving problems, you achieve a greater
the Accenture 2014 College Graduate
outcome than any single participant could have
Employment Survey, 13% of graduates in the
achieved on their own. We believe this approach is
2012/2013 classes have been unemployed since
needed to meet the challenges faced by the 21st century
graduation. Only 46% of graduates from those
workforce, and that by bringing together all the entities
years have full-time jobs, while 46% report
affected by the skills gap, we can make a real difference
their jobs do make use of their college degrees.
for our workforce and in our nation’s prosperity. But this problem is complex—impacting millions
In our recent report, U.S. States: For Richer, For Poorer? Winning the battle for talent and securing our
of people—and growing. According to Georgetown
standard of Living, we determined that if America
University’s Center on Education and the Workforce,
does not “respond with urgency and decisiveness to
5 million U.S. jobs will be unfilled in 2020 due to the
address the fundamental challenges in [our] labor
skills gap. Recent research brings to life the magnitude
markets, [we] will see declines in productivity growth
and impact of this gap:
and a shrinking workforce,” and ultimately, a 9%
• The Accenture 2013 Skills and Employment Trends Survey: Perspectives on Training, which captured input from 400 executives at large U.S. companies, found that almost half of respondents are currently facing or anticipating a skills shortage and almost 30% anticipate a loss of business to competitors due to this shortage. Another 30% believe they face a loss of revenue because of it.
decline in the standard of living by 2030.
!"#$%&'(!$)*&++)$,!$ !(-$%&'(!$!&.Working with other organizations, Accenture has been taking steps to help close the skills gap. In 2010, we launched our Skills to Succeed initiative, which aims to advance employment and entrepreneurship for people around the world. The initiative was
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
born out of a desire to give back to the communities
journey and has been proven to contribute to improved
where we work and live by combining our training
patient outcomes. PNI has already trained thousands
knowledge and experience with our ability to assemble
of patient navigators in person and online, playing a
partnerships to solve problems. To date, with the help
major role in preparing people for a meaningful job
of our partners, we have equipped more than 500,000
and putting them back to work while improving access
people globally with the skills to get a job or build
to healthcare for all individuals, especially those from
a business, and we plan to increase that number to
disadvantaged communities.
700,000 by 2015. In the United States, our company teams with a
These are examples of the impact several organizations are having by partnering together. But imagine the
number of nonprofit partners on our Skills to Succeed
greater impact if more businesses, more nonprofits,
efforts. For example, we work with Upwardly Global,
more educational institutions, and more government
an organization that helps work-authorized, skilled
entities were working together to close the skills gap. In
immigrants transition their careers to the United States
addition to teaming to build the right skills at the right
by providing professional job search training and access
time, imagine if we were able to get the right talent to
to employers. We’ve also partnered with the United
the right employer.
Service Organizations (USO) and the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) at Syracuse University to help support our military and their families as they transition into civilian life. In fiscal year 2013, Accenture and the Accenture Foundations awarded the Knowledge is Power Program (KIPP) Schools a grant to support the expansion of the Future Focus program. KIPP is a national network of open-enrollment, college-preparatory public charter schools that prepares students in underserved communities for success in college and in life. The Future Focus program is a college and career-readiness program created by Accenture and KIPP. The grant will
!"#$!/0#12$ )34405$6"/71 Through partnering on skill-building initiatives such as these, as well as by providing business operations services to our clients, we have witnessed the effectiveness of the supply chain approach to managing talent—getting the right skills to the right places at the right times. This concept is central to Accenture’s business and how we serve our clients, and it’s a critical concept for the business community to consider as we work together to solve the skills gap. A key element of the “talent supply chain” concept is
enable KIPP to deliver skills training, mentoring and
that it is driven by demand. Any effort to close the skills
internships to nearly 7,000 students. The program has
gap must be grounded in an understanding of the skills
been rolled out in nine cities across the United States,
and competencies demanded by employers. For the supply
with others to follow soon.
chain to work for both employers and job seekers, it must
In the next three years, our company will help the Harold P. Freeman Patient Navigation Institute (PNI) train 7,500 new patient navigators in 35 locations across the United States. Patient navigation supports individuals through every step of their healthcare ()"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
be anchored in what the labor market is asking for and must help workers obtain the skills they need to pursue in-demand jobs and careers. One talent supply pipeline program we work with is Skills for Chicagoland’s Future (SCF), a public-private
-'&2#6$..#2<,0 partnership uniting Chicago and Cook County government,
government entities, and nonprofit/community
businesses, job seekers, workforce development partners,
organizations work together to develop practical solutions.
and educational institutions. The partnership represents a coordinated effort to reduce the skills gap in the Chicago area by helping employers find unemployed job seekers for available positions. Rather than training people in a skill and hoping they find a job, SCF focuses on working directly with businesses to identify the skills they require to meet current and projected staffing needs. SCF then retrains people specifically for available jobs that are in demand, providing a viable career pathway for the unemployed in Chicago to move directly into work.
In the first phase of the project, Accenture will create a portfolio of case studies that reinforce talent pipeline management concepts that can be leveraged for national solutions. We also will support the Chamber Foundation by developing the business case for pursuing the supply chain model and convene organizations to help us plot the course forward. This is an exciting opportunity to conduct important research, test ideas, and begin to build out talent supply
Another example of the talent supply chain work that is taking shape is a research partnership between Accenture, Harvard Business School, and labor market analyst Burning Glass Technologies to address America’s “middle skills”
chain solutions. We invite other organizations to share their thoughts and continue working to address a challenge that affects not only our respective businesses but the future of our country. The investments we make today in closing the skills gap will serve as the foundation for tomorrow’s
gap. Middle skills jobs are traditionally defined as roles that require more education or training than a high school diploma but less than a four-year college degree. Our research will go beyond this definition and explore the subset of middle skills jobs that drive U.S. competitiveness and enable career growth for the average American worker. The
economic growth. Q Jorge L. Benitez retired in 2014 as Accenture’s chief executive of the United States and senior managing director of North America. He had primary responsibility for Accenture’s business and operations
research approaches the middle skills supply-and-demand
in North America, including developing and executing
gap through the lens of the private sector to determine
the company’s business strategy, delivering client service and driving its growth in the region.
what businesses can do (in conjunction with other key stakeholders) to improve their talent supply chains.
Before serving as chief executive, Mr. Benitez was the chief operating officer for Products, the largest of Accenture’s five operating groups.
608971:$2"#$'/4;$ <=)=$6"/>?#@$!/0#12$ A74#071#$./1/:#>#12$ A@8B#C2 I’m proud of the impact Accenture, with the help of our partners, is making toward closing the skills gap, and I am pleased that we are playing a role in the launch of
In that role, which he held for five years, he led Accenture’s global business across a wide set of consumer-relevant industry groups, including: Automotive; Air, Freight & Travel Services; Consumer Goods & Services; Industrial Equipment; Infrastructure & Transportation Services; Life Sciences; and Retail. He has also served as the Executive Sponsor for several of Accenture’s largest Products clients. Mr. Benitez’s success in business and his contributions to the broader community have been recognized on a number of occasions. Hispanic Business Magazine named him to its “2011 Top 25 Corporate Elite” list
the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s Talent
and, in 2004, selected him as one of the 100 most influential Hispanics
Pipeline Management Project. The goal of the project is to
in the United States. He was also selected to the PODER Top 100
develop a talent supply chain approach that can be scaled
Influential Hispanics in 2011.
nationally to help businesses, educational institutions, // C L O S I N G T H E S K I L L S G A P W I T H A T A L E N T S U P P L Y C H A I N #""(*
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
Sources: 1. Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, January 17, 2014. 2. Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce. 3. Education at a Glance 2013, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 4. Complete College America 5. 2012 Programme for International Student Assessment, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. 6. A First Look: 2013 Mathematics and Reading, National Assessment of Educational Progress at Grades 4 and 8 7. ounceofprevention.org 8. Heckmanequation.org
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY BALAJI GANAPATHY HEAD OF WORKFORCE EFFECTIVENESS, TATA CONSULTANCY SERVICES (TCS)
&;;&:-$>&%&##
!
e live in a hyperconnected world, powered by digital technologies that have burst onto the scene over the past decade. The globalization of markets across developed and
emerging economies has led to businesses competing not just at a local or regional level but at a national, and often international, level. Digital technologies are also helping organizations meet their consumers’ demands for responsiveness, knowledge, engagement, and individualized attention. Living in this digital era requires its own set of skills to interact with and use these technologies. Developing solutions to real world problems in this digital era requires a new set of skills and a new way to use those skills.
