When we recently spoke with manufacturers in New Britain, Farmington, and Cromwell, they all shared the same critical issue with us:  How can they access skilled labor immediately?  They shared their challenges related to significant orders with tight delivery schedules and very tight margins.

The answer is not simple.  There is no organization that stores skilled workers on the shelf.  If they exist, they are at work earning a good wage.  The staff at the Institute of Technology and Business Development work diligently to meet our goal of being our clients “Trusted Advisor.”  To address our clients’ issues, we assembled a University team including the Dean of the School of Engineering & Technology, faculty members from that School, and a representative from our Career Services Department.  Site visits and conference calls were held with the clients where alternatives to meet their needs were discussed.  The solutions discussed were not a quick fix, but they offered viable alternatives to meeting client needs.  Jobs in these companies require math, algebra, trigonometry, computer skills, materials knowledge and logic.  Skills as described cannot be acquired overnight.  To solve this challenge, innovation on the part of the business and academic communities is required.

Innovation takes the form of non-traditional work hours, working from home, scholarship incentives as well as communication between the local school district, community college, University, Workforce Board, Chamber of Commerce, State Department of Labor, and economic development representatives.  Clients do not have the resources to deal with all these entities and their own operational uniqueness.  ITBD staff are prepared to bring these resources together to develop innovative solutions to this complex matrix.

Early in 2008, ITBD will establish a new full-time staff position to work with school districts in the local communities on youth programs related to career development.  A position that will help middle school and high school students connect with the business community through organized career training programs focusing on careers in the region, the skills necessary to acquire these positions, experience working with University faculty in career areas, visits and internships at companies in the community, and knowledge of where students can get further education to qualify for these careers.  This is one of ITBD’s innovative contributions to developing the skilled labor force that successful businesses demand.