The Heller School for Social Policy and Management,Brandeis University

Building Workforce Success Together June 7 & 8, 2011University of CharlestonCharleston, WV

Building Partnerships for Effective Employability Development

USDOL/ETA Region 2

Susan P. CurnanChair, MBA & MPP ProgramsDirector, Center for Youth and Communities

Working It Out II1

Building Partnerships for Effective Employability Development

1Working It Out II builds on lessons learned over 20 years and draws on a virtual anthology of state and local strategies as well as innovative partnerships engaging government, philanthropy, business and non-profit

organizations. Working It Out I: Performance Management Strategies for Increasing Services to At-Risk Youth was also prepared by Brandeis University, Center for Youth and Communities and published by USDOL to guide

improvements in the JTPA system. JTPA was superseded by WIA in 1998.

What Makes Partnerships Work?(What hinders or facilitates them? And what causes them to fail?)

Backdrop• Over 30 years and at least 3 “bursts” of partnership

efforts• Some “pockets of success” & many false starts• Few “sustainable”, fully functioning partnerships of the

kind you are talking about today• What makes this time & place different?

• “Knowledge Explosion” in last decade about what our clients need and about partnership development

• Shifting demographics and labor market demand• Economic collapse/financial crisis

Conference Questions for Discussion

• Based on research and evaluation, what do clients really need?

• What works with them?• What doesn’t work?• How do coordination and collaboration across

programs help make this work?• What the heck is a “three tiered model”?!

“Knowledge Explosion”

• Research is driving a more holistic approach requiring partnerships.

The Learning Pyramid*

Passive Teaching Methods

5% Lecture

10% Reading

20% Audio-Visual

30% Demonstration

Participatory Teaching Methods

50% Group Discussion

75% Practice

90% Teaching Others

Average Retention Rates

*Adapted from National Training Laboratories. Bethel, Maine

The National Research CouncilAssets that predict adult success include:• Physical development - Good health habits, risk management skills• Intellectual development - School success, critical thinking, decision-making, life skills,

vocational skills• Psychological and emotional development

- Good mental health, positive self-regard, self-regulation, coping skills, autonomy, effective time management

• Social development- Connectedness, sense of place, attachment to pro-social institutions, ability to navigate cultural contexts, commitment to civic engagement

What Can We Do to Help Adults Transition to Socio-Economic Self-Sufficiency?

Ensure that places they spend time have:*• Physical and psychological safety • Appropriate structure• Supportive relationships• Opportunities to belong• Positive social norms• Support for efficacy and mattering• Opportunities for skill-building• Integration of family, school and community

efforts

NRC Recommendations

Communities should provide an ample array of program opportunities…through

local entities that can coordinate such work across the entire community…[and]

…put in place some locally appropriate mechanism for monitoring the availability, accessibility, and quality of programs…

When we think about it, there is no alternative to working in partnership to build a better employability development system for adults and dislocated workers if

• We are truly “client-centered”.

• But how do we close the gap between what we know and what we do?

Lessons from Experience

Taking It Home:

Potholes and Pathways to Working Partnerships

WARNING: In order for partnerships to work, we need to be open to learning and changing.

Building a New System:A Five-Stage Process for Change

Source: “Together We Can.” US Department of Education and US Department of Healthy and Human Services. Washington, DC. 1993.

Business Essentials for Leading and Managing PartnershipsStage 1: Readiness Factors

Business Essentials for Leading and Managing PartnershipsStage 2: Continuous Improvement

Constraints• Inexperience: A lack of experience and clarity around expectations,

roles, and purpose of a partnership. • A fear of negative experiences: Many partners interviewed said it

was important to ensure a positive experience for them. They worried that negative experiences or “getting burned” would limit their ability and interest in establishing future partnerships.

• An unproven track record: A partner’s lack of a proven track record could be a big deterrent to partnership development. Partners said time and again that they first looked for a positive reputation and track record in the community.

• A lack of time and resources: Almost all partners said one of their greatest challenges was finding adequate time and resources to commit at the level they thought necessary.

Geometry of the Employability Dilemma in USAThe Changing Labor Market

OLD NEW

Executive

Mid-Mgmt

Entry Level

“Taylorism”Manufacturing Major

20th C 21st C

Quals:Have you worked?Did you graduate?

Can you read?

Growth Area“Information Age”Higher Order Skills

Vanishing Jobs

The Employability Gap: Old NewsMismatch #1

POPULATIONDEMAND

Nearly Employable

Lots of people

Employable

Least skilled growing in

proportion to others

Pre-Employable

Few Jobs

“Trimming”Right sizing

The GREAT Mismatch

POPULATION

Nearly Employable

Employable

Pre-Employable

PROGRAMS – Work Force Dev. Supports & Opportunities, Education

Need to turn “triangle” on its head!Match needs w/strategies and partners in big picture.

TURNING THE TRIANGLE UPSIDE DOWN - FROM MISMATCH TO REMATCH

• A program mix that is flexible and varied enough to address a spectrum of individual needs and skill levels and that has the means (through assessment) to identify those needs;

• The capacity to provide intensive and long-term programming, with appropriate interim outcomes, for those with the greatest deficiencies;

• An integrated and collaborative approach that can provide an array of services;

• A graduated sequence of services that extend over time to provide for the development of hierarchy of skills and experience.

Change is Inevitable Partnership is Essential

The Old Way:Matching to Existing and Traditional “Slots”

Population Employment Training Program

Three Magic Questions

• Who do we want to serve? How do you define levels of employability?

