Workforce Development - A Good Investment?

Be A Part of An Important Workforce Study Being Conducted

Aberdeen Group's 2007 study entitled "The Looming Leadership Void: Identifying, Developing, and Retaining Your Top Talent" revealed that while the top two pressures driving organizations to pursue succession management were insufficient managerial bench strength and the loss of key leaders to retirement, only 48% of organizations had a succession planning strategy in place

Over the next three weeks, Aberdeen Group's Human Capital Management research practice, will survey hundreds of organizations around the world to determine the current best practices pertaining to planning for future leadership needs.

Jayson Saba, a research analyst at Aberdeen, and I invite you to participate in this 15-minute online survey. Each respondent who answers the survey will receive a complimentary full copy of the report containing this study's results (a $399 value) - the report will publish at the beginning of November.

Why Shouldn't Women Be Effective Construction Managers?

I was reading an article in Lift and Access magazine the other day that caught my eye.  The article "Leadership Academy Helps Women Elevate Construction Management Skills" among several excellent points discusses   the upcoming second annual Women’s Leadership Academy on Oct. 25-28, 2008, at Clemson University in Clemson, S.C.   

This event being produced by the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) and the National Association of Women in Construction, provides women with the opportunity to elevate their careers and their management and leadership roles within their companies and the construction industry.

It consists of three days of intense training sessions covering such topics as leadership styles, negotiating techniques, time management, productivity, and conflict resolution.

Participants will also receive lasting networking opportunities by sharing their experiences with peers from around the nation.

I think we can all agree that we need to take our Construction Management "game" to the next level?

SDA Audio Seminar - The Generational Challenges for Design Firms

Yours truly has been invited by the Society for Design Administration (SDA) to present a 90 minute audio session on "The Generational Challenges for Design Firms"

"The Generational Challenges for Design Firms" Audio Conference is basically a 90-minute telephone seminar.  You'll be able to see materials, hear an instructor and ask questions in real time. Participants are charged by the site, which means you can invite colleagues to attend the session with you and share the cost! 

The SDA is a RedVector business partner

Cost is $125 for SDA Members/Chapters and $155 for nonmembers
Registration information is available using the attached form
Download audio_conf_registration_20080212.pdf

Audio Conference Date: Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Audio Conference Time:
2PM-3:30 PM Eastern
1PM-2:30 PM Central
12PM-1:30 PM Mountain
11AM-12:30 PM Pacific

Webinar on the results of the FMI/CMAA eighth annual survey of owners

e-Builder, a provider of web-based capital project management software, will host a presentation led by Mr. Mark Bridgers and Marisé Mikulis, consultants with FMI Management Consultants who will discuss the results of FMI/CMAA's Eighth Annual Survey of Owners during a one-hour webcast on Wednesday, January 23rd, 2008 at 1:00 p.m. EST.

Details on the call can be found here

Podcast - Understanding the Generations in Today's Workforce

The Boggs e-Learning journal announced the 1st in a series of two Podcasts featuring yours truly, speaking on Understanding the Generations in Todays Workforce

Check it out - it is (at the risk of shameless self-promotion) pretty informative. 

Launch of www.Skills2Compete.org with resources for advancing a 21st-century skill guarantee

 

Reminder!  Register by Thursday, Nov. 8th A 21st-Century Vision for Opportunity and Innovation Launch of the Skills2Compete Campaign A National Webinar Monday, November 12, 2007 at 12:00 p.m. EST To register, email carlam@workforcealliance.or Learn About the Research Harry J. Holzer Professor of Public Policy, Georgetown University Visiting Fellow, Urban Institute will talk about the campaign report, America's Forgotten Middle-Skill Jobs by Holzer and Robert Lerman.. Hear from Representatives of Endorsing Organizations National Association of Manufacturers Phyllis Eisen, Vice President, The Manufacturing Institute & Executive Director, Center for Workforce Success International Association of Machinists & Aerospace Workers R. Thomas Buffenbarger, International President Kentucky Community and Technical College System Dr. Keith Bird, Chancellor Training, Inc. National Elsa Bengel, Vice President, Boston YMCA Education & Training The Workforce Alliance Andy Van Kleunen, Executive Director See the Resources Launch of www.Skills2Compete.org with resources for advancing a 21st-century skill guarantee. Register now for the national launch of the Skills2Compete campaign by emailing carlam@workforcealliance.org. Those who register will receive dial-in information one prior to the event.  Learn more about the campaign and endorse at our temporary campaign website at www.workforcealliance.org/endorseS2C.           The Skills2Compete Vision: Every U.S. worker should have access to the equivalent of at least two years of education or training past high school—leading to a vocational credential, industry certification, or one's first two years of college—to be pursued at whatever point and pace makes sense for individual workers and industries. Every person must also have the opportunity to obtain the basic skills needed to pursue such education.