"##"$%&'(%()*+",+-+.(/(%-0+)$Some 80% of the Top 10 Global Internet properties are “Made in USA,” including Google, Microsoft, Facebook, Yahoo, Twitter, and Instagram. Yet, 81% of the users of these properties are coming from outside America. Jobs that once required minimal-to-no technological skills now require working knowledge of programming and information technology. Nearly 90% of smart phones globally are running on operating systems “Made in USA.” At TCS, and within other businesses worldwide, the demand for a “digitally fluent” workforce is increasing dramatically.
“The world economy is in the midst of a tectonic shift from the Internet Economy to the Digital Consumer Economy. Five key digital technologies are driving this shift; Big Data and analytics, cloud computing, mobile and pervasive computing, social media, and robotics and Artificial Intelligence. Individually, these technologies are undoubtedly powerful but, when combined, they have the potential to fundamentally change how enterprises develop products, market themselves and engage with customers across every major industry.” ~N. Chandrasekaran (Chandra), CEO, Tata Consultancy Services
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
('+%6)+!"$0.+",+2&*(')**7+*%-'.-$.*+-$)+-+40)-$+ -'.+#$)*)'%+4-%-08*%7+.$(1('/+#$".&4%(1(%87+ ),,)4%(1)')**7+-'.+$)*&0%*+%6-%+2)'),(%+%6)+ 4"5#-'87+-*+!)00+-*+(%*+*%-9)6"0.)$*:
As a human resources leader in the world’s second
close tie between the knowledge and skills of a nation’s
most valuable Information Technology services company
workforce and the productivity of that nation’s economy.
(with more than 300,000 employees worldwide), I see
We pride ourselves as the greatest nation in the world.
the demand side of this equation up close and personal.
Consequently, the world sets the standards that we need
The demand for skilled technology talent in the United
to achieve and exceed; the areas of business and education
States will continue to increase in the foreseeable future,
are not exempt or immune to this.
and these jobs will include all sectors—banking, financial services, manufacturing, retail, insurance, energy, food, agriculture, high-tech, and more. College- and careerreadiness amongst our youth will determine our global competitiveness, our future prosperity, and our ability to meet some of society’s greatest challenges in the current century and beyond. Yet, America is at a crossroads with respect to how the nation’s education system will adapt to meet the needs of the economy. U.S Education Secretary Arne Duncan once said that America is “being out-educated,” when referring to the Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) results. As of 2010, American students ranked 17th in science and 25th in math, beaten out by students in countries like China, Poland, and Canada. And while young adults around the world are quickly surpassing their parents’ education, America’s young people as a whole have merely matched the attainment
.$(1('/+2&*(')**+)34)00)'4)+ ,"$+4"5#)%(%(1)')** In the world of business, standards are a clear and present catalyst, driving productivity, effectiveness, and results that benefit the company, as well as its stakeholders. For example, the Tata group, a global conglomerate and our parent company, has its own Tata Business Excellence Model (TBEM), which is the basis for conducting organizational assessments and for giving feedback to each of the group companies that take part in this annual exercise. The criteria in TBEM have three important roles in strengthening competitiveness: • Help improve organizational performance practices, capabilities, and results; • Facilitate communication and sharing of best
levels of the previous generation by their mid-30s.
practices information among organizations of all
Historical experience and research data have shown a
types; and
)&"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
&;;&:-$>&%&##
• Serve as a working tool for understanding and managing performance and for guiding organizational planning and opportunities for learning. The criteria are further designed to help organizations use an integrated approach to organizational performance management, resulting in: • Delivery of ever-improving value to customers and stakeholders, contributing to organizational sustainability; • Improvement of overall organizational effectiveness and capabilities; and • Organizational and personal learning. These values and concepts in TBEM are embedded beliefs and behaviors found in high-performing organizations. They are the foundation for integrating key performance and operational requirements within a results-oriented framework that creates a basis for action and feedback.
• How each organization should be structured; • That each organization should or should not have departments for planning, ethics, quality, or other functions; and • That different units in the organization should be managed in the same way. These factors differ among organizations, and they are likely to change as needs and strategies evolve. The TBEM is non-prescriptive for the following reasons: • The focus is on results, not on procedures, tools, or organizational structure. Organizations are encouraged to develop and demonstrate creative, adaptive, and flexible approaches for meeting requirements. Non-prescriptive requirements are intended to foster incremental and major (“breakthrough”) improvements through innovation. • The selection of tools, techniques, systems, and
The TBEM criteria are made up of results-oriented
organizational structure usually depends
requirements. However, the criteria do not prescribe:
on factors such as the organization type and size, organizational relationships, the organization’s stage of development, and the capabilities and responsibilities of its workforce. // A N A T I O N A T T H E C R O S S R O A D S O F E X C E L L E N C E #"")%
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
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â&#x20AC;˘ A focus on common requirements, rather than on common procedures, fosters understanding, communication, sharing, alignment, and integration, while supporting innovation and diversity in approaches. These standards, in addition to the constant pursuit of excellence, have resulted in the Tata group growing its revenues 10 times in the past 11 years to become a $100 billion enterprise, serving consumers and businesses in more than 150 countries and global leadership in several sectors. By setting expectations and elevating standards across every group company, TBEM provides clear and consistent guidelines for how Tata group companies should approach their business and be able to achieve excellence at each level, eliminating uneven expectations for business leaders.
0)**"'*+,"$+)34)00)'4) Lessons from business excellence models (such as TBEM) are fungible, and with adequate customization, can be applied to the American education system. National education standards can be a catalyst to drive student attainment, competitiveness, and college- and careerreadiness that benefits the students, as well the nation. In 2010, 45 states and the District of Columbia adopted the Common Core State Standards, a set of math and English language arts standards that spells out what skills students are expected to master in kindergarten through 12th grade. These standards were a step to increase rigor in earlier grades and then build a strong foundation for higher-level English and math courses. Governors from both political parties, chief state school officials, and community leaders from 48 states met and worked with top education experts and academics to produce the Common Core State Standards, taking into account more than 10,000 pieces of feedback from
)'"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
!""!#$%&!'!((
individuals, teachers, and organizations. Common Core State Standards are, quite simply, a prioritized, clearly stated list of skills a student must master in each grade level in order to be on track to succeed at college-level work. These new standards are not a curriculum; they set benchmarks for math and English achievement in each grade. The standards are internationally benchmarked and, for the first time in generations, raise the bar for American students to the level of their international peers. Simply put, this was America’s answer to the call for education reform.
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With the Common Core State Standards, we have an opportunity to implement what state and community leaders across the country have defined as a stepping stone to education reform. Being non-prescriptive, it provides states and schools with the ability to develop curriculum customized for their local needs while also aligning attainment levels nationally. Assessments are just a means to enable teachers and state and district administrators to identify shortcomings to improve student performance and examine what works. Only by setting clear benchmarks for states and schools can we ensure improvement toward high standards and expectations. The rest of the world is already marching ahead to create the next generation of educated youth: Canada’s results with increased teacher autonomy; Finland’s world class teacher training; Japan’s ability to relieve student pressure without decreasing student performance; Poland’s structural reform; and South Korea’s success in closing the gap in student achievement between urban and rural schools and
As the Head of Workforce Effectiveness for Tata
advantaged and disadvantaged students.
