Welcome President Brian Rotty
Rising Stars Under 40 Rusty Cunningham
State of the Region Update Nov. 14, 2018 Chris Hardie, 7 Rivers Alliance chris@7riversalliance.org 3
HELP WANTED 4
The Path to the WISE Plan February 2017 ✓ 14 small-group interviews with 120 stakeholders, representing major regional employers and industries, economic development, workforce development, higher education, and K-12 education March 2017 ✓ Talent Recruitment, Talent Preparation, and Talent Retention workgroup convenings ✓ Quality Childcare, Connected Transportation, Affordable Housing Summits ✓ Focus groups with incumbent workers, college students, career counselors, and high school students May 2017 ✓ WISE Workforce Summit July – September 2017 ✓ 3 WISE Plan Steering Committee working sessions 5
Workforce Gap Based on current projections … No concerted action over the next 10 years Will result in -228 net new workers available for 15,321 net new local jobs which means a Net shortage of 15,549 during the next 10 years 6
The good, bad and ugly Based on current projections… GOOD Year 2026: 15,321 net new local jobs BAD We will have -228 net new workers available UGLY Net shortage of 15,549 during the next 10 years 7
Consensus 7 Rivers Talent Challenges Talent Preparation Talent pool lacks essential/soft skills Disconnect between workforce readiness and perceptions of employer expectations and the hiring realities Companies/employees are not adapting to new technologies, causing workers to drop out of the labor force Talent Recruitment The region not attracting enough workers to keep up with employment demand The region’s population is not ethnically diverse Workers leave or out-commute for better wages, housing options, and job prospects for family members Rental and for-sale housing is inadequate or not affordable for entry-level and higher-wage workers. Talent Retention Older workers are leaving the workforce faster than new workers are replacing them Local childcare options are limited and unaffordable Too many students leave the region after graduation Younger workers seek appealing workplaces that they do not think they can find locally The region’s transportation systems are not adequately connected nor sufficiently reliable for commuting 8
Goals Talent Preparation 1.1 Increase student and worker employability skills to ensure increased workplace readiness 1.2 Educate students, teachers, parents, and others about requirements for high paying, in-demand careers 1.3 Prepare incumbent workers and mature jobseekers for greater flexibility in the workplace Talent Recruitment 2.1 Promote the 7 Rivers Region benefits to potential residents and workers 2.2 Foster inclusive regional communities to better attract minority and underrepresented individuals 2.3 Assist and engage new families to area communities for better retention 2.4 Provide businesses/jobseekers with information to make more informed hiring or employment decisions 2.5 Ensure the availability of affordable housing for the region’s workforce. Talent Retention 3.1 Provide companies information and tools to prepare for retirements and worker transitions. 3.2 Develop public-private childcare partnerships to increase childcare capacity and address cost 3.3 Bolster connections between students, employers, and communities so more graduates remain or return 3.4 Inspire businesses to implement initiatives that position them as “Employers of Choice” 3.5 Improve transit, ridesharing, and multi-modal transportation options to make them more accessible 9
WISE Plan Implementation Structure: 7 Rivers Alliance – General Coordinator and Convener Talent Talent Recruitment Talent Retention Preparation Business/ Student/ Diversity HR Senior Promoting Worker Skill Career Education Talent Newcomer Affordable Community Quality Engageme Information Worker Employers Transportatio Upgrades Exploration Collaboratio Attraction Welcome Housing Connection Childcare n nt Resource Transitions of Choice n s Action Action Action Action Action Action Action Action Action Action Action Group Group Action Group Group Group Action Group Group Group Group Group Group Group Group (Goal 3.2) (Goal 1.1) (Goal 1.2) (Goal 2.1) (Goal 2.3) (Goal 2.5) (Goal 3.5) (Goal 3.1) (Goal 3.4) (Goal 2.2) (Goal 2.4) (Goal 1.3) (Goal 3.3) 10