Visit our temporary campaign website at www.WorkforceAlliance.org/S2C

A Halloween Treat for You from the Evil HR Lady

I'm a fan of the "Evil HR Lady", who publicly claims to be "an HR professional in a Fortune 500 Company. I've hired, fired, managed pay and analyzed the numbers. I've even tried to cooperate with Finance, but, well you can guess how that turned out."

She operates a great blog by the same name (Evil HR Lady) with a high volume of feedback that confirms that she is on the right track.

She recently published a great article called "The Coming Talent Shortage" that provided a response to the YouTube video about workforce demographic changes. 

Michael Moore (the lawyer, not the other Michael Moore) posted a link to this video about the upcoming labor shortage.

This article is a "MUST READ" for people concerned about where our future experienced talent will come from.  Enjoy and let me know what you think!

Webinar Annouoncement - OCT 17 - The Cost of Dropping Out: The Effects of the High School Drop Out Rate on America's Competitiveness

This is a "MUST ATTEND" for anyone concerned about the effect of dropouts on our skilled workforce.

This session, The Cost of Dropping Out: The Effects of the High School Drop Out Rate on America's Competitiveness, includes an Introduction to Education Day and Opening remarks by Emily Stover DeRocco, Assistant Secretary for the Employment and Training Administration (ETA), and Mason Bishop, Deputy Assistant Secretary for ETA. Panelists will include: Paul Harrington, Professor, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University (Boston, MA) and Martin Bean, General Manager of Worldwide Education Strategy, Products, and Solutions, Microsoft, Incorporated. Microsoft, Inc. will discuss the 21^st century global economy demands for a more highly educated workforce and the effects of our high drop-out rate on America's ability to compete.   

                     

Presenters:	Emily Stover DeRocco, Assistant Secretary, Office of the Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration Paul Harrington, Professor, Center for Labor Market Studies, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts Martin Bean, Vice President, Educational Programs, Microsoft, Incorporated
Moderator:	Mason Bishop, Deputy Assistant Secretary, Office of the Assistant Secretary, Employment and Training Administration
Date:	10/17/2007
Time:	11:00am Eastern   (10:00am/Central,   9:00am/Mountain,   8:00am/Pacific)
Length:	90 minutes

 

Register Now!!!
Registration for this Webinar is limited and seating is on a first-come, first-served basis. Please click the link below to login to Workforce³ One and register today! 

http://www.workforce3one.org/public/webinars/details.cfm?id=234          

If you are deaf, hard-of-hearing, or have speech disabilities and captioning would facilitate your participation in this Webinar, you can register for captioning service through the Federal Relay Conference Captioning. Please note the Federal Relay Service requires at least 48 hours notice (2 working days) to guarantee coverage. For more information, visit

 

http://www.workforce3one.org/support/index.cfm?id=940.                    

               

Is Fraud or Incompetence Now a Skillset?

I am an avid reader of CFO magazine, an award-winning Economist Group publication, dedicated to providing relevant insights to senior financial executives around the world. Reaching an international audience of over one million corporate decision makers each month through specialized events, conferences and research, it is a highly credible "microscope" into the complex world of corporate finance.

