Over the last several years working with Southland manufacturing and TDL companies, CSEDC, with its critical workforce partners, OAI, Inc. and the Supply Chain Innovation Center and Business Incubator (SCICBI) at Governors State University, has discovered that establishing a regional platform connecting them to their future workforce is critical for their long-term investment decisions in the Southland as well as demonstrating to firms considering locating in the Southland.
The team has created significant and substantially impactful programs to address this regional platform to help employers with the full recruitment cycle, workforce training, and post-hiring training and support.
Recruitment Support
The team applies the business-led community-supported approach to help employers find the right candidates. The team will meet with employers to discuss the potential talents requirements, current needs, and future demands to customize the hiring plan. The programs include:
Special Factors Ranking List: Through interviews with local employers, the team has put together a list of various factors, including soft skills, hard skills, experienced levels, commute time, and geographic requirements. Employers could select and rank their prioritized factors.
InternMatch Illinois Web Platform: InternMatch Illinois is a free web platform to connect Illinois students and other job seekers to employers who offer internship opportunities. It offers a matching engine. Employers can set your own importance ranking for selected skills, experience and other factors. Candidates will be presented to you in order of matching scores. Please visit InternMatchIllinois website to learn more about the beta version.
Virtual Hiring Event:The team will host the virtual hiring event with the universities. In 2020 fall, CSEDC, together with SCICBI and OAI, has successfully hosted one live hiring event with Amazon. Over 300 people registered for the event.
The Calumet Manufacturing Industry Sector Partnership: facilitation supporting employer action teams including talent development with an emphasis on secondary education. The employer action team hosted various events engaged 60+ companies, 30+ High Schools and colleges.
Southworks Engineering and Robotics Olympics: Over 20 companies each sponsor a local Southland High School Team and compete in a regional competition;
Southworks Regional Manufacturing Day: Over 30 High School groups each tour a local Southland manufacturing company; Southworks led tours of High School Counsellors or regional manufacturing companies to enable them better understand careers in the industry.
CUSTOMIZED TRAINING AND WORKFORCE PROGRAMS
Apprenticeships Programs: We are currently working with Purdue Northwest to develop a DOL registered apprenticeship on Electro-Mechanical Technicians with Morrison Container Handling Solutions. Another ongoing apprenticeship program is advanced CNA in healthcare. The team has also partnered with Prairie State College and South Suburban College and can work to develop an Apprenticeship program that includes facility-specific training as well as supplemental instruction by connecting regional community colleges to regional companies to enable companies to offer DOL approved Apprenticeships, which provide tax benefits to companies as well.
Soft and Hard Skills Curriculum and Mentorship Training: is an ongoing effort to improve the ability of people to acquire necessary skills and for teachers and mentors to teach those skills
Internship Programs in Advanced Manufacturing, TDL, IT, and Healthcare: This portion of the program serves to provide technical training that leads to national-recognized certifications and soft skills training that includes interviewing, resume writing and interpersonal communication. The goal is to prepare the participants for entry into the workforce and provide our internship partners with an employee that is ready to be an asset on day-one. Their salary and workers compensation may get covered by our programs, depending on types of internships.
SCICBI Advanced Supply Chain Training Programs: Utilizing GSU’s faculty expertise and its existing partners in both public and private sectors, the SCICBI will provide faculty consulting and employee training to businesses in the supply chain and logistics sector, certificate training for employees in these companies. Certification training includes Council of Supply Chain Management Professional (CSCMP) SCPro™ Certification, Association for Supply Chain Management (ASCM) Certified in Logistics, Transportation and Distribution (CLTD), Certified Global Business Professional (CGBP) Exam Preparation, and Lean Six-Sigma.
Illinois Manufacturing Excellence Center: IMEC offers consulting and training services to manufacturing companies on a variety of subjects in order to improve business operations.
CUSTOMIZED POST-HIRING PROGRAMS
Retention Plus : OAI offer an on-site counselors to work with employees to organize services that assist with problems that may inhibit their ability to fully contribute to their work. We have data to show that the fees for this work provides a substantial return.
On the Job Training: In-classroom or virtual training programs are designed for new employees who need to advance their skill sets. For eligible programs, 50% of the salary will be covered by our programs when employees are in the On-the-Job-Training period.
This work is supported by a variety of public and private organizations. It is also important to contribute to and learn from State Agencies involved in this work such as the Illinois Apprenticeship Collaborative. The Illinois Apprenticeship Collaborative is a broad alliance of workforce and community development organizations, businesses, educators, and other stakeholders acting collectively to expand equitable apprenticeships throughout the state of Illinois.
It is also supported by the Illinois 60 by 2025 network. CSEDC and OAI, together with area schools and municipal leaders are members of the Illinois 60 by 2025 network, which is a network of communities in Illinois that are committed to the goal of ensuring that 60% of all adults have a college or career credential by 2025.
These education and workforce efforts are part of other economic development programs part of the region’s Integrated Economic Development, Workforce and Education strategy to achieve sustainable redevelopment by capitalizing on the area’s assets, including a rich infrastructure for freight transportation, logistics and manufacturing. By coordinating the implementation of an Industrial Jobs program with public, not-for-profit, and private sector partners, CSEDC, OAI, and SCICBI are ensuring that manufacturing and logistics job growth will not be stalled by impediments such as land assembly, brownfields contamination, poor road infrastructure or storm water management challenges. The partners will ensure that lack of a trained workforce is not an impediment to industrial growth either.