This article was originally published in the Triad Business Journal.
By Katie Arcieri
The Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, along with Action Greensboro, the Piedmont Triad Partnership, and other funding partners are now conducting a talent alignment strategy study to ensure that regional education and workforce development efforts are aligned with the needs of local employers.
Avalanche Consulting and The Council for Adult & Experiential Learning (CAEL) are facilitating the strategic planning process.
Brent Christensen, president and CEO of the Greensboro chamber, told TBJ Thursday that national strategists from Avalanche and CAEL are examining the region’s current workforce and the workforce needs of the future to help area economic development groups craft a strategy. “Ultimately, the areas of the country that solve the workforce challenge the best are going to be the biggest winners in economic development, so we are being very proactive and intentional in making sure that we are addressing the workforce needs in this region, both now and in the future,” he said.
He said the chamber is now collecting input from local businesses about their current workforce and what their future needs will be.
“The consultants have already been in our community for a couple of months, they have met with workforce providers, we have done some focus groups with employers,” Christensen said. “So they have gotten some feedback already from some key players in the workforce industry and the business community, but we want to make sure we are casting a wide enough net to get all the data that we need for that.”
The study will be completed in early 2018, with recommendations from Avalanche and CAEL. The study is a “$100,000-plus study,” Christensen said, adding that it will be essential to meeting the needs of current and future employers.
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