Just for grins, I went back into the first three (3) weeks of headlines for September 2007 and discovered the following:

• Apple's Jobs Was Subpoenaed, Report Says
• Ex-CFO Says He Won't Be the "Fall Guy"
• Del. Court Slaps Staples on Backdating
• Retiree Miscount Leads to Restatement
• Quest's Quest for More Backdating Errors
• German conglomerate, embroiled in scandal
• Wachovia Sued over Drink Company's Spill
• Dynegy Settles Charges with Pensioners
• UTStarcom to Redo China Revenue Report
• Mentor to Fraud? Two Former Execs Settle
• SEC Charges Hedge Fund Head over PIPEs
• SEC Aims to Clean Up Grocery Spill
• Dried Dough: Krispy Kreme's Woes
• Fairchild Dumps KPMG
• CTRL-ALT-DELETE: Dell Frozen, Restarting
• Former HealthSouth CFO Back in Court
• Grand Theft Auto, for Real
• The Morality Play
• Shareholders Cry Foul in Calpine Plan
• Former CFO of a high-end car dealer is accused of embezzlement
• Ex-Controller Settles Fraud Case
• Unregistered Auditors Busted by SEC
• SEC Takes Aim at Ex-Nortel Finance Execs
• CFOs' Optimism Plummets to Six-Year Low
• CSC Tax Review Uncovers Years of Errors
• Wireless Company's CFO Takes a Leap
• Ace Discovers $154M Inventory Error
• Finite-risk Probe Halts Assurant Buyback
• Couple Guilty in "Pillow-talk" Case
• Top Exec Steps Down from FASB Parent
• Macau Gambling Plan Loses $1B in Loans
• Saks Settles SEC Vendor-Allowance Suit
• Motive Inc. Restates, Looks for Auditor
• Did Fake Purchase Orders Oust CFO?
• Overhill Farms CFO Goes over the Fence
• Internal Probe Stalls Retailer's Filings
• CEO Put on Leave Following Audit
• Uncollectibles Force SEC Settlement
• Internal Probe Stalls Children's Place Filings

I couldn't believe it - almost 40 headlines IN 21 DAYS showcasing matters relating to corporate fraud or incompetence (or both).

Makes me wonder?  Is fraud or mismanagement of company assets becoming a "corporate value?"  The headlines over three weeks would seem to indicate that is the case?  Has greed overtaken "core values" as being more desirable for workers than working hard, protecting company assets and keeping the customer satisfied?

Is the "I got mine" mentality, where managers and executives put their own self interest ahead of the employees, customers and shareholders leading to higher levels of frustration in the business world resulting in the attitude of "what the hell, everybody else is doing it?"

If this phenomenon is occurring on an increasingly widespread basis, what effect does this have on Workforce Development?  Do frustrated competent and honest workers leave for places they perceive as better or more ethical?  Does it become harder to attract and recruit top talent, when a cloud (either publicized or not) hangs over the business/organization?  Or do the "opportunists" flock to the firms being investigated in the hopes that they can profit from the "birds of a feather" mentality?

Readers - what do you say?

Ladies, Thinking About an Engineering Career? Here's Some Research

Anay over at Introduction to Womens Studies has done her homework !  I think you'll find the data she's uncovered interesting and helpful

read more | digg story

Tougher US immigration leading to 'reverse brain-drain': study

The huge backlog in US immigration visas is leading to a "reverse brain-drain" that will force skilled workers to return to their home country, a report released Wednesday concludes.

read more | digg story

Skilled worker shortage hurts U.S.

According to a recent story published by CNN, Skilled worker shortage hurts U.S. the cross-industry problem being experienced by all industries is bad and getting worse.

Most experts agreed the shortage of skilled workers is likely to persist longer than it did in the late 1990s. That earlier tightness was fed by dot.com companies burning through investors' cash to hire people. The latest round of hiring is being driven by stronger corporate balance sheets, and as more retiring Baby Boomers start leaving the work force.

Today's challenge is different and the mandate for companies is different.

The problem I see with this article is that it's long on explanations, but offers few substantial ideas for firms looking for solutions.  What's your opinion?

Are 20,000 global temps the right solution to the 2010 Olympics problem?

