Workforce Development - A Good Investment?

Fla. legislators, advocates lay out workforce housing strategies

The Fla. legislative session starts in March and housing advocates are already laying out their legislative strategy. Goal number one is full funding for nation's the largest affordable housing trust fund worth almost $1 billion. Could that be why Bill Gates and Roy Icahn are buying into Florida's housing industry?

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You get what you ask for - getting the skillsets you need

When you ask for the right things, you have a better chance of getting them.

Consider the following 2 "job descriptions" for a heavy equipment mechanic

Job Description A

Wanted - Heavy Equipment Mechanic
Experienced Diesel Mechanic
1-2 years of solid work history
Gear and transmission experience needed
Hydraulics experience a plus
Hourly pay with overtime

Required - Previous solid experience as a Mechanic

Job Description B

Technical Knowledge needed: 

• Mechanical -- Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
• Repairing -- Repairing machines or systems using the needed tools.
• Troubleshooting -- Determining causes of operating errors and deciding what to do about it.
• Equipment Maintenance -- Performing routine maintenance on equipment and determining when and what kind of maintenance is needed.
• Quality Control Analysis -- Conducting tests and inspections of products, services, or processes to evaluate quality or performance.
• Installation -- Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or programs to meet specifications.
• Operation Monitoring -- Watching gauges, dials, or other indicators to make sure a machine is working properly.
• Problem Sensitivity -- The ability to tell when something is wrong or is likely to go wrong. It does not involve solving the problem, only recognizing there is a problem.
• Hearing Sensitivity -- The ability to detect or tell the differences between sounds that vary in pitch and loudness.
• Inductive Reasoning -- The ability to combine pieces of information to form general rules or conclusions (includes finding a relationship among seemingly unrelated events).
• Deductive Reasoning -- The ability to apply general rules to specific problems to produce answers that make sense.
• Control Precision -- The ability to quickly and repeatedly adjust the controls of a machine or a vehicle to exact positions.
• Information Ordering -- The ability to arrange things or actions in a certain order or pattern according to a specific rule or set of rules (e.g., patterns of numbers, letters, words, pictures, mathematical operations).
• Repairing and Maintaining Mechanical Equipment -- Servicing, repairing, adjusting, and testing machines, devices, moving parts, and equipment that operate primarily on the basis of mechanical (not electronic) principles.
• Handling and Moving Objects -- Using hands and arms in handling, installing, positioning, and moving materials, and manipulating things.
• Inspecting Equipment, Structures, or Material -- Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials to identify the cause of errors or other problems or defects.
• Identifying Objects, Actions, and Events -- Identifying information by categorizing, estimating, recognizing differences or similarities, and detecting changes in circumstances or events.
• Getting Information -- Observing, receiving, and otherwise obtaining information from all relevant sources.

Which would be the most helpful to you as a hiring manager? 

Consider the real cost of NOT being as specific as possible.  Often, hiring managers are hesitant to list all the required competencies for fear that no applicant will be able to "fill the bill"

Get over it !  Get used to the idea that you will NEVER find anyone in a reasonable amount of that will meet all of your requirements.  The idea is to provide a standard for the position, and then find a person that meets the most important elements of the standard.  You'll always have ongoing development to do.  The key to having the standard is it tells you exactly what is entailed and what supplemental development work you can expect to have to do.   

Make sense?

Why Workforce Development is Struggling - Part 5 - How Healthcare affects the workforce

Rising health care costs are eroding families' already declining income.  The paper "Less Cash in Their Pockets" (Lawrence Mishel, et al. 2004) examines the impact on our society and related impacts on the workforce.

• Households are spending more on health care. Family health costs rose 43-45% for married couples with children, single mothers, and young singles from 2000 to 2003
• Employers are cutting back on health insurance. Last year, the percent of people with employer-provided health insurance fell for the fourth year in a row. Nearly 3.7 million fewer people had employer-provided insurance in 2004 than in 2000. Taking population growth into account, 11 million more people would have had employer-provided health insurance in 2004 if the coverage rate had remained at the 2000 level.

Wihout a doubt, the rapidly escalating Healthcare costs are impacting corporate profits and the disposable incomes of consumers.  There are other related costs, including the limitations put on workers "freedom of choice" that also has to be considered.   When workers select plans that restrict their healthcare options, they may become less healthy, or spend significcantly more time receiving healthcare.  Thus, employers need to look beyond the "apparent" cost of healthcare, and include the "related" costs associated with healthcare choices offered to their workers.

