‘Leveraging Partnerships for a Skilled Workforce’ means more work, rewards for all

The panel discussion for “Leveraging Partnerships for a Skilled Workforce” touched on broad social issues and industry-specific needs but consistently returned to a few core themes – research what programs and organizations can assist you, try to understand your target workforce’s needs, and be ready to put in some work to make your plans a reality.

The panel, led by moderator Phedra Redifer, executive director of Workforce Solutions for North Central Texas, set the stage for the discussion with an overview of the area's workforce and some of the issues that local businesses face. From an aging workforce to the middle-skills gap, Redifer explained that Workforce Solutions is introducing programs to address workers’ and businesses’ concerns. On the positive side of the ledger, Collin County’s unemployment rate is lower than the regional and national rates. She explained that the county is on “an upswing” for population growth and job openings.

Ben Coogan, chief executive officer for Medical City Plano/Frisco, opened the discussion with healthcare-related staffing issues, including the need to train existing workforces to meet future needs and ensure their employees have room for advancement. He pointed to the Texas Two-Step Nursing Program through Collin College and Tarrant County College, resulting in more than 380 new workers at Medical City Healthcare.

“We couldn’t do that without partners like you all,” Coogan said.

Robert Flores, pipeline and acceleration programs lead for Raytheon, reiterated the benefit of working with trusted partners and searching out programs to prepare the local workforce to meet their needs. Raytheon has expanded its worker development approach through the Department of Labor Registered Apprenticeship Program. This strategy will help create a pipeline of workers working in the industry while they pursue degrees. Raytheon is considering expanding its local apprenticeship practices to more sites nationwide. 

“There absolutely is work involved in setting up a program with the Department of Labor,” Flores said, “but the juice is worth the squeeze. We are starting to reap some of those benefits that Phedra’s team helped us establish.”

While Coogan and Flores brought perspectives from the healthcare and tech industries, Gilberto Atayde, executive director of the Greater North Texas Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, offered a broader look at the area’s workforce needs through the communities he serves and the benefits of chambers of commerce in helping local businesses.

Atayde noted that, since 2011, Hispanic business owners have been setting up businesses at twice the national average. With such a growing workforce sector comes economic and cultural pressures, including the hurdles encountered by second- and third-generation business owners. Chambers of commerce provide the resources and tools to help those businesses thrive. Atayde said the Greater North Texas Hispanic Chamber is partnering with other chambers to encourage growth and to meet the wide variety of needs presented by their members.

The panelists and moderator touched on many more areas of discussion. A video of the complete panel discussion is available at this link. For more information about the 2023 Collin Leadership Policy Summit, visit www.collin.edu/policysummit/.