Consultancy in North America, Balaji Ganapathy oversees the functions of Talent Management, HR Business Consulting,
What we need more than ever is visionary leadership,
Corporate Social Responsibility, Employee Retention, and
bipartisan efforts, cross-sector support, resilience in the
Diversity & Inclusion for more than 23,000 employees.
face of obstacles, and singularity of focus. We owe it to our
He serves as an inaugural member of STEMconnector’s
youth to provide them with an opportunity to gain the skills that will enable them to keep America as the greatest nation in the world. Q
STEM Innovation Task Force (SITF) that is comprised of 15 innovation leaders in STEM from across the corporate, public, education and government sectors in the U.S.
// A N A T I O N A T T H E C R O S S R O A D S O F E X C E L L E N C E !""#$
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
BY JASON A. TYSZKO SENIOR DIRECTOR, POLICY, CENTER FOR EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE U.S. CHAMBER OF COMMERCE FOUNDATION
-,.&%-
A
production manager at a mid-sized manufacturing company is reviewing the company’s capacity to execute and deliver orders over the next three years. Given a growing shortage of precision welders and a high number of retirements expected among engineers, he
is increasingly concerned about the company’s capacity to staff projects. While the firm has posted position openings at local education and training providers and advertised online, the process to fill those positions has dragged on for months. The company has incurred high on-boarding costs and turnover rates for those they did hire, due to the workers lacking necessary qualifications. The installation of new automation systems and increasing overtime has allowed the company to maintain its current level of productivity, but the production manager knows all too well that absent a solution—and one arrived at quickly—the problem will soon undermine his team’s ability to deliver orders on time and take on new business. This example illustrates a common problem experienced by companies of all sizes across a diversity of industries: the skills gap is growing and impacting the ability of companies to compete. According to Tony Carnevale, Director of the Georgetown Center on Education and the Workforce: “The skills gap is one of the number one threats to American competitiveness today and in the future. There is a fundamental misalignment between education and our education and training system with increasing numbers of learners struggling to transition to employment while businesses are desperate for new workers.” A recent survey by Adecco found that 92% of executives believe there is a serious gap in workforce skills and nearly half are missing out on growth opportunities as a result.1 According to Manpower Group, 40% of U.S. employers are struggling to fill jobs.2 Left unchallenged, the skills gap will grow to more than 5 million unfilled positions by 2020.3 Our nation’s education and workforce development system is failing to keep pace with our economy, and employers throughout the United States are struggling to find skilled workers who can contribute to their growth. As a result—despite stubbornly high unemployment rates— many jobs are left unfilled. If employers throughout the country are to maintain their competitiveness, it will require closing an ever-worsening skills gap that continues to undermine economic growth and job creation.
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
Employers control the greatest currency in the education and workforce marketplace: JOBS.
For decades, reform initiatives have sought to
19% at non-flagship universities, and a shocking 4% of
improve the education system; however, the results of
students at two-year institutions.6 For those who make
such efforts have not done enough to improve high
it through, the story is not much better. Nearly 54% of
school or college outcomes—or even the effectiveness of
bachelor’s degree holders aged 25 and under are either
workforce training programs. Consider the performance
unemployed or underemployed.7
of our education system.
At our current trajectory, employers can expect the
Nearly a quarter of all students do not graduate with a basic high school diploma. In 2012, more than
skills gap to be here to stay.
4
$3 billion was spent on remedial education for 1.7 million students entering college who did not have the basic math and reading skills to take college-level courses.5 In addition, too few graduate on time: 36% of students enrolled at four-year flagship universities,
)!"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
With limited time and resources, companies are increasingly interested in improving their return on investment. Employers are no strangers to investing in education partnerships. In K–12 education alone, corporate philanthropy invests on average $3 billion to $4 billion annually.8 This investment has served to
-,.&%-
strengthen the business presence in education but has
This approachâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;a bold departure from prior
achieved limited gains in terms of improving our system
practiceâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;will explore how employers can lead the
as a whole. Over time, companies have become more
way by applying lessons learned from supply chain
sophisticated at investing their energy in efforts that are
management to their education and workforce
systemic and scalable. Return on investment, however,
partnerships. Employers have become increasingly
remains elusive.
sophisticated in managing high-performing and
The business community must be more involved. To that end, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation has launched a partnership with USA Funds to explore a new vision for employer engagement with education and workforce systemsâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;one that yields more effective employment transitions for students and a better prepared workforce for all employers.
adaptive supply chains in all manners of their business. When it comes to talent, however, employers are left without the tools, resources, and partnerships to effectively manage costs, improve returns on investment, and establish sustainable competitive advantages. What is a supply chain? At its most basic level, a supply chain encompasses a set of business activities
// M A N A G I N G T H E T A L E N T P I P E L I N E #"")$
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
and companies involved in designing, making,
can exercise their investment and hiring to drive
delivering, and using a product or service. Supply
behavior among leading suppliers and achieve a
chain management is the coordination of those
more skilled workforce—benefitting individuals,
companies and activities to achieve the best mix of
institutions, and businesses.
responsiveness and efficiency for the “end-customer” being served.9 Once employers begin to understand their role as the “end customers” in managing talent supply chains, they can reshape the education and workforce
LESSONS LEARNED Our collaboration’s initial review of supply chain management practices has already led to identifying several important lessons that can be applied in talent
systems as an extended chain of talent providers that
pipeline management.
prepare learners for careers in the most responsive
LESSON 1: Employers drive value creation
and efficient way possible. Employers control the greatest currency in the education and workforce marketplace: jobs. Through effective talent pipeline management, employers
)+"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
Not long ago, logistics functions within companies were treated as a cost of doing business that should be reduced as much as possible. Market leaders, however, began using more comprehensive supply chain
-,.&%-
management strategies that looked beyond cost and
differently about their approach to human capital.
instead looked at responsiveness, flexibility, and lead
Now, more than ever, employers need to link their
time to gain advantage in the marketplace. What was
education and workforce development investments
once the purview of logistics managers had become an
to their business strategy.”
area of shared ownership within the firm. In addition, leading companies developed customized solutions for different markets and used risk management techniques to make more resilient those supply chains that were most critical to a business’ ability to compete. When managing human capital, employers need to see
This requires that employers play an expanded leadership role as the “end customer” in order to develop customized talent pipeline strategies for all critical functions and jobs that provide the right mix of responsiveness, cost, and resilience. For many jobs, it makes sense to go to the broader labor market for
talent pipeline management as a driver of competitive
“time to fill positions” and “quality of talent.” For those
advantage. Robert Valentine, Global Director of STEM
positions that a company cannot afford to suffer a
Education at Dow Chemical Company, affirms that
shortage, talent pipelines are needed to circumvent “just
“Managing the talent pipeline—particularly in STEM
in time” job boards to reduce time to fill positions and
fields—is not about philanthropy but a business
cost, as well as increase productivity.
imperative that challenges employers to think
When managing human capital, employers need to see talent pipeline management as a driver of competitive advantage.
// M A N A G I N G T H E T A L E N T P I P E L I N E #""),
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
LESSON 2: Employers organize and
takes to train them, what skills they are trained
manage scalable network partnerships.
in, and how well they perform after being hired. The result is a set of institutional partnerships that
Leading supply chain managers increasingly
share costs, benefits, and, most importantly, value.
recognize that costs and benefits are shared across the network, and companies compete based on
LESSON 3: Employer measures and
their combined value, not just their individual
incentives drive performance.
