Metro Atlanta area employers and workforce providers met at the Metro Atlanta Chamber today to discuss the progress of the MAC Workforce Council in 2015 and to outline its plans for
Metro Atlanta area employers and workforce providers met at the Metro Atlanta Chamber today to discuss the progress of the MAC Workforce Council in 2015 and to outline its plans for 2016. Lockheed Martin Vice President and General Manager Shan Cooper, who is serving as Council Chair, hosted the meeting. Under Ms. Cooper's leadership, the Council has developed a new strategic plan with 3 main objectives for area business, non profits and government workforce agencies.
In 2015, the Workforce Council established several new working groups and steering committees comprised of business leaders across metro Atlanta. The Council is working to help employers better understand the public and private resources available to businesses to fill open positions and address skills gaps. To date, the Council has grown to 85 members, including 43 members from the local business community.
PulteGroup Vice President, Stacy Kruger led the Council in a brainstorming session to identify roadblocks in Georgia's current workforce system. The group considered the following:
Question 1: What is the biggest challenge to creating awareness about our workforce system resources? Question 2: What is the biggest barrier for employers engaging in our workforce system?
The responses to these questions and others provide a framework for discussion among policy makers and state agencies that work with the Workforce Council to better align their programs to business needs.
Heading into 2016, the Workforce Council worked with Atlanta Career Rise, the Annie E Casey Foundation the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute and Georgia Best to develop its 2016 legislative agenda. The Workforce Council is also working with partners at Accenture, the University System of Georgia and the Atlanta Regional Commission to generate a baseline assessment of the state's Education-to-Workforce System. This report will examine competitive occupations in the state and the educational requirements needed to fill these jobs.
For more information on the Workforce Council, contact Workforce Policy Expert, Amy Lancaster