One of the related "costs" that often are overlooked is whether the available healthcare programs are viewed by candidates as unattractive.  Thus an internal review of offerings by peer companies (either geographically or by industry), may be prudent.

What Do We Mean By Housing the Workforce

Workforce Housing is a relatively new term that is increasingly popular among planners, government administrators and housing activists. The following article describes the dimensions of Workforce Housing and underlines the importance of affordable housing in todays ultra-competitive labor market.

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Why Workforce Development is Struggling - Part 4 - Is Poverty Part of the Solution?

According to recent government study data, Poverty is on the rise.   

• The poverty rate rose from 11.3% in 2000 to 12.7% in 2004 according to the U.S. Census Bureau's 2004 report "Income, Poverty, and Health Insurance Coverage in the United States"
• The same report indicates that the number of people living in poverty has increased by 5.4 million since 2000, and that more children are living in poverty: the child poverty rate increased from 16.2% in 2000 to 17.8% in 2004

I doubt anyone doubts that helping others climb out of poverty.  It is however a challenge for management to figure out how to go about this task.

This situation poses new and unique challenges and opportunities for employers.  Job training for entry-level workers is increasingly attractive for individuals unable to support their families and at the same time lacking skills to move up to more skilled positions.  An investment in these workers can pay off handsomely.  Be aware however that recruiting these workers may be more challenging annd your talent recruiting and training team will need to be especially sensitive to the necessity of helping these workers grasp unfamiliar materials, and in particular, taking the extra pains to build communications and trust.

In several construction firms I managed and owned, I found that  reaching out to those who were struggling more often than not paid huge dividends in work ethic and loyalty - assets that unfortunately are in too-short supply today.

Fla. Home Builder Assn. Prez Lays Our Affordable Housing Strategy

Florida Home Builders Assn., the largest state builder org. in the U.S., boasts a $42 billion economic impact and 472,000 workers in Fla. John Wiseman, president of FHBA, laid out the association's affordable housing strategy in an op-ed in the state capital's only daily newspaper. The essay has a few holes. An activist website critiques it.

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Web Seminar Announcement

Aging Workforce News has an upcoming tomorrow (Feb 14th) that you won't want to miss:
Entitled "Retaining the Energy and Expertise of Experienced Employees" it will explore proven techniques for developing, motivating, and managing an aging workforce with highly valuable skills and experience.
    William C. Byham, Ph.D., will present "70 Is the New 50: Retaining the Energy and Expertise of Experienced Employees," addressing the elements of a retirement management system, how retirement fits into a broader talent management system, and how to effectively implement a successful retirement management program.

Why Workforce Development is Struggling - Part 3 - The Truth about Job Creation

Job creation has not kept up with population growth, and the employment rate has fallen sharply.

• The United States has only 1.9% more jobs today than in March 2001 (the start of the last recession). Private sector jobs are up only 1.5%. At this stage of previous business cycles, jobs had grown by an average of 8.8% and never less than 6.0%.  This comes from a Lee Price paper, 2005. "The Boom That Wasn't"
• The unemployment rate is relatively low at 4.6%. But the percent of the population that has a job has never recovered since the recession and is still 1.3% lower than in March 2001. If the employment rate had returned to pre-recession levels, almost 4 million more people would be employed, according to Bernstein, Jared and Lee Price's 2005 paper "An Off-Kilter Expansion"
• More than 3 million manufacturing jobs have been lost since 2000 according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2006 Current Employment Statistics Survey.\

As the unemployment statistics continued to fall throughout 2006, an increased tightening of the labor market is occurring which if you are an employer will limit your choices even more than today. 

Many ask me about hiring more Immigrants? Older Workers? Younger Workers?  Older and younger workers are already working at historically high levels. And while the number of migrants has grown and remains steady in the 1990s, net migration may not be as strong in the future, especially in light of new Immigration and related Homeland Security laws.

That leaves as a viable and economically attractive option - the development of the existing workforce.  This is a huge area of opportunity since these are already people who you know - who work for you - and you know a great deal about them.

In addition to OJT and the local "classroom" training environments, there are a number of high-quality and extremely cost-effective distance learning providers that are specifically geared toward developing people in technical topics as well as supervision and management.  One great resource is RedVector.com, a firm that specializes in the design and construction industry.

Ask any 3 year old - the genius of the Five Why's

If you're an engineer who's been involved in Six Sigma, you've heard of the Five Whys Technique for solving problems. It's a brilliant technique made popular by car-maker Toyota in the 1970s, but it has widespread application.  This article from the HR Cafe shows why this technique works for us all

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The Boggs e-Learning Chronicle: Basic Information on Competencies

Dave has come across a source that provides some foundational information on competencies, "Competency-Based Talent Management System Design for Beginners" by Burke Powers that may be helpful for those just starting out in e-learning and competency management.

