This blog post is a DRAFT chapter for a book being published by Origami Works Foundation. We will correct inaccuracies in the final book version. If you identify any inaccuracies, please let us know using this Feedback Form.
Many employers struggle to find and retain qualified employees. High turnover rates, skills gaps, and constantly evolving job requirements can make it feel like you’re always one step behind.
Here, we offer a solution: Tapping into your region's workforce development programs. This book offers practical strategies and success stories, showing you how to harness free or subsidized resources to not only meet your immediate needs, but also build a sustainable pipeline for the future. Whether you’re seeking skilled candidates or looking to retain and build the capabilities of those already on your team, this book provides the insights and tools you need to turn challenges into opportunities.
Let's start with an example.
Meet EvolveEdge
Picture, if you will, a company. Call it EvolveEdge. EvolveEdge makes consumer and business equipment that is accompanied by software and a variety of on-site services delivered by skilled technicians. EvolveEdge employs 250 people in Illinois - about half in Chicago, and half in the surrounding area (suburban Cook County). Overall, EvolveEdge has a healthy balance sheet and is growing steadily.
Meet Maya … And Her Challenges
Now meet Maya, EvolveEdge’s new Chief Talent Officer. Maya has walked into a web of issues.
Over its twenty-year history, EvolveEdge has had on-and-off struggles filling various open positions and retaining employees once they are hired. Maya has learned that since the 2020 pandemic, things have gotten worse.
One issue plaguing EvolveEdge concerns its customer service department. Comfortably covering all shifts requires employing about 40 customer service representatives. But often, at least seven of those positions are open. Despite frequent postings on several popular hiring sites, there are not enough applicants. And, many newly hired customer service representatives stay on the job for only about nine months.
Maya: Struggling with a variety of talent challenges at EvolveEdge.
Maya also has heavy hiring needs for the company’s new Zebra line of business. That’s one area where business is growing fast, but the technical skill set is difficult to find among current applicants.
EvolveEdge has additional open positions in its software development ranks. Skilled technology professionals are in such high demand that EvolveEdge is having a hard time keeping up with the increasing salaries and perks that appear necessary to attract and retain team members.
Maya has the opposite problem in the legacy LlamaDama business line, where revenues are shrinking. Twenty technicians with an average tenure of seven years have less and less work to do. Maya dreads the thought that one of her first acts at EvolveEdge might have to be a round of layoffs.
In the meantime, Maya has grown uncomfortably aware that the EvolveEdge team is considerably less diverse than that of its customer base. Sitting in on several brainstorming sessions, Maya has observed team members express limiting assumptions about EvolveEdge's clientele … and she suspects that the team’s lack of diversity is limiting the scope of new ideas.
Maya is ready to roll up her sleeves and tackle these problems. But she is expending most of her effort on emergency hiring. She feels squeezed for time. She wants to augment her own team, but she knows what the budget is, and there are no funds available for another team member or consultant.
Let's review: EvolveEdge's Chief Talent Officer, Maya, is dealing with --
Too few applicants
Lack of needed technical skills among applicants
Lack of retention in some roles
Shrinking workloads for other roles
Lack of broad, innovative ideas
Lack of time and resources to address the issues
Meet the Talent
Chicago is home to many people in search of rewarding work. Here are three.
Talent means people who possess the skills or potential necessary to contribute to an employer's success and growth. Talent can refer to both current employees and candidates. In this book, we mostly refer to "talent" rather than human resources, personnel, staff, or workers.
Samira
Samira is a lifelong Chicago resident. As a high schooler, Samira babysat and worked a few retail jobs. She also spent some summers working for her uncle’s small business, answering the phone and helping customers use the business’s website. Samira loves helping people, is a quick learner, and has a natural aptitude for technology.
However, Samira's career has not progressed much in the last few years. Samira took some time after high school to focus on her family, including as a caregiver for an ailing parent. When ready to return to full-time work, she considered technical support, where she felt confident she could excel. But, the job openings she found online all required a college degree.
