Workforce Development

Published: Aug. 12, 2020, 11 a.m.

We talk about what is currently, and arguably, the hottest topic in economic development: workforce development. Economic development and workforce development are two different professions with unique focuses. Economic development has a very collaborative focus, and is more broad. Workforce development focuses on education and transferable skills of the employee at an individual level. But while different, economic and workforce development share a common goal, which is to strengthen the local talent pool of workers to match the needs of local and regional employers. In this episode, we cover some interesting stats about the workforce in Whitehall, and our strategies, and welcome https://www.linkedin.com/in/matt-backiewicz-a71ba28/ (Matt Backiewicz), Vice President of Sales and Business Development at https://www.dawsoncareers.com/ (Dawson Careers) as our guest. Matt covers a lot of ground, including: Who is Dawson Careers The need to continuously prepare the workforce for retraining Trends in the workforce, despite COVID-19 What the Dawson Community Workforce Programs entail As always, we "Kick It To The County" with our guest https://www.linkedin.com/in/talexberes/ (Alex Beres), Assistant Director at Franklin County (OH) Economic Development and Planning. Alex talks about a couple of Franklin County initiatives including: https://www.omjcfc.org/franklin-county-skill-boost (Franklin County Skill Boost): The Franklin County Skill Boost is aimed at assisting individuals recently affected by employment shutdown due to the Corona Crisis and are experiencing financial challenges. Learn more by calling 614-559-4792.  https://jfs.franklincountyohio.gov/worktowardatrade (Building Futures): A 12-week "pre-apprenticeship" program provides you with the skills and trade-specific instruction to enter an apprenticeship. Learn more by calling 614-232-5496. Join Jenna and Zach monthly as they have representatives from Franklin County (OH), as well as special guests from government and other organizations, to talk about different topics that are important throughout the Central Ohio region.  That's part of the reason we named this podcast Whitehall Works. https://www.whitehall-oh.us/ (The City of Whitehall (OH)) is working with a lot of different partners on transportation, affordable housing and workforce development. These are just some of the important topics that not only the City of Whitehall (OH) is working on, but everyone needs to work on. https://www.whitehall-oh.us/