performance. For example, it is not just Toyota competing with Ford, but Toyota’s supply chain competing with Ford’s supply chain. This requires alignment across demand planning, sourcing, and fulfillment in a way that balances quality, cost, and responsiveness among partners. In addition, while many companies compete based on supply chains, many more—particularly small business alliances—collaborate through shared supply chains where they leverage one another’s purchasing power as a network and coordinate across critical functions. Similarly, employers can work to establish a value network of education and workforce partners that can deliver a skilled workforce. A well-coordinated talent pipeline can reduce lead times to fill positions and improve response rates to changing job requirements. This can be achieved by increasing transparency among partners around hiring requirements. Examples of this are happening today. “Manufacturers are leveraging new and innovative technology platforms to signal their competency and credentialing requirements to their training partners,” said Jennifer McNelly, president of The Manufacturing Institute. “The result is better employment opportunities for learners, and more qualified workers for employers.” Other examples of critical feedback include the number of people being trained, the time it *&"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
Supply chain management has long dealt with the danger of inconsistent performance measures that reward units on their individual performance as opposed to a team. One partner may hit their performance targets at the expense of increasing the cost and reducing the performance of another partner. Silos can perform quite well while the supply chain languishes in long lead times and inefficiency. To correct this, effective supply chains share data across partners to measure overall performance. Much of this is achieved through integrated data systems that support dashboards and scorecards across partners. In talent pipeline management, the partnership network is not measured by how well any one partner performs (e.g., enrollments and graduation rates) but instead by “time-to-full productivity” in the workforce. In our current system, education and workforce providers report to a diversity of state and federal agencies that measure success inconsistently. For talent pipeline management to work well, it requires aligning shared performance across partners from the point when a student or worker selects a career pathway all the way until they are employed in a career and earning a competitive wage. Through new public-private partnership models that build on lessons learned from supply chain management, employers across a wide range of
-,.&%-
industries—including manufacturing, information technology, energy and others—will be better able to communicate demand, establish strategic talent pipeline partnerships, and manage partner performance. The result will be a more demand-driven education and workforce system that is responsive to employer needs, improves transitions and outcomes for students, and begins to close the skills gap. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation will release a white paper in early fall that elaborates on the lessons learned from supply chain management, as well as highlights successful employer-led partnerships. Following the paper’s release, the Foundation will host a series of regional roundtables to seek input from business and critical stakeholders, culminating in a national conference on November 19 in Washington, D.C., to lay out a plan for employers to scale talent pipeline management solutions. Q
Jason A. Tyszko is senior director of education and workforce policy at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation where he advances policies and programs that preserve America’s competitiveness and enhance the career readiness of youth and adult learners. Tyszko’s prior experience focused on coordinating interagency education, workforce, and economic development initiatives. In 2009, he served as a policy adviser to Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn’s administration. In addition, Tyszko was deputy chief of staff and senior policy adviser to the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity. Tyszko received his Master of Arts from the University of Chicago and his Bachelor of Arts from DePaul University. He is a certified teacher in the state of Illinois. 1 “The Skills Gap and the State of the Economy,” Adecco, 29 Oct. 2013. 2 “The Talent Shortage Continues: How the Even Changing Role of HR Can Bridge the Gap,” Manpower Group, 2014, 4. 3 “Recovery: Job Growth and Education Requirements Through 2020,” Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce, June 2013. 4 Marie Stetser and Robert Stillwell, “Public High School Four-Year On-Time Graduation Rates and Event Dropout Rates: School Years 2010–11 and 2011–12,” U.S. Department of Education, April 2014. 5 “The Game Changers: Are States Implementing the Best Reforms to get more College Graduates,” Complete College America, Oct. 2013, 8. 6 Ibid, 3. 7 “Half of New Graduates are Jobless or Underemployed,” Associated Press, 23 April 2012. 8 Allen Grossman, Jan W. Rivkin, and Nithya Vaduganathan, “Lasting Impact: A Business Leader’s Playbook for Supporting America’s Schools,” Harvard Business School, Feb. 2014, 2, 9 Michael H. Hugos, Essentials of Supply Chain Management (Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.: 2011), 2-4.
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EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
PARTNERSHIPS WITH PROMISE RELEVANCY IN SCHOOLS THROUGH WORKPLACE LEARNING
BY DR. LAZARO LOPEZ ASSOCIATE SUPERINTENDENT OF TEACHING AND LEARNING, HIGH SCHOOL DISTRICT 214, ARLINGTON HEIGHTS, ILLINOIS
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W
hat was once a rite of passage in our
This is substantiated in the 2009 High School Survey
collective coming-of-age-stories—the
of Student Engagement, conducted by the Center for
summer job—has quickly succumbed to the
Educational Policy at Indiana University. With 350,000
weight of the recession, and with it, countless experiences
students surveyed across 40 states, 66% said they were
essential to the academic development of our nation’s
bored on a daily basis, with the most common causes cited
youth. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the
being that the “the material was NOT interesting” or that
summer labor participation rate for all youth (16-24)
there was a “lack of relevance of the material.”3 Consider
declined from a high of 77.5% in 1989 to 60.5% in
the impact the lack of engagement in school or exposure
2013.1 This downward trend in youth employment
to career opportunities has on a student’s ability to identify
has the potential to have a significant economic and
and pursue a post-secondary degree or certification
academic impact. These early workplace experiences provide students with valuable insights into their areas of interests, along with ample opportunities to apply and develop personal skillsets. Consider their added value when purposefully structured within a defined career pathway to build a network of professional contacts necessary for future employment in the field. Even more importantly, these experiences aid in answering the eternal question we ask every teenager in high school: “What are you going to do with your life?” Early workplace experiences, whether a summer job or focused internship, provide a
FOR OUR NATION’S HIGH SCHOOLS TO BE RELEVANT IN THIS NEW ECONOMY, THEY MUST SERVE AS AN INTEGRAL PART IN A STUDENT’S PROGRESSION TOWARD A CAREER PATHWAY INFORMED BY WORKPLACE LEARNING EXPERIENCES.
foundation to discovering one’s future and an essential pathway to relevancy for schools. Colleges and universities have discovered that workplace experiences in the form of internships or pre-professional requirements lead to more marketable students and higher rates of employment for their graduates.2 Workplace learning is not new to schools as cooperative education programs (which combine classroom lessons with practical work experiences) certainly have a history in secondary education. These programs, however, have been relegated to the cursory few as elective opportunities without a direct and purposeful connection to the college and career goals of the student. As a result, there is little perceived relevance by students in what they do in the classroom and their future.
program that aligns with their skills. With the rising cost of college tuition, changing majors or entering college undecided now comes with an unsustainable price tag. The New York Federal Reserve reports student debt tripled between 2004 and 2012, reaching close to $1 trillion. Students can no longer afford to go to college without a clear pathway discovered long before the freshman year in college. With a 70% increase in the number of borrowers and average debt per person, our nation’s economy can’t afford it either.4 If we can connect the dots between what students are excited about in their future and the classes they take, they are more engaged, more motivated, and more likely to challenge themselves with honors or advanced placement. For our nation’s high schools to be relevant in
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly 2. External experiences take on a multitude of forms,
THE ROLE OF THE SCHOOL LEADER REQUIRES AN INNUMERABLE SET OF SKILLS, BUT TWO OF THE MOST IMPORTANT IN THIS EFFORT ARE STEWARDSHIP OF A VISION AND SUSTAINING THE SCHOOL CULTURE.
including problem-based learning, internships, site visits, competitions, real-world challenges, summer enrichment, and anything else that brings authenticity to the classroom and informs a student’s career choice. Person-to-person engagement and interaction is the most essential component to ensuring relevance and engagement in the classroom and requires the school leaders to engage in myriad partnerships. At a minimum, graduating students should have an opportunity to participate in a microinternship related to their selected program of study.
this new economy, they must serve as an integral part in a student’s progression toward a career pathway informed by workplace learning experiences.
ENGAGEMENT THROUGH RELEVANCE There are 16 nationally recognized career clusters, each with a common set of foundational knowledge and skills represented in the Illinois Career Cluster Framework.5 Restructuring high schools through the lens of the career cluster framework requires leadership willing to engage the broader business community in a direct and meaningful way with the school’s academic programs. The result is students leave our high schools not just meeting traditional graduation requirements but with what we call a “Diploma Plus,” which includes industry credentialing, early college credit, and workplace learning experiences that lay the foundation for a post-secondary career. Three non-negotiable principles guided our work in the Programs of Study structure: 1. Sequence of courses that leads beyond high school. Every elective course serves a purpose to advance a student along one of the career pathways within the 16 career clusters in the Illinois framework. While every school and district cannot feasibly offer every pathway in each cluster, every school can set a goal to provide career pathways represented by every cluster.
