Three Pillars to Modernizing Workforce Development
Everyone in business and education wants to find that silver bullet that makes job preparation better, more aligned and productive for current and future employees.
That Holy Grail affects one's wallet while it has a substantial influence on the tax base, the economy, and the infrastructure of the region.
You would think that with the billions of dollars invested the answer would appear right before our eyes.
But it hasn't.
Many continue to observe the same flat-line results even though a great deal of time, thoughts and efforts were put into the goal.
In fact, when was the last time decision makers looked for the answer to workforce development from a different lens?
What if leaders viewed this enigma from a whole different perspective?
What if I told you there's a newer, more advanced way to address the workforce development dilemma, would you believe me?
If you do believe or are just curious, read on.
The first thing one must do is to compile the best practices in workforce development.
Learn from the Best
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Workforce Development Best Practices
With great thought and investment placed on workforce development training and implementation, one would think that finding and retaining highly qualified employees would show a reduction in critical areas.
Studies and grants written for individual projects to develop workplace readiness have made the first steps towards the solution a success and critical pieces of information found to make the endeavor a success.
These identified areas where proven workforce strategies are shared amongst the industry are called best practices.
Thankfully there a few best practice reports compiled that have helped thousands of localities.
Reports from the Camoin Associates and the U.S. Conference of Mayors Workforce Development Council have methodically shared some brilliant insight. These best practices reveal concepts such as creating a common baseline, vision alignment, being transparent, and coordinating with workforce development / economic development and schools.
Even with these practices in action, more needs to be done and at a level that raises the bar to a new and higher level of efficiency.
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Finding Innovation in Today’s Businesses
Gary Hamel's Future of Management book explains there are four types of innovation: Operational Innovation, Product / Service Innovation, Strategic Innovation, and Management Innovation.
Each level has its own purpose and uniqueness.
The first level is Operational Innovation where parts of the business can be outsourced making it hard to defend from copying, and short-lived.
Product / Service Innovation comes next where the model still is easily duplicated.
Strategy Innovation becomes more difficult to copy due to the firm's business model or strategy being tailored to the business's strengths and weaknesses.
Last, Management Innovation targets the elephant in the room with the capacity to deliver a near impossible solution to double.
Management Innovation hinges on mobilizing talent, resources while building strategies into something new, exceptional and revolutionary to the market place.
Aligning Best Practices and Innovation Together
Observing these separately has several benefits as one would imagine. But consider fusing both Innovation and Best Practices together into a stronger, more advanced Workforce Development program.
The results would be astounding.
Communities would have a unique model, specific to their locality, resources, and talent that carries high impact and a stronger Return On Investment (ROI).
This new Workforce Development Program would entail three structures and within the structure, provide the blueprints to sustain a robust workforce.
Three Pillars
Organization Structure
- Create a specific model designed to be flexible that utilizes real-time data;
- Align stakeholders vision, terminology, and timelines where all benefit;
- Identify short, mid and long-term obstacles and match them to the solutions to address them
- View Economic Development and Workforce Development as resources in the transition.
Training and Teaching Structure
- Revamp ineffective training models;
- Use two models for the current and future workforce;
- Differentiate the teaching based upon the learning styles of the employees rather than making it a one-style presentation;
- Insist on student-centered learning;
- Arrange curriculum so it scaffolds on skills needed at the end, and it begins at the k-12 level and advances to the apprenticeships and internships;
- Verify that instructors can deliver the content and be subject-matter experts. If the instructor is a one trick pony, then employ a teacher who can engage the class;
- Know the skills needed for the future of work by having the instructors identify employee weaknesses before training;
- Establish externships for k-12 teachers and mentoring for K-12 students.
Communication and Marketing Structure
- Build a network for the region or company that fosters growth, creativity, and better alignment;
- Market extensively. From recruiting to success stories, if the vision is unknown, no one will believe it much less buy into it;
- Celebrate diversity which attracts more applicants and provides an influential culture;
- Be clear, be concise and be consistent on the common goals;
- Form satellite offices at K-12 schools, colleges and trade centers where professional development opportunities can be built and recruitment becomes easier.
Einstein's definition of insanity is doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting a different outcome. However, why do the same steps with workforce development, training, and engagement
Branch out into the new era by taking a bold new approach to end the cycle of poverty and change employees diplomas to dollars. The time is here. The time is now. Revolutionize the way we want tomorrow to become.
#workforcedevelopment #humanresources #professionaldevelopment #business #education #training #innovation
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