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issue 3: special edition - june 2005 |
wib.news@state.mn.us |
In this Issue:
Happy New Year! Opportunities and Challenges in Workforce Development
We’re calling this special edition of Partners for Job Growth the New Year edition. It’s the New Year edition because it coincides with the beginning of the new fiscal year on July 1, 2005. And it’s a special edition because it focuses exclusively on the opportunities and challenges that face all of us in workforce development.
In recent weeks, all of you identified specific local challenges and solutions in your Local Workforce Development Plans for the new fiscal year. Congratulations to the 12 local areas that have already submitted their local plans for Program Year 2005. And to the remaining four, we’re eager to see your local plans come in over the next few days.
This spring, DEED introduced a more integrated approach to local area planning with planning questions addressing a wide swath of local activity, ranging from regional economic development goals to WorkForce Center site management and operations. With this new broad strategy for local planning, DEED is also rolling out a new approach to the review and approval of local plans.
A core review group will review each area plan. Each core group is composed of four local representatives from the four WorkForce Center core partners – a Job Service manager, a Vocational Rehabilitation manager, a State Services for the Blind supervisor, and a representative of a WIA Title I-B partner. No reviewer will read a plan that they helped write. Additionally, these core review groups will review plans of neighboring local areas to ensure an appropriate minimum level of regional coordination.
These 12 reviewers from across the state will each read four to six plans and review them at a strategic level. Will the strategies described achieve the goals outlined in the plans? Are the plans internally consistent across the sections?
A team of 11 DEED headquarters staff will also review the local plans. While local staff will review the entirety of a few plans, the headquarters staff will read the same questions – for example, all questions that relate to the Dislocated Worker programs – in all 16 plans.
Review teams will meet on June 15 and June 22nd. You can expect to hear from DEED in late June.
The state’s Unified Plan will receive similar feedback from our federal partners.
By Matt Kramer
I look forward to our ongoing work to take a good system and make it a great system.
As you all undoubtedly noticed, the instructions for completing this year’s annual plans reflected DEED’s commitment to achieving a flexible and integrated system, characterized by strong state leadership complemented by effective local execution and customization. More information is available on the Local Planning web site, www.deed.state.mn.us/planning including, for the first time ever, detailed financial information about all Wagner-Peyser resources, broken down by county. As we get financial information for the upcoming year for Rehabilitation Services, we’ll also post that information on the same web site.
In addition to the Wagner-Peyser information for the upcoming Program Year, we are providing historical information from last year for other statewide programs. As soon as we have new Program Year information, that will be posted as well on the same helpful local planning site already I’ve cited above.
We also want to be unequivocal about our support for the local Workforce Investment Boards’ visions for economic vitality in their regions. DEED wants to do its best to give local leaders all of the information we have so you can make informed choices about priorities for your investments. Key to all of our planning efforts are two fundamental points. It is imperative that these points be reflected in the work that we do, each and every day.
Wagner-Peyser Funding History 1983-2005
Note: The
above 2005 figure adjusted for inflation is based
on
an
estimated CPI for
the first half of 2005 of 195.53.
First, the chart above shows our funding from Wagner Peyser from 1983 through 2005. As can be seen, we receive fewer real dollars today than we did in the early 1990s. When inflation is factored in we receive almost 50 percent less than we did in 1983. Each year our staff costs go up, rent goes up, and our federal funding goes down. It is unrealistic to assume that somehow the federal government will “make us whole” across our entire system. The end result? We simply cannot continue to operate the WorkForce Center System in the same manner that we have been accustomed to. This is no different than any home budget. The decisions we make must reflect the realities of our federal funding.
I’m not suggesting that changes are easy. Nor am I suggesting that changes will be without hardship. But it is not in our interest to create and maintain a system that the funding stream won’t support. That isn’t fair to our employees, our customers, and the state.