Like Montreal, 3 decades ago, the construction costs of the 2010 games is soaring.  Construction spokespeople have blamed escalating labour costs for the overrun.  Now, calls are being heard in some business circles for the Canadian government to solve the problem by bringing large numbers of foreign workers into the country.  Union busting?

read more | digg story

It starts with a plan

Today's secondary, postsecondary and career and technical education students stand poised at the center of industry trends that will benefit them enormously. The United States is embarking on a construction boom. In fact, according to a 2004 report published by Brookings Institute, more than half of the buildings that will exist in 2035 have not been built yet.

As baby boomers approach retirement age, a significant portion of the existing construction workforce will be leaving. The demand for quality skilled craft professionals will be critical, and this will create a wealth of possibilities for young people who seize that opportunity. It is critical to the future of our industry that we reach out to our young people and expand career-training opportunities.

Accordingly, the US has a vested stake in ensuring that the workforce needed to construct these buildings.  Thus, the National Center for Construction Education and Research (NCCER) has been an advocate in promoting ways for contractors to keep up with this surge.

The challenge is that the Construction industry, representing almost a trillion dollars of spending in our national economy is incredibly fragmented, and it is a monumental challenge to get the industry on the same page, with literally almost 1000 construction industry different trade groups in operation.

The NCCER has produced a document entitled the 2007 Construction Careers Planning guide, Download 2007_construction_careers_planning_guide.pdf in conjuntion with the upcoming National Careers in Construction Week (CiC Week) is a nationwide campaign designed to increase public awareness of the hard work and contributions of our nation’s craft professionals by highlighting the many career opportunities available in the Construction industry.

The Contingent Workforce

Highly skilled professionals are fast joining the temp ranks, so start planning your career as a consultant now, says HotGigs CEO Doug Berg

read more | digg story

UPCOMING AUDIO CONFERENCE: "Becoming a Great Place to Work: What It Really Takes"

Do you want your company to be a great place to work? Do you want to have engaged employees who perform year in and year out? On May 23, B21 conducted an audio conference entitled, "Becoming a Great Place to Work: What It Really Takes." To learn more about this webcast, click on the link. Our speaker is Hal Adler, President of the Great Place to Work® Institute.

Honoring those at Virginia Tech - Friday April 20th

So you cannot read, eh?

Which of the following statements are true?

1. Four in ten Canadians do not have the literacy skills needed to meet increasing demands of modern life and economy.
2. Average literacy scores have not improved significantly in the past decade even though educational attainment has improved.
3. Ontarians scored significantly lower in a 2003 adult literacy study than Canadians from      Saskatchewan, Alberta, British Columbia and the Yukon.

Answer: All of them.

And, in case you haven't been paying attention, this is also a major issue "South of the Border" (And we're not talking about Mexico)

The battle is on! The Workforce Development Board and Literacy Ontario Central South are teaming up to help fight for literacy in the workplace.

You see, literacy is not an either/or issue. Many people think that one can either read and write and do basic math, or they cannot. It’s not that simple.

In a 2003 adult literacy study, 23,000 Canadians were tested. It was discovered that 42% of Ontarians, representing almost 3.5 million people, scored below adequate literacy levels. And 50% of Ontarians, representing over 4.1 million people, scored below adequate levels in numeracy. It was also found that the largest proportion of workers with level 1 proficiency, that is the lowest level of proficiency, are in the manufacturing,construction, transportation, gas and electricity industries. 

You may be thinking, who cares? Why is this my problem? The truth is, workplace literacy doesn’t just affect workers. It affects the employer and the economy as well. Employees today are expected to play a broader, more responsible and self-directed role than ever before in the workplace, and thus literacy and basic skills are critical to the success of every business.

Ontario businesses wanting to gain “the competitive edge” should begin by demonstrating a strong commitment to literacy in the workplace.

For more information on workplace literacy, click the following link
Download Celebrating_Literacy_Resource_Manual_2007.pdf

 

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.

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

Upcoming audiocast - "How Recognition and Non-Monetary Rewards Can Juice Employee Performance."

UPCOMING AUDIO CONFERENCE: B21 will be conducting an audio conference on employee recognition on Wednesday, January 31 entitled:  "How Recognition and Non-Monetary Rewards Can Juice Employee Performance."  Sounds like it will have some good info.