After that, Samira began to apply for customer service roles, and was hired -- twice. The first job required a 45-minute commute. When Samira's vehicle started breaking down on a regular basis, she missed work unexpectedly on several occasions. She was let go before the probationary period ended.
Samira: Skilled and experienced, but having trouble securing and keeping a rewarding job.
The second job ended for reasons Samira didn’t really understand. Her supervisor said she lacked the skills for the job. But wasn’t there supposed to be training?
At this point, Samira feels frozen, frustrated, and defeated.
Mateo
Mateo started college immediately after graduating from Chicago Public Schools with a high GPA. Burned out by a challenging final year of high school, Mateo struggled to engage with the core education courses required during his freshman year of college. A variety of financial setbacks converged with his exhaustion, so he took a break from school.
Mateo: Ready to pursue a promising career path, but lacks resources to pay for education.
Mateo wanted and needed to work, so he secured a job at the local pharmacy. A year later, he needs a better paying job with a pathway to growth. He is interested in computer programming and feels ready to continue his education. However, Mateo cannot afford to lose his paycheck, let alone pay tuition. He starts investigating options at the local community college.
Alex
Alex is currently employed at EvolveEdge in customer service for the LlamaDama business line. That line has been shrinking for years, not only at EvolveEdge, but at all its competitors. Employees who leave generally are not replaced. Alex would like to stay at EvolveEdge, but he worries that his job may not last much longer.
Alex: Worried about being laid off, and not seeing viable ways to prepare for a different role with better prospects.
Alex has eyed open positions in the Zebra business line. But, it uses a service enabled by newer technology, and the role requires a set of skills he does not have. The list of required qualifications in the job description is daunting. Alex has neither the time nor the financial resources to go back to school.
Alex has expressed his concerns to his supervisor, and is waiting to hear back.
Bridging the Gaps
So here is Maya, who needs talent. And here are Samira, Mateo, and Alex, who need rewarding work, now and in the future.
They could meet one another’s needs. But, there are gaps and barriers keeping them apart.
The right interventions could overcome these barriers. Workforce development programs provide education, training, and support to job- and career-seekers like Samira, Mateo, and Alex. They also help connect employers such as EvolveEdge with talent that the firm may have overlooked.
Workforce development programs seek to intentionally build the skills and opportunities of residents in order to meet the talent needs of local employers and the economy at large.
We'll revisit EvolveEdge in Chapter 9. In the meantime, this book will show you, an employer, why, when, and how to leverage workforce development programs to address your own talent challenges.
Why This Book?
All employers benefit from investments in the regional workforce. But some benefit more than others.
We, the authors, repeatedly hear that many employers aren’t fully aware of the ways workforce development programs and funds can support their businesses. Or, employers find directly engaging with workforce programs too challenging. Employers that lack experience with available resources may be daunted by the complexities of the workforce development landscape.
We have met many employers who have successfully leveraged workforce programs. Many organizations have leveraged free or subsidized programs to address their talent challenges, and achieved success and satisfaction along the way. And, many are willing to share their insights and lessons learned.
We decided to capture and share some of the compelling stories of how engaging directly with workforce development organizations can solve business problems. We would like to show you why, when, and how to successfully leverage opportunities made available by your region's investments in its workforce.
What Questions Will Be Addressed?
This book will answer the following questions –
What is workforce development?
How does workforce development operate in Cook County (the Illinois county that includes the city of Chicago)?
When and why should you, an employer, engage with one or more workforce development organizations?
What are ways to identify organizations that can help you meet your goals?
How can you launch and build an expanded talent strategy that leverages available programs and funding?
What challenges may arise, and what are ways to handle them?
Once you've established strategies and partnerships that are working for you, how can you build on success to achieve more?
We look forward to walking you through this journey.
Who Should Read This Book?
Most employers face talent or skills shortages at one point or another. You should read this book if you are a business or talent leader who needs innovative ways to attract, select, train, and retain employees. Whether or not you have an immediate need, you are bound to have one at some point!