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3. Career certification and dual college credit opportunities are embedded in each program of study. It is the combination of external experiences with stackable credentials and early college credit that ensure students leave high school with a resume ready to engage in the next steps in their career pathway. In key career pathways for our community, industry partners serve on advisory boards providing curriculum feedback, guidance on facility renovations, and providing workplace-learning experiences. These experiences may be a traditional 16-week internship with the student earning a grade. It could also be a micro-internship, generally only a few weeks in duration, focused on a specific project or activity. In a larger school district, micro-internships can be scaled much more quickly and efficiently, avoiding some of the challenges of a long-term placement while still providing students with an opportunity to engage in an industry of interest. Other partners provide site visits, mentors, or design problem-based learning challenges for teams of students to solve.
SCHOOL LEADERSHIP School leaders considering establishing a career pathway structure at their secondary institutions should begin by engaging the leading industries and employers in the area. The capacity for relevance in the school is maximized in
.&,)%$%<
the development of enriching external experiences. These experiences provide a venue for authentic audiences and allow for the integration of career pathways. In determining where to begin, school leaders must start with the strengths of the school and build upon that foundation. Are there natural partnerships nearby? What fields or occupations are most in demand in your region’s economy? There are other questions to be asked as well, but one of the best resources for a school leader
THE ABILITY OF THE SCHOOL LEADER TO FOSTER A POSITIVE CULTURE, IS IN MY EXPERIENCE, DIRECTLY CORRELATED TO THE DEPTH AND BREADTH OF THE ORGANIZATION’S ABILITY TO FULFILL ITS VISION.
is the local and state economic development office. Their mission is to be connected with the needs of businesses
because it is the common vision that drives every facet
in the community and those of potential businesses they
of school improvement. It provides the underpinning
are seeking to recruit. A deep and collaborative relationship
for a collective ownership of successes and failures that
between the school and the economic development office
engages each stakeholder.
of its community can serve as an economic catalyst for the area they serve.
Second, and equally as important, a school leader must purposefully sustain a school culture that is
By any measure, the most impactful relationships
committed to providing each student every possible
for students with a business partner must be based on
opportunity to discover his or her future from the
mutually beneficial goals. If it’s not a win-win, it’s not
moment they enter the school doors. Ultimately,
sustainable. Embedded in the school experience should be
leadership is about the power to influence, and the
ample opportunities for career exploration and discovery
ability of the school leader to foster a positive culture
through multi-tiered systems of support, which provides
is directly correlated to the depth and breadth of the
both enrichment and intensive interventions for students
organization’s ability to fulfill its vision.
unable to determine a career cluster of interest.
IMPACT OF RELEVANCY
The role of the school leader requires an innumerable set of skills, but two of the most important in this
High School District 214 in Arlington Heights, Ill.,
effort are stewardship of a vision and sustaining the
encompasses 6 comprehensive high schools serving
school culture. It is the leader’s ability to successfully
8 communities and 12,000 students. Each has been
apply these skills that lays the foundation for all that
recognized by national publications as among America’s
is accomplished in the school. First and foremost, a
most successful high schools. Students who graduate
school leader must be able to coalesce the staff around
with a Diploma Plus leave high school more competitive,
a common vision of relevance and external engagement
already building his or her resume through dual college
for the school. The vision must be reinforced and
credits, industry certifications, and access to substantive,
communicated in a multitude of forms (both written
real-world workplace learning opportunities.
and verbal, from large group presentations to individual conversations) on a regular basis. This is essential,
U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan recognized the value of this experience in his recent visit to one // P A R T N E R S H I P S W I T H P R O M I S E #""**
EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
THE CAPACITY FOR RELEVANCE IN THE SCHOOL IS MAXIMIZED IN THE DEVELOPMENT OF ENRICHING EXTERNAL EXPERIENCES. THESE EXPERIENCES PROVIDE A VENUE FOR AUTHENTIC AUDIENCES AND ALLOW FOR THE INTEGRATION OF CAREER PATHWAYS. of the nation’s first high school nanotechnology labs,
to address the demand for workers in computer science,
located in the district at Wheeling High School6 in
the district partnered with industry leaders to redesign
suburban Chicago. Students enrolled in Introduction to
an Information Technology Career Pathway that is
Nanotechnology earn dual-credit in this capstone course
contextualized within a cybersecurity lens. In partnership
within the Research and Development Career Pathway.
with Mobile Makers in Chicago, a new computer science
The project was made possible through partnerships
orientation course will train high school freshman how
between the district, the Illinois Department of
to code for app development on their IOS devices,
Commerce and Economic Opportunity, and the Illinois
followed by the acquisition of several CompTia industry
Science and Technology Coalition. Course content and
certifications and early college credit coursework.
student research experiences have been developed through a coalition of large corporate partners and small start-ups.
In examining the value of career pathways as an effective education model, we must understand how
As a result of partnerships with countless local
it impacts students. Many of these workplace-learning
manufacturers and affiliate organizations—such as
experiences lead to employment with the relationships
the SME Education Foundation, the Technology
continuing well into the student’s post-secondary
and Manufacturing Association, and the Illinois
experience. A recent graduate of Wheeling High School,
Manufacturers’ Association—the district’s Project Lead the
Mallory, entered the engineering/manufacturing career
Way (PLTW) engineering curriculum is enhanced with
pathway with a small spark of interest in how things are
three state-of-the-art manufacturing facilities. Students in
made. Her experiences in the PLTW Computer Integrated
the Engineering and Advanced Manufacturing Pathway
Manufacturing class, the district’s robot rumble challenge,
can earn National Institute for Metalworking Skills
and the opportunity to design and manufacture her ideas
(NIMS) Certification, Manufacturing Skill Standards
into reality led her into an internship at Swiss Precision
Council (MSSC) Certification, and up to 22 semester
Machining. Even as she began attending the University
hours of dual-credit through Harper College.
of Southern California, pursuing a degree in aeronautical
One recent partner, Panek Precision in Northbrook, Ill., designed a three-week rotating internship experience that provided students with a chance to engage several handson areas within their manufacturing facility. In an effort
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engineering, she still returned to Swiss Precision in the summers to work. Today, while Mallory continues her education, she has an internship with the Air Force Research Laboratories in California. She credits her machining experience and coursework for her success.
.&,)%$%< Francisco, another Wheeling High School graduate,
So, what role is your business playing in keeping schools
worked extremely hard, staying after school at least three
relevant and helping youth in your community discover
days a week to get one-on-one time on the machines.