Second, the system itself has changed. Workforce professionals nationwide are talking about the differences from a supply-driven system to the new model, the demand-driven system. In fact, the Minnesota Workforce Council Association (www.mncounties3.org/mwca/workforce_system.htm) cites several national workforce studies on demand-driven business systems that I wholeheartedly endorse. These studies, and the work that we are doing, focus on the importance of assisting our employers, statewide, in acquiring the best, most talented and productive workforce when and where they need staff. In a demand-driven system we fundamentally recognize that we can best serve job seekers, the individuals, when we have as many business partners as possible participating in our WorkForce Center System.
Many partners may not realize it, but the department has calculated the number of businesses in each WSA who participate in Minnesota’s Job Bank, our most widely used service. Results can be reviewed at www.deed.state.mn.us/results/. It is instructive to learn that statewide only 7.2 percent of employers who are hiring use Minnesota’s Job Bank. In other words, 92 percent do not. We are not going to do a good job serving the job seeker when the vast majority of our employers are either unaware of our services or choose not to use the service at all. That we provide a free service – as opposed to fee-based job boards is a critical distinction. One has to wonder why employers would chose to pay to advertise positions on various web sites rather than use the free Minnesota’s Job Bank. Survey data continue to reveal that most employers are simply unaware of the service.
Many comments have been made that in focusing resources on our business customers we will “ignore” the individual customer. This is not so. We are not a social services agency. We are all about helping individuals achieve the employment success they deserve. The more employers we can bring into the system, and determine how best to serve their needs to grow and expand in Minnesota, the more opportunity we can provide to our individual customers.
The move to a demand-driven system is not unique to Minnesota. As the MWCA reports demonstrate, and as the U.S. Department of Labor is championing, the move to a new business model is national in scope. I’m proud to say that Minnesota is leading the nation in our efforts, just as we have done so many times before.
Globalization and the Minnesota Workforce System
Earlier this month I was in Tampa, Florida, serving on a federal advisory committee. I can tell you that the most powerful presentation of the day revolved around the impact of globalization on our economy, our regions, our employers, and our citizens. I’m sure many of you have read reviews of Tom Friedman’s recent book, The World is Flat. I’ll leave you to purchase and read the book, but in essence Tom and others speak of the global nature of today’s economy, and the incredible, overriding priority that states and regions build on their natural strengths, involve their citizens and communities in planning, and prepare for the coming decades of increased competition.
International competitiveness is often thought to be the sole province of the Minnesota Trade Office. But that’s a dangerously erroneous assumption. International competitiveness absolutely and without question also lies within the purview of local WIBs. If our communities don’t create and support prosperous businesses we cannot hope to survive, let alone prosper, in a highly competitive global community.
This year’s Minnesota Development Conference, which will focus on Stepping Up to Global Competition (www.positivelyminnesota.com/events/devConf.htm), offers a great opportunity for raising your awareness and sharing your understanding of global competitiveness. The Development Conference is set for October 5 and 6, and you can participate by sharing your ideas about local community involvement in the global marketplace. If you have ideas to share or presentations that you want about achieving community success, please use the online form at the Development Conference website. Click on “Call for Presentations” before June 30 to propose a presentation. And even if you don’t have a presentation idea, I strongly encourage you to attend the Development Conference to learn more about the importance of globalization to your own communities.
I’ve said this before, but it bears repeating: We need to create and support successful businesses to compete in the global marketplace. The bottom line is that successful businesses mean more jobs and a better way of life for individuals and communities across Minnesota – and we intend to be part of the solution. By working more closely with businesses, we will help accelerate the use by businesses of our strong and effective state workforce system.
Congressional update and what it all means
Meanwhile, in Washington, D.C., the United States Congress continues to debate the next version of federal workforce legislation, and the House and Senate have each passed bills reauthorizing the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). Governor Pawlenty is serving as the vice chair of a committee of the National Governor’s Association, providing state leadership and guidance as Congress works its way through WIA and other related legislation. While Governor Pawlenty provides leadership for the national discussion, DEED will continue to work with communities to move ahead wherever possible now.
Minnesota led the nation in the development of the One Stop System by creating the Minnesota WorkForce Center System in 1995. The work we are doing now to link workforce development to economic development will return us to a leadership position in the nation.