• What outcomes do we need to achieve? How do you assess those outcomes – both interim and final?

• What strategies and activities, opportunities must you provide?

Who has to be engaged to make the whole system work? How do you define each role?

Three-Tiered Employability Model

Tier Sample Services (USDOL)Sample of Partnership

Help Needed

USDOL USDA USHHS USHUD

WIA SNAP TANFASSETS

HUD

Tier 1:Employable (Advanced)

Career AwarenessJob Search Assistance Placement

Private SectorEmployment competency certificationQuality placements

? ? ? ?

Tier 2:Nearly Employable(Intermediate)

Pre-Employment Skills TrainingTryout Employment or On-the-Job TrainingBasic Education Tutorials within schools and in alternative settings

EducationTrained instructorsCurriculum developmentPrivate SectorQuality worksites for trainingEffective supervisionEmployment competency certification

? ? ? ?

Tier 3:Pre-Employable(Basic)

Intensive Work Site Training w/competent adult as supervisor, guide, “mentor” (Behavior/Attitudes, Work Maturity)Employment Related Basic Skills Counseling/Coaching

Social ServiceEnhanced counseling capacity (family, drug abuse, etc.)Transportation Curriculum devel.Food/nutrition assistanceHousing stabilizationEducationTrained instructors for in school and out of schoolFunctional curriculum development

? ? ? ?

Workforce Funding: Primary Federal Agencies and How Funds Flow

The flow of federal funding for workforce is complex and is distributed directly through competitive grants, through entitlements or grants to states and local jurisdictions, and from all levels to community organizations. Complicating this flow are the range of federal agencies with workforce development budgets. Shown below are some of the primary federal agencies and their main funding streams related to workforce.

Federal

State (Multiple

Agencies)

Local

Community (Programs

and Individuals)

U.S. Dept. of Labor

Workforce Investment Act (WIA) Title I

Wagner-Peyser Act Trade Adjustment Assistance Competitive Grants (Green

industry, health care, etc.)

WIA Title 1(15%) Discretionary

WIA Title I (85%) Wagner-Peyser Act Trade Adjustment Assistance

Individual Training Accounts Vouchers from WIA Act Competitive Grants

U.S. Dept. of Education

Workforce Investment Act Title II (Adult Education)

Perkins Loan Program Pell Grants

WIA Title II Perkins Loan Program

No adult education funding at local level

Pell Grants (Individual) WIA Title II Perkins Loan Program

U.S. Dept. of Health and Human Services

Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF)

Community Services Block Grant (CSBG)

Social Services Block Grant (SSBG)

TANF SSBG

No funding at local level

CSBG – Community Action Programs (CAPs)

TANF – Competitive Grants

U.S. Depts. of Energy, Agriculture, Housing and Urban Development, and

Justice

Energy: e.g., Weatherization Assistance Program

Agriculture: e.g., Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Employment and Training Program

HUD: e.g., Community Development Block Grant (CDBG)

Justice: e.g., Second Chance Act

CDBG Small Cities

CDBG Entitlement Communities

Competitive Grants

STRATEGIC ELEMENTS FOR MANAGING COMPLEX CHANGE[1]

KEY FACTORS RESULT

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Resources Incentive

Ownership

Action Plan

Evaluation

=

CONFUSION

Shared Vision

Resources Incentive Ownership Action Plan

Evaluation =ANXIETY,

BOTCHED JOB

Shared Vision

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Incentive Ownership Action Plan

Evaluation = FRUSTRATION

Shared Vision

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Resources Ownership Action Plan

Evaluation =GRADUAL, IF ANY, CHANGE

Shared Vision

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Resources Incentive Action Plan

Evaluation =APATHY OR

RESENTMENT

Shared Vision

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Resources Incentive Ownership Evaluation =

FALSE STARTS/

SHORT-TERM EFFORT

Shared Vision

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Resources Incentive Ownership Action Plan

= PLATEAU

SHARED VISION

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND

ABILITIES RESOURCES INCENTIVE OWNERSHIP ACTION

PLAN EVALUATION =

CHANGE & CONTINUOUS

IMPROVEMENT

[1] Based on the Managing Complex Change Model developed by the Center for Youth and Communities (1996) with acknowledgement and input from The Leadership Spectrum, Mary Lippett, 2002.

Our job as Academic Activists = “To make knowledge productive” for policy makers,

managers, leaders, practitioners in government, business and nonprofits and “change agents” who want to close the gap between what we know and what we do on behalf of children, youth and families, particularly those who are vulnerable as a result of poverty, economic

insecurity, gender, homophobia, racism, disease, ethnic discrimination, disability and age.

THE HELLER SCHOOL FORSOCIAL POLICY AND MANAGEMENT

Knowledge Advancing Social Justice

Mission: Excellence in evaluation research, coaching and capacity building to help prepare young people and their families for education, work and life.

“To Make Knowledge Productive”

Close the education achievement gap among young people in the United States

Improve access, retention and advancement for young people in the 21st Century workplace

Strengthen youth’s connections with their families and communities

How Using science-based research to improve the quality and impact of youth

programs and policies, including education, workforce development and family support system

Strengthening governance, leadership and management in philanthropy, government, the non-profit sector and socially responsible businesses

Developing and using outcome based planning and evaluation methods to deepen public understanding, strengthen programs, prove the efficacy of particular models and shape policies