6
| november 2018
theVoice
Guest Perspective insight
Solutions for businesses dealing with the skills gap I am eager and enthusiastic to begin my first term as the new chair of The Workforce Connection Board serving Boone, Stephenson and Winnebago counties. The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, passed overwhelmingly by Congress in 2014, requires each area of the state set up a local board, led by representatives of the business community, to engage with employers and oversee local workforce activities that meet the needs of employers and support economic growth in the region. We are the lead workforce agency in our three counties, and we take this responsibility very seriously. We currently have a regional workforce plan with goals that have been embedded into our committee structure. Our top three priorities are: Implementation of the Regional Workforce Plan; Employer Engagement; Aligning Career Pathways. Our communities face both challenges and opportunities when it comes to helping employers attract, prepare and retain a skilled workforce. Our recent annual meeting included a review of the most recent workforce data, showing: ■■ Declining unemployment; ■■ Fewer workers of prime working age; ■■ A large pool of workers with limited education, and ■■ An aging labor force This data should come as no surprise to businesses trying to hire skilled workers. We offer The Workforce Connection as the solution. We are emphasizing work-based learning to help the many employers in our region who are having a difficult time hiring the skilled workers they need to expand and grow. The available training dollars can be used for on-the-job training and creating apprenticeships for new workers, training to provide new skills to existing workers or customized training for special skills. Funding is also available to provide work experience opportunities for young adults
and others with limited work histories.
Frank Rotello The Workforce Connection
Help for Local Companies
In the last year, more than 50 employers in Winnebago, Boone and Stephenson counties made use of available funding for job training. Among them were SwedishAmerican, A Division of UW Health, which needed to train all of its employees on a new records system; Magna Exteriors, one of the Chrysler suppliers in Belvidere, which used short-term classroom and hands-on training to fill 100 forklift positions; Leading Edge Hydraulics; Imperial Punch, CoreFX, which used available on-the-job training dollars to increase the skill levels of newly hired workers, and Brightside Adult Daycare, which provided much-needed work experience for one of the young students in our Elevate youth program. The Workforce Connection is a valuable regional asset available to both job seekers and employers to get connected to address both short-term and long-term strategic workforce opportunities. The success of the business services team over the last year is a result of embracing an entrepreneurial culture by listening to employer needs and leveraging team resources to implement innovative solutions to meet the workforce needs of employers in our region. Information about the services available to employers, our annual report and additional labor market information and other workforce data are available on our website at www. theworkforceconnection.org. Frank Rotello, CEO of Alpha Controls and Services LLC, Rockford, is chair of The Workforce Connection board. The views expresses are those of Rotello’s and do not necessarily represent those of the Rockford Chamber of Commerce.
IGNITE BUSINESS NETWORKING GROUP This business networking group is an industry specific group of young professionals (45 and under) looking to grow their business. Each person locks down their industry and is the only person that represents that industry in the group. The group gets together every two weeks for lunch where we network and share news in our industry with the group. Our group consists of 18 members currently and each member has already seen the benefits of working together to grow in business together. Each member is giving and/or receiving on average 3 referrals per month. The annual dues are just $45 and as a group we have decided to use the funds for two scholarships for RPS 205 students to help fuel the potential of up and coming young professionals in our community. For more information or to see about openings in the group, email bng@igniterockford.com or feel free to reach out to Eric at eric.magnuson@usbank.com.