I am pleased to announce that Minnesota’s Unified Plan for the Workforce Investment System has been signed by Governor Pawlenty and submitted for the period July 1, 2005 through June 30, 2007. This plan (www.deed.state.mn.us/wia/unifiedplan/index.htm) highlights five key dimensions of Minnesota’s workforce investment vision for the next two years.
1. Business is the primary customer
Minnesota is transforming its workforce system away from one focused solely on the needs of job seekers and toward a system that serves jobseekers by forging strong connections with the businesses that will hire them. The new business services model focuses on demand-driven business services. Through our marketing efforts and increased focus on businesses, we expect to see a far greater use of the WFC system than in the past.
2. Expanded local responsibility and accountability for the WorkForce Center system
The Governor’s Workforce Development Council (www.gwdc.org) in January published the Minnesota Workforce Center System Business Plan. This plan outlines a vision of expanded local responsibility and accountability for the WorkForce Centers under the leadership of the local Workforce Investment Boards. With an implementation date of July 1, 2006, the plan envisions WorkForce Centers as community owned and operated franchises operating under system-wide performance expectations and shared infrastructure. Guidelines for the local implementation of the Workforce Center System Business Plan will be published in December 2005. Local WorkForce Center Business Plans will be due in the spring of 2006 with a start date of July 1, 2006.
3. A strategic focus on industries and occupations
A new feature of each local plan this year is a regional plan for prioritizing sectors of the economy that are critical to regional and economic vitality. DEED’s business service specialists are available to identify and research solutions to meet the needs of businesses in specific industries. DEED and local board partners are investing in pilot business services projects to develop and test new methods of business services delivery in three of Minnesota’s critical industries: healthcare, financial services and manufacturing. DEED and local board partners are also working to support successful federal grant applications for Community Based Job Training Grants which link demand driven business interests, community college skill training and workforce boards. The first round of grants is due July 6, 2005 and another round is anticipated in the fall of 2005.
4. New technology and partnerships to deliver services efficiently
Federal funding for workforce development funding is continuing to decline. As a result, Minnesota must constantly identify and implement alternative service delivery strategies. Each local plan under review this month will be scanned for best practices. Best practices will become a standard feature of this newsletter and will be shared across the state to improve efficiency and outcomes within budget constraints.
5. Increased public visibility
Minnesota intends to increase the visibility of its public workforce system through marketing and expanded partnerships. Our surveys indicate that, while more than half of Minnesotans have heard of the Workforce Centers, only one in four would consider using a Workforce Center for their career needs. On the business side, surveys indicate that fewer than one in four businesses are familiar with the WorkForce Centers. Information from Minnesota’s Workforce Center System Scorecard will provide valuable guidance to your Local WIB in the situation we face in improving services to businesses. The scorecard can be reviewed on the web at: www.deed.state.mn.us/planning/Workforce_Scorecard.pdf.
In Conclusion
I know that we’ve presented a great deal of information in this special edition newsletter, and I recognize that it’s a lot to digest all at once. But I think if you take the time to follow the links to all of the online resources we’ve included in this newsletter, you’ll find a wealth of information – related to both finances and policies – that will help us all meet the opportunities and challenges that we face in this new fiscal year.
Finally, I want thank you all for the work that you do and assure you that DEED will continue to support and assist you in any way possible as we move together on our path toward achieving the truly great system that we’re all striving for.
Key Contacts:
Kathy Sweeney Stephen Larson Connie Ireland |
Rick Roy Dave Niermann Jim Wrobleski Joan Danielson |
We Need Your Feedback
We're trying to make this newsletter as timely and useful as we possibly can and, to accomplish that goal, we need to know what you want to know. We need and welcome any feedback you can offer – especially concerning topics of broad statewide or regional interest to the WIBs and all other partners. To register your questions, comments, complaints and suggestions, simply send an e-mail to wib.news@state.mn.us. We'll do our best to address your concerns directly and use your feedback to help us develop articles for future editions of the newsletter.
Thanks.