Talent retention ■ Talent retention and recruitment summit held Nov. 1. ■ Several efforts underway to address childcare availability in Vernon and Jackson counties; childcare study underway in La Crosse County. ■ Meetings underway with UW-L to discuss how we can improve communications and connection with the business community. ■ Training opportunities launched to help businesses become “employers of choice.” ■ Rideshare and transportation issues being examined. 11
Talent recruitment ■ Regional branding and marketing strategy underway with River Valley Media Group. ■ Conversations beginning on how to attract a more diverse workforce. ■ Local concierge services model implemented by La Crosse Chamber. ■ Wage data being shared with employers to help efforts to boost wages. ■ Workforce summit held in May. ■ Housing studies being evaluated; Coulee Cap leading discussion on employer-led housing initiatives. 12
Talent preparation ■ Significant work being done by team that includes representatives from CESA 4, Iowaworks, Northeast Iowa Community College, Western Technical College working with Workforce boards and others. Goals and strategies are being combined with the net result of increasing student and worker skills and to strengthen business and education collaboration with workforce expectations . ■ Inspire is now active in six school districts and we have 107 businesses and 83 job coaches. ■ Internships and apprenticeships summit held Sept. 19 13
The goal Advance a proposal to the funding stage by early 2019. 14
Workforce Discussion Bruce Palzkill Jeremy Willis Linda Rouse (MN) (IA) (WI)
Lee Rasch Community Partnership Award
2018 Executive Survey Results Maddy Larrabee
Outline 53 responses collected online July - August of 2018 ➔ Full results will be published on our website homepage ➔ The link is provided in the program, on Facebook, and LinkedIN ◆
75.5% Business Selected Excellent or Above Average Climate 22.6 % Selected Average Which of the following best 1.9 % describes the 7 Rivers Region as a place to do business? Selected Below Average
43.4% Better Business Climate 49.1% No Change Worse 7.5% In the last year, did the 7 Rivers region become a better place to do business, a worse place to do business, or has no change occurred?
Business Excellent Average 18.9% Climate 30.2% Above Average 50.9% How would you rate the Economic Strength of the 7 Rivers Region?
Business YES Conditions 66% NO Has your company had trouble 34% finding qualified workers in the past year?
Business Out of 10 factors, top four: Conditions - Workforce Availability - Personal Costs (Wage/salary) - New Technology In the list below, please rank - Government Regulation each factor based on its expected impact on your business over the next three years.
YES 13.2% Business Conditions NO 34% MAYBE 52.8% Would you be willing to subsidize employee childcare if it would guarantee availability?
Business If yes, what type of programs do you offer? (11 responses) Conditions - Flex Spending - Lower Child care Rates on Does your company offer programs to campus help offset the cost of child care? - Flexible Hours YES 20.8% NO 79.2%
Employee Please rank these challenges, in order of severity, faced by Conditions your employees . Affordable Health Care Affordable Housing
Too much development 0% is occurring Employee There is an appropriate 42.9% Conditions amount of housing Too little development is 57.1% occurring What is your opinion of housing development in the 7 Rivers Region?
Out of 42 responses: - 26% mentioned Workforce Shortage Challenges - 21% mentioned Government Regulation (Open Responses) - Other answers included changing markets, What is your firm’s biggest technology, and high costs challenge or obstacle right now?
Out of 41 responses, 3 main categories included: Industry - Technology usage Trends (Open Response) - Government policy - Aging workforce What trend in your industry is most likely to impact the future of business?
Promotion Majority of respondents said Tactics INTERNET (Social Media) (Open Responses) Personal Sales/Word of Mouth What tactics does your firm employ to promote business and expand into new markets?
Specific Sectors - Low responses - Manufacturing, Retail
Manufacturing What do you believe is the Supply Chain biggest concern facing your Distribution 12.5% firm? Geopolitical Uncertainty 25% Worker Shortage 62.5%
Retail What strategies are you using to identify new markets? What is the most important to increasing revenue? - Online Tools - Word of Mouth, Trade Customer Associations, Professional Experience Network Making the next sale, employee training, increasing brand loyalty, marketing, new products
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