their future? Q
At the end of the class, Francisco took the MSSC and NIMS certification exams, earning entry-level credentials. It was the work ethic he developed that inspired many industry partners to give him an interview. He landed his first job at Holbrook Manufacturing, where he is regarded as a “model” employee. Today, Francisco is still thrilled about manufacturing. He was able to purchase his first car, a healthcare plan, and has had multiple raises in his short 12-month career. Francisco was proud to be able to contribute financially to his family, noting that he was actually making more than his mother, who was struggling to support them. As of today, Francisco plans on saving enough money to attend the local community college and earn an Associate’s degree, specializing in machining. In a time of fiscal insecurity and high unemployment, this work in schools is essential and scalable. By being responsive to the global economy, partnering with business, and remaining flexible in the development and delivery of curriculum that is relevant to its students, public education can work for students. The career pathway structure provides the business community with an opportunity to shape education in partnership with school leaders by providing students with meaningful workplace experiences, advice on industry trends, and a relevant preparation for postsecondary life. Preparing students for the future is a growing challenge— evolving industries, changing technologies, and shrinking economies require us to prepare students for a world we can’t even imagine. The career pathways model is a different and effective way to approach secondary education. It exposes students to a wide range of opportunities, and it challenges their intellectual curiosity. For career pathways to be successful, however, businesses must be a partner to schools, develop substantive hands-on experiences for students, and
Dr. Lazaro Lopez is Associate Superintendent for Teaching and Learning at High School District 214 in Arlington Heights, Illinois. The nationally recognized district is the state’s second-largest high school district, serving more than 12,000 students from eight suburban Chicago communities. In his previous role as Principal of Wheeling High School, Dr. Lopez led the effort to integrate STEM and 21st century skills and career pathways within a comprehensive Title I high school, forging innovative community partnerships and optimizing grant funding to create an onsite medical lab and advanced manufacturing facility for students. The effort, which included the fall 2013 launch of the nation’s first-of-its-kind nanotechnology lab in a public high school, earned him the title of 2013 Illinois Principal of the Year. Wheeling High School has received state and national recognition as a model STEM school. Dr. Lopez has spoken nationally on STEM education, advocating for a high school education that delivers a “diploma-plus”: the opportunity to earn college credits and career certifications while engaged in internship experiences in a wide range of career fields. He is a member of the Illinois Educator Leader Cadre, the Midwest Principal’s Association Governing Board, the Society of Manufacturing Engineers Education Foundation Board and past chair of the Illinois ACT State Organization and 10th Congressional District Education Advisory Board. REFERENCES 1 U.S. Department of Labor. “Employment and Unemployment Among Youth - Summer 2013,” USDL-13-1698. Accessed July 1, 2014. http:// www.bls.gov/news.release/youth.nr0.htm; 2 Brian Burnsed, “Degrees Are Great, but Internships Make a Difference,” U.S. News & World Report, April 15, 2010, accessed July 1, 2014. http://www.usnews.com/education/articles/2010/04/15/ when-a-degree-isnt-enough 3 Ethan Yazzie-Mintz, “Charting the Path from Engagement to Achievement: A Report on the 2009 High School Survey of Student Engagement.” Center for Evaluation & Education Policy, Indiana University. Accessed July 1, 2014 http://ceep.indiana.edu/hssse/ images/HSSSE_2010_Report.pdf 4 Donghoon Lee, “Household Debt and Credit: Student Debt” Federal Reserve Bank of New York accessed http://www.newyorkfed.org/ newsevents/mediaadvisory/2013/Lee022813.pdf 5 Programs of Study: Illinois Career Cluster Framework accessed July 1, 2014. http://64.107.108.147/ programsofstudy/clusterframework.html 6 Jonathan Sapers, “Magnifying Learning,” Scholastic Administrator, Winter 2014. http://www.scholastic. com/browse/article.jsp?id=3758318
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champion rigorous programs of study. // P A R T N E R S H I P S W I T H P R O M I S E #""*$
EXECUTIVE PROFILE
THEME
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
!"##$%!&'()*"& 38th United States Secretary of Commerce U.S. Department of Commerce
Penny Pritzker is 38th Secretary of the U.S. Department of Commerce. An accomplished and renowned civic and business leader, Ms. Pritzker holds more than 25 years of experience in the real estate, hospitality, senior living, and financial services industries. Before her role leading the Commerce Department, Ms. Pritzker was appointed by President Obama to the Presidentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Council
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for Jobs and Competitiveness. She also previously served on the Presidentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Economic Recovery Advisory Board, as well as on the boards of Hyatt Hotels Corporation, Wm. Wrigley Jr. Company, Marmon Group and LaSalle Bank Corporation. She is the former CEO of PSP Capital Partners and holds J.D. and M.B.A. degrees from Stanford University.
-),$%$%<
Penny Pritzker Foundation: What spurred your involvement in education and how have your previous skills initiatives informed your work as Secretary of Commerce? Pritzker: My parents taught me that education is the key to a productive life, making a contribution to my community, and maximizing potential. They believed— and I believe—that knowledge and experience are the great equalizers and that every child should have access to a good education and training that will put them on a path to greater opportunity. As a leader in my community, and now at the federal level, I feel a strong responsibility to ensure that all of our children have the opportunity to benefit from a quality educational experience so they improve their chances to succeed. When I was in Chicago, I served on the public school board, working to improve the experience we offered the 400,000 children in the system with a longer school day and longer school year. In addition, I helped create Skills for America’s Future, and later, Skills for Chicagoland’s Future. Both of these programs work directly with employers and training organizations to help prepare our workforce with in-demand skills. This type of jobdriven training is something that I am passionate about expanding in my role as Secretary of Commerce. Ensuring our young people have the tools and training they need to succeed in the 21st century economy is critical not only for their individual futures but also for our nation’s overall competitiveness. That is why I am very proud that we have made skills development a top priority at the Department of Commerce for the very first time. In the development of Skills for America’s Future, we always knew that businesses must take a leadership role in these efforts because they have the best insight into our communities’ job needs. That philosophy has carried through to our work on skills development at the federal level. With our direct line to businesses all over the country, the Department of Commerce is particularly well-positioned to lead in this area and to support the sharing and replication of best practices.
Foundation: How important is education to growing American economic competitiveness? Pritzker: Since taking office more than a year ago, I have spoken to more than 1,200 business leaders from across the country, including one-third of the Fortune 500 CEOs. A top concern they all shared is the challenge they face in finding qualified workers to fill available jobs. We know that our long-term competitiveness requires a workforce equipped with the skills businesses need. It is absolutely imperative that we use all of the tools in our toolbox to educate and prepare our workforce for 21st century jobs. We are specifically focused on encouraging employer partnerships with community colleges, creating apprenticeship programs, and expanding the availability of industry-recognized, portable credentials in workforce training. We know, for example, that 87% of workers who complete apprenticeships get good jobs and will make $300,000 more over their lifetime than their peers. This type of educational experience has transformative potential. The bottom line is that there is not a one-size-fits-all model when it comes to skills development, and we have to make sure that we are training our workforce according to what employers are actually looking for in their sector. Foundation: Given today’s economy, which industries or occupations would you advise students to consider when selecting a major? Pritzker: One of the greatest areas of opportunity we are seeing across America today is in manufacturing. The fact is that U.S. manufacturing has really turned a corner. For the first time in more than 10 years, both manufacturing output and employment are growing. Since the end of the recession, output has increased 38% and the manufacturing sector has created more than 640,000 quality jobs. Through efforts like Manufacturing Day— which is coming up on October 3—manufacturers around
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BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
the country are opening their doors to a class, a grade, or a school to help expose our young people to what a career in manufacturing holds. Foundation: What should the role of commerce agencies be when it comes to education reform? Pritzker: I think the work we are doing in the area of skills development is very exciting. It is the first time that the Departments of Commerce and Labor, as well as the Department of Education, have come together with local governments and providers to find solutions that make our workforce and training system more job-driven, integrated, and effective. Our agencies are focused on breaking down silos between businesses, training organizations, academic institutions, and governments to create a collaborative training ecosystem that supports the needs of our workers and our businesses. In addition to our role as a convener, the federal government is changing the way it invests in workforce development. Through our grants, we are encouraging employers to partner with community colleges, to engage with workforce intermediaries targeting the long-term unemployed, to support and develop apprenticeship programs, and to emphasize the value of industry-recognized, portable credentials in their training and hiring. At the federal level, we are focused on scaling the models that work. This year, the Obama Administration will award $500 million in federal funding to community colleges that partner with individual companies and national industry associations to expand our job-driven training programs and will invest $100 million in an apprenticeships grant competition, targeted at providing support for programs in new areas, including advanced manufacturing, IT, and healthcare. Foundation: How do you see business leadership contributing to the future of education? Pritzker: There is no question that educators and industry must be working hand-in-hand to develop a pipeline !&"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
of skilled workers. I believe we can best serve America’s workforce and America’s businesses by building stronger partnerships across all stakeholder groups at the local, regional, and national levels, which will strengthen the ecosystems of training that our workers need to compete in the years ahead.
Foundation: How can education and workforce systems better support entrepreneurship? Pritzker: We know that entrepreneurs are vital to the American economy. In addition to better training and equipping our workers to compete and succeed in the global economy, we must support those with the inclination to start their own business and provide them the tools needed to realize the dream of developing new products and services. At the Department of Commerce, our Economic Development Administration (EDA) has actively supported and helped fund the creation and continuation of entrepreneurship accelerators and incubators from Nashville, Tennessee to Scottsdale, Arizona. These accelerators and incubators are helping American entrepreneurs turn their innovative ideas into viable businesses. As someone who has started five companies, I am a true believer in the power of entrepreneurship. I am also very proud to serve as the Obama Administration’s point person on entrepreneurship. Earlier this year, President Obama and I launched an initiative called the Presidential Ambassadors for Global Entrepreneurship (PAGE), which I am proud to chair. PAGE is a partnership between U.S. government agencies and 11 outstanding American entrepreneurs, which aims to inspire entrepreneurship in the United States and around the world. Research indicates that new and young companies are responsible for virtually all job growth across the United States. Inspiring successful start-ups—in the United States and around the world—is a priority for President Obama and me.