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Florida legislators draw battle lines for "workforce housing" showdown

A Fla. legislative Workgroup is preparing for the 'big show' when lawmakers convene in March. More than half a billion dollars for affordable workforce housing is at stake. Last year, lawmakers pillaged the largest affordable housing trust fund in the U.S. This year, housing advocates are determined not to let them do it again.

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Leadership Competency Assessment

Identify your strengths and weakness as a leader. The competency model describes valuable skills, abilities, behaviors, attitudes, and knowledge areas for leaders.  Leaders are not going to master every competency

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Upcoming audio cast - "You're Not the Person I Hired: How to Hire the Right Person For the Job,"

The HR Cafe has a audiocast today entitled "You're Not the Person I Hired: How to Hire the Right Person For the Job,".  Click this link for registration details

Why Workforce Development is Struggling - Part 2 - Indentured Servitude?

More and more people are deeper and deeper in debt.  That's the latest update from a study of the the Economic Policy Institute.  The data of this troubling report paint a bleak picture, bad for workers and employers alike.

• The indebtedness of U.S. households, after adjusting for inflation, has risen 42.0% over the last five years.
  from the Federal Reserve. 2006. Flow of Funds Accounts, balance sheet tables: total household liabilities
• The level of debt as a percent of after-tax income is the highest ever measured in our history. Mortgage and consumer debt is now 120% of after-tax income, more than twice the level of 30 years ago.
  from the disposable income reports: Bureau of Economic Analysis, NIPA Table 2.1. 2006. For mortgage and consumer debt: Federal Reserve Flow of Funds Accounts, balance sheet tables. 2006.
• The Federal Reserve reports debt-service ratio (the percent of after-tax income that goes to pay off debts) is at an all-time high of 13.9%.
• The personal savings rate is negative for the first time since the Depression.
  from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. 2006. NIPA Table 2.1

Since Globalization has weakened national control of labor conditions, employers no longer have the stranglehold on the domestic workforce, and theoretically, wages and benefits should adjust to the free market economy.  However, adjustments may be necessary as far as costs and spending patterns.  When wages do not keep pace with increasing costs (inflation), logic suggests that consumption decrease.  Unfortunately, liberal credit policies have permitted workers to become more mired in debt than ever.

The outcome of this is an "enslaved" workforce that is more likely to make "economic" decisions.  Think about this hard - it represents todays reality.  People take jobs closer to home that pay less but also require shorter commutes and less fuel consumption.  Workers are hired away at "premiums" over what they are being paid currently - because they need to keep up with rising costs of living (including the hefty debt service on all the additional debt they've taken on)

Hint: Some smart employers offer an employee assistance program (EAP) that enables strapped workers to speak with financial management professionals to help them get a better grasp on their situation and develop a "get well plan".

If you don't think that money worries affect worker productivity - think again.

US lags behind virtually all wealthy countries in work-life balance

The United States lags far behind virtually all wealthy countries with regard to family-oriented workplace policies such as maternity leave, paid sick days and support for breast-feeding, a new study by Harvard and McGill University says.

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2007 Construction Market Forecast

Just published by Construction Equipment magazine with fresh outlook data for 2007.
Download cex070102_construction_outlook_2007.pdf

Why Social software is necessary to take E-learning beyond learning management systems

Jane Hart (AKA Jane Knight) is a talented researcher, consultant and writer who specializes in perfecting the way individuals and organizations employ e-Learning technologies. 

I was out on her blog Jane's E-Learning Pick of the Day reading one of her may fine pieces when I came across "Social software: E-learning beyond learning management systems" which related the scholarly article published in December 2006 by Christian Dalsgaard, in the European Journal of Open, Distance and E-Learning, by the same title.

The referenced article as well as Jane's insightful commentary asserts (and I wholeheartedly agree) that education providers should look beyond virtual learning environments and learning management systems "and engage students in an active use of the web as a resource for their self-governed, problem-based and collaborative activities".

In essence, it is a recognition that todays learners exist and learn in a rich collaborative learning world and increasingly employ social engineering methods and technologies.

Doesn't this then suggest that e-Learning providers now have a new set of additional requirements to consider?  If social engineering has moved into the mainstream (AKA Web 2.0), should e-Learning delivery methods and technologies be stuck in e-Learning 1.x?

Your thoughts?