WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT IMPACT
Rising to the Challenge
of the Workforce Imperative
Among the issues facing the manufacturing community today, challenges in workforce development continue to be a top concern and priority. Over the past year, national conversations around the importance of sustaining a viable and strong workforce now and into the future not only grew in their frequency, but also their gravity. Topics taking center stage were a predicted labor shortage for more than 2.7 million unfilled manufacturing jobs in the next 10 years, a skills gap unable to meet the adoption of new technologies and the necessity of retaining a younger, more diversified talent pool that infuses differing perspectives. Central to its mission, SME highly values and understands the compelling impact a highly skilled and diverse workforce has on local and national competitiveness, economic prosperity and national security. In 2022, SME continued to evolve a collaborative and innovative strategic plan to embrace this workforce imperative, working with education, government and industry on the most critical challenges and needs.
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