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Penny Pritzker I believe we can best serve Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s workforce and Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s businesses by building stronger partnerships across all stakeholder groups at the local, regional, and national levels, which will strengthen the ecosystems of training that our workers need to compete in the years ahead.
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EXECUTIVE PROFILE
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BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
+,--%./0120 President and CEO, USA Funds
William D. Hansen, President and CEO of USA Funds, has more than 30 years of experience in education at the K-12 and postsecondary levels, including 15 years of service in the public sector and 20 years in the corporate and nonprofit sectors. Hansen served as deputy U.S. secretary of education from 2001-2003 and was chairman and CEO of the Madison Education Group, a Washington, D.C. consulting firm. He also served as president of Policy Impact Communications, a Washington-based public relations and government affairs firm. Hansen joined USA Funds in July 2013.
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Bill Hansen Foundation: You’ve held leadership roles in government and the private sector. What spurred your passion and involvement in education? Hansen: Improving education has been a lifelong passion for me. I was fortunate to have great role models within my own family. After her husband died, and while she was raising three children, at age 50, my grandmother went back to college to get her degree to become a teacher. My dad was a teacher as well. And I’ve had a unique opportunity both to shape education policy during my service in the federal government and to develop innovative tools to improve education through the leadership roles I’ve held in several private-sector companies. Foundation: How are you transforming the work of USA Funds to support the mission of “Completion with Purpose”? Hansen: For the last 50 years, USA Funds has been one of the most innovative nonprofit organizations promoting higher education access for students from every socioeconomic level. Given the tough economy and the pressures facing higher education, we are now looking to step up to the plate and be part of the solution. We’re focusing on what I like to call “completion with a purpose”—to reshape higher education to bring better alignment between the skills of college grads and the needs of employers; to bring technology to bear to improve the affordability and effectiveness of higher education; to help students pick the right college, the right degree, and the right financing that will lead to rewarding careers and fulfilling futures. Foundation: How do you see the future of higher education evolving? Hansen: There have been many smart people talking about the “unbundling” of higher education. Largely through technology and online learning opportunities, students now have ever-expanding options to pick and
Given the tough economy and the pressures facing higher education, we are now looking to step up to the plate and be part of the solution. choose their education services from a variety of providers. In addition, the student demographic has changed dramatically. There are an awful lot of 25-to-45-year-old working adults who are going back to school to complete that degree they never finished or are trying to retool their skills because of the tough job market. So the delivery models have been disrupted and will need to continue to change to meet the changing demands of students, working adults, and employers. Foundation: What is the greatest innovation in education today? Hansen: The rapid advances in technology are dramatically changing the ways students learn. Because of the technology tools they have, my own children and grandchildren interact socially and learn in very different ways than the people of my generation did. Technology is changing just about every sector of the economy, so it is having a dramatic impact on how we teach, the way we learn, and how people prepare for jobs and new opportunities. // f e a t u r e a r t i c l e n a m e #"!( // E X E C U T // I V EA RP TRIOCFL IEL EN A#""!( M E #""!(
EXECUTIVE PROFILE
THEME
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
Foundation: What is the biggest challenge we face in transforming higher education? Hansen: Frankly, it’s changing the delivery model and all the rules, regulations, and financial systems that are built around that model. The financial aid model, the accreditation model, the accountability models are all antiquated. The systems are very cumbersome. I think the cost drivers, the regulatory drivers, and the other impediments to change are the greatest obstacles to overcome at the state, federal, and institutional levels. Foundation: What is your vision for the impact that USA Funds can have on student success in higher education? Hansen: We’ve had some terrific history in helping students make the right choices with our financial literacy, default prevention, debt management, and other tools that we’re looking to build on to broaden our impact on improving higher education outcomes. Among our goals would be to provide students with more affordable higher education programs and more postsecondary options so they are not saddled with student loan debt that is going to preclude them from pursuing the dreams that they would like to go after. We would also hope that our efforts would result in students being better prepared for the workforce, so more graduates find meaningful employment related to their studies. Foundation: How important is the business community’s involvement in education and education reform? Hansen: It’s probably more important now than it’s ever been. Approximately 4 million jobs go unfilled in our economy because we are not graduating students with the skill sets that the business community demands. So there’s got to be a better alignment in workforce supply and demand. The business community has to step up in a big way to identify both today’s jobs that are in demand and also looking down the road the next 5, 10, 20 years
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of what the jobs of the future will be and what are the requirements that students need to meet to be prepared to fill those jobs. Foundation: What’s the biggest misconception business leaders have about education and likewise the biggest misconception that educators have about business’ involvement in education? Hansen: In all of my business experience running different companies, we always looked at our customers and suppliers as making rational, market-driven decisions whenever we were buying from or selling to our partners in the supply chain. Frankly, education hasn’t necessarily been perceived as a market-driven supplier of what businesses need. There needs to be better dialogue, better information going back and forth, both with the companies’ expectations as well as the education sector’s expectations. This enhanced dialogue between business and the academy needs to take place at all levels because a company CEO may not know as well as the supervisor on the factory floor what skills are really needed in the organization’s employees. Foundation: What advice would you give a student considering what path to take after high school? Hansen: It’s so important for students to assess who they are, what they want to be, and to make smart, informed decisions about how they’re going to get from here to there. College may or may not be the right choice for every student. There are many different ways to get the skillsets that you need through different training and education options. But everyone needs to get a very firm foundation of basic skills because our economy changes, our labor market changes, and so you are likely to change jobs several times during your career. I’d suggest students discover what their passion is and pursue opportunities that will allow them to apply their skills to an area that’s of interest to them.
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Bill Hansen It’s so important for students to assess who they are, what they want to be, and to make smart, informed decisions about how they’re going to get from here to there.
I’d suggest students discover what their passion is and pursue opportunities that will allow them to apply their skills to an area that’s of interest to them.
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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW Curated from recent U.S Chamber of Commerce Foundation research, blogs and events.
uschamberfoundation.org
&"3"4&5. The growing skills gap is one of the most persistent challenges affecting thriving and lagging state economiesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the disparity between the skills companies need to drive growth and innovation versus the skills that actually exist within their organizations and in the labor market. This disconnect, expected to grow substantially as the boomer generation retires, causes workers and companies to miss out on realizing their full potential. From Enterprising States 2014, Re-creating Equality and Opportunity
Rapid increases in population, the movement of energy-intensive production processes to developing countries, and a growing demand for western-style living has resulted in rapid increases in energy consumption globallyâ&#x20AC;ŚWhile much of that increase in energy demand comes from residential and production needs, a significant portion of it will come from agricultural and water needs. Energy plays a key role in preparing water for consumption. From The Energy-Food-Water-Nexus: Insights for the Business Community. U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation Corporate Citizenship Center.
Among the 10 cities in the Regulatory Climate Index, the most efficient cities across all five areas of business regulation are Dallas and St. Louis. The cities of Raleigh, Boston, Atlanta, and Detroit have moderate levels of regulatory efficiency. Chicago, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and New York City have the least efficient regulatory environments. Every city measured has its own clear strengths and weaknesses. From Regulatory Climate Index 2014.