“Most businesses should get involved with workforce programs at some point, given how often job needs and markets change.” Matt Bruce, Executive Director, Chicagoland Workforce Funder Alliance
The solutions offered in this book won’t address every talent gap. But, there’s a high likelihood you can save time, money, and trouble by using at least one of the solutions offered. This is true whether you employ tens or hundreds or thousands. Large employers might leverage workforce programs in different ways than smaller ones do, but all can benefit. Whatever your sector, whatever your size, there’s a good chance a workforce development program can help you.
While this book uses Chicago and Cook County as a case study, employers in any region in the United States can benefit from the information and advice here. The local players and opportunities will differ, but the general types of support available are likely to be similar in any metropolitan region.
Who Are the Experts?
This book was produced by Origami Works Foundation. Since 2018, Origami Works Foundation has partnered with community-based organizations and other entities to help bridge gaps between employers seeking talent and individuals seeking rewarding work. The Foundation also built and launched Chicagoland CareerPathways and Talent Solutions Connector.
Learn more about Origami Works Foundation.
Origami Works Foundation continues to collaborate with and fund organizations to promote and support workforce development in Cook County.
A Note On Sources
The real experts on this topic are employers who have successfully leveraged workforce development programs, and the organizations that have supported them. To produce this book, Origami Works Foundation team members conducted over 50 conversations with individuals who have experience and knowledge around workforce development programs, practicalities, benefits, and challenges. We solicited input and feedback from a broad group of stakeholders. We are thrilled to compile their knowledge and wisdom for you here.
The content in this book is drawn from these sources --
Interviews with employers who have partnered with workforce development organizations
Interviews with the leaders of organizations that provide business services to employers, or otherwise contribute to workforce development in Chicago and suburban Cook County
The authors' experiences with workforce development
Books, articles, and websites on the topic
Interviewees and their organizations are cited in the text. Books, articles, and websites we cited or consulted are listed in Notes and Sources (Chapter 12).
About the Authors
All three of this book's authors care deeply about Chicago and its surrounding suburbs, which is or has been home. We have several decades of collective experience in workforce development. And, we believe workforce development is a win-win-win proposition for employers, individuals, and the community at large. Here’s who we are.
Dani Houchin is the Executive Director and Trustee at Origami Works Foundation. Under her leadership, Origami Works launched Chicagoland CareerPathways and Talent Solutions Connector, and led initiatives related to two-generation career development and career paths for entry level employees. Prior to founding Origami Works, Dani spent most of her career in performance consulting, helping organizations produce hundreds of innovative workplace learning programs. A first generation college graduate, Dani holds a bachelor’s degree in Public & International Affairs from Princeton University and a master’s in Educational Technology from Columbia University. She also studied Education and Social Policy at Northwestern University. While at Princeton, Dani wrote a senior thesis about workforce development in Baltimore.
Tami Hillberry is a Program Officer at Origami Works Foundation. She has directed a variety of projects, including the launch of Talent Solutions Connector and a summer internship program for first generation college students. Tami also leads the Foundation's grantmaking. She has spent her career in a diverse set of roles and sectors, including office management and human resources, and was the proprietor of an online retail business for several years. Tami's unique career path has given her the ability to adapt and innovate, and she now uses those skills to help Origami Works Foundation succeed in its partnerships with Chicago and suburban Cook County workforce organizations.
Ellen Johnson is a senior consultant in workforce development. She advises local and state workforce and economic development ecosystems to support system alignment and integration, equitable workforce policy and program design, and improved workforce development service delivery. Prior to launching her consulting career, Ellen spent 12 years at the Chicago Jobs Council, where she established and launched the Frontline Focus Training Institute, a nationally recognized professional development training entity for workforce development professionals. Among other accomplishments, Ellen has co-authored a curriculum on career readiness for job seekers, facilitated numerous employer cohorts focused on inclusive hiring, and run statewide commissions and task forces designed to improve equity and access within the public workforce ecosystem.
Ready to get started? Read on.