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The states that have adopted the Common Core State Standards are on the right path to ensuring that ALL students are college and career ready. Conversely, the states that have pulled out of the Common Core and have gone back to lowering their state standards aren’t doing their students any favors. Mark D’Alessio, Manager of Communications, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Center for Education and Workforce “Will Common Core Make College A Reality for More Low-Income Students?” | July 21, 2014
Open data is a lot like a classic public good because many people can use it without diminishing its value and, once it is made public, it is difficult to exclude people from using it. Joe Kennedy, President, Kennedy Research and former chief economist for the U.S. Department of Commerce “Open Data Makes Big Social Impact.” | August 1, 2014
One of the great things about a “government of the people, by the people, for the people,” as Abraham Lincoln famously called it, is that we own our government and everything it does and possesses. To unnecessarily restrict access to government-held data is like buying a car and then being told you cannot drive it. The principle of ownership, however, is secondary to the good data can do in innovation and competitiveness. Rich Cooper, Vice President of Emerging Issues & Research, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation “Opening the FDA Data Vaults.” | July 8, 2014
Big Data is just a tool—it can be used for good or ill. What we do know is that Big Data itself is not the enemy. Simply singling out one innovation or industry won’t rid us of discrimination. We need to focus on the good uses of data while substantively addressing those practices that are clearly discriminatory or abusive. Achieving these aims requires more data, not less. Michael Hendrix, Director of Emerging Issues & Research, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation “Does Big Data Discriminate?” | June 26, 2014
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WHAT YOU SHOULD KNOW 9:7("3 “This country’s skills gap is one of the most consequential public policy challenges we face right now. It holds back our economy when employers can’t find workers with the skills they need to run their businesses. Altogether, it threatens our growth and competiveness.” The Honorable John R. McKernan, Jr. President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation June 11, 2014 John R. McKernan, Jr., President, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation
“The next five and 10 years are going to create a lot of new situations that we can’t even think of today because of data quickly becoming available.” Paul Feenstra Senior Vice President for Government and External Affairs Intelligent Transportation Society of America July 31, 2014
(From Left to Right): Brian Worth of Uber, Joseph Kopser of RideScout, Larry Marcus, of Arlington County, Virginia, and Paul Feenstra of the Intelligent Transportation Society of America, discuss advances in transportation and data
“There’s no such thing as ‘free’ parking and there’s no such thing as a ‘freeway’... We call them freeways because drivers don’t stop and pay tolls on them—but we’re all paying for them one way or another.” Joseph Kopser Co-founder and CEO of Ridescout !+"#"B U S I N E S S H O R I Z O N Q U A R T E R L Y // I S S U E 1 1
“We shouldn’t have to sell higher [educational] standards…I don’t know how in America you could be against higher standards.”
Sonny Perdue, former Governor of Georgia
Sonny Perdue Former Georgia Governor May 21, 2014
“We are all over this notion of sustainability. Our chief executive officer believes sustainability should be part of our core competency.” Rose McKinney-James Board member of MGM Resorts International and principal of Energy Works Consulting, LLC May 6, 2014
(From Left to Right): Mary Grace Anderson of Shell Upstream Americas, Rose McKinney James of Energy Works Consulting, and David Melancon of Benjamin Moore & Co., at a recent event on environmental sustainability
“In traditional industries, such as manufacturing, and new industries, such as telecommunications and software, we can see a deep transformation in the very economic mode of production. The change is not simply in how people communicate. It is not a consumer fad. Rather, what we are seeing is a fundamental economic transformation that is already underway.” Tony Mills Foundation Researcher “Look to Physical Systems, Not Social Media, for the Data Revolution” July 28, 2014
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BUSINESS LEADERS SPEAK! “What is the biggest challenge in education, and what can the business community do to help?” “Employers and educators must collaborate to connect training to jobs. No single sector can tackle this challenge alone, and IBM is rising to the academic and CTE challenge with our P-TECH grades 9–14 schools. Business must help map courses to workplace data and clearly define workforce readiness.” - Maura Banta Director, Global Citizenship Initiatives in Education, Corporate Citizenship & Corporate Affairs IBM
“Engaging students and teaching the most important life skill: learning to learn. Businesses should support school leaders in implementing world-class standards, ensuring access to technology and tools that are used in the workplace, and partnering to offer career experiences and opportunities.” - Sari G. Factor Chief Executive Officer Edgenuity
“Not enough students are graduating from high school ready for college work, especially in science, technology, engineering, and math. Alongside educators and parents, we are advocating for high student expectations and are providing support to innovative programs that help students complete advanced courses and prepare effective STEM teachers.” - Suzanne McCarron President ExxonMobil Foundation
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BUSINESS LEADERS SPEAK!
“Students, counselors, and teachers have no insight into manufacturing careers, skills needed, and the opportunities that exist. Businesses must go beyond mere outreach to active engagement with schools, students, teachers, counselors, and the community to facilitate career competence—and success—in grads.” - Darlene M. Miller President/CEO Permac Industries
“As employers, the business community is a leading customer for higher education. Business should engage more actively by specifying the skills and knowledge that companies are looking for from employees. Communicate these needs to every sector of higher education: public, non-profit, and proprietary.” - Vickie L. Schray Senior Vice President Regulatory Affairs & Public Policy Bridgepoint Education
“The biggest challenge for educators is to deliver career-relevant education. Employer-educator partnerships are critical to addressing talent shortages, and industry can help by requiring that such partnerships be results-based and keyed to strategic requirements for talent development.”
- Tim Welsh Senior Vice President – Industry Strategy Apollo Education Group
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EDUCATION AND WORKFORCE
BUsiness Horizon Quarterly
FINAL WORD In his 1968 work, The Age of Discontinuity, noted businessman, author, and educator Peter Drucker said, “Education has become too important to be left to educators.” Drucker’s guidance stresses how important it is for all of us (not just educators) to be involved with education. Nearly 50 years after he wrote those words, Drucker’s advice has been taken to heart. Today, elected officials at all levels of government, along with the media, the business community, educators, parents, and students are all debating one of the most important topics our country has ever faced—the future education of our children and the shaping of a competitive workforce. Study after study and measure after measure gives all Americans pause as we realize that we are not measuring up to our competitors on other continents. From mathematics and science test scores to producing highly skilled technical talent from our trade schools and other institutions of higher learning, our country is not making the grade. That’s a sobering fact for a superpower. This country’s strength (economically and strategically) was built by the muscle of some superbly strong and sharp minds. They were risk takers in the global marketplace of ideas, spurring groundbreaking efforts in technology, science, and exploration. As a result of those ideas, in addition to a strong pool of human capital and other investments from the late 19th and 20th centuries, America stands today as the envy of much of the world. That unique and envious standing, however, is not without risk and is not guaranteed. Parents and private and public leaders see a need to refresh and reinforce the American metric of being Number 1. This has driven vibrant debates over who is involved in education decisions and the diverse options that are being offered for students, educators, and employers to produce the talent that will keep the United States in the top spot. All of these actions point to something fundamental: people passionately care about this issue. They are not interested in complacency and status quo. They want new and positive results that show upward trends. They know standing in place and accepting the present offerings will not put them in the top tier. In their own way, they are adopting the long heralded NASA mantra, “Failure is not an option,” because they understand the consequences in terms of available opportunities and unfulfilled potential. For as much as some members of “the educational establishment” may not want newcomers actively taking a role in the debates on education policies and outcomes, the current metrics are indefensible. We have reached the realization that our education and workforce systems have to evolve to meet the needs of the populace they serve, and that often means changing the way things have always been done. When that happens, everyone feels a bit uncomfortable because it means students of all ages (and we should all be life-long learners) have to change as well. By getting outside our comfort zone, we are better able to meet the competition that lies beyond our borders while becoming a far more dynamic and creative force than we are today. That’s a winning formula on many levels, and it affords the promising future we all want to have for ourselves and the generations to come.
Rich Cooper Editor-in-chief
BusinessForCore.org provides businesses
with the tools and resources to help them understand and support the Common Core State Standards in their particular state.
Features include: • An electronic toolkit • An interactive state-by-state map which provides a snapshot of the education landscape • Opinion pieces from business and thought leaders • Informational videos on high standards • Myths vs. Facts • Pledge of support
Show your support for college- and-career-ready standards. Sign the Pledge at BusinessforCore.org.
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TALENT PIPELINE MANAGEMENT: A New Approach to Closing the Skills Gap
T
he U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation (USCCF) is working with employers to close the growing skills gap by leveraging lessons learned from supply chain management. On November 19, USCCF will hold a national conference to begin building a movement around these employer-driven solutions.
JOIN US NOV 19