Talent Development is Key Part of Moving Region Forward

For many of Mary Barrineau’s clients at Spherion Staffing Services, the hiring challenges in the Charleston region are less about advanced degrees and certifications and more about finidng workers with a high school diploma or GED and a clean drug screen.

Fixing that problem starts way back at the beginning in preschool and kingergarten, said Barrineau, co-franchise owner. If children start school early, they are more likely to graduate.

“It’s a true investment for the long-term,” she said. “We won’t have this lack of high school diplomas. THis is aqbout ABCs and 123s. If these kids can learn to read and write at age 4, they can be the engineers. But, we need to start at the beginning.”

That desire for improved education in the region — from early childhood development all the way to post-graduate education — is a focus for area leaders and organizations committed to shrinking that skills gap and keeping employers from recruiting beyond Charleston’s borders to fill their workforce needs.

THe issue comes up at Charlesotn Metro Chamber of Commerce board meetings and at the Charleston Regional Development Alliance as well as at individual businesses as they consider growing or expanding into the area.

“We hear from members all the time that workplace ski8lls and eduaction are a high priority,” said Ron Jones, chairman of the chamber board and an attorney at Clawson & Staubes LLC. “It’s among the top two or three when we poll or informally ask the question. We find there’s a real need for workforce skills and a lot of our new employers are finding it difficult to find those people.”

Last year, the Charleston REgional Development ALliance introduced Opportunity Next, a regional cluster-based economic development strategy. Opportunity Next is focused on advanced security/IT, aerospace, biomedical and wind energy as key economic development clusters that need the region’s immediate attention.

In developing the strategy, consultants surveyed large employers in key industries and found that applicant skills was a major workplace challenge, followed only by workplace qualities (attendance, punctuality, teamwork and attitude).

Those 130 companies responding to the survey also noted their hiring needs in the next five years would be focused on communications, information technology/software, engineering and technical positions. That kind of information can help the region develop the training opportunities and programs needed to provide a skilled workforce.

“What we’re hearing from IT and software companies is that (those tech skills)is where we have some of our biggest gaps,” said Steve Warner, vice president of global marketing/regional competitiveness for the Charlesotn REgional Development Alliance. But, filling those gaps is becoming easier as the region’s IT industry grows to mroe than 80 tech compamnies, Warner said.

Organizations like the Charleston Digital Corridor have played a key role in getting tech startups off the ground by providing resources and work space. Plus, national press like a June article in Fast Company introducing Charleston as the “Silicon Harbor” doesn’t hurt the area’s reputation for attracting talent.

At the Chamber of COmmerce, businesses are donating money to a regional blueprint — Accelerate Greater Charleston — aimed at helping Charleston compete in the global marketplace. One of the plan’s key elements is to “build and strengthen a talented workforce.”

AMong its strategies is a plan to partner with the four school districts to provide 12 Education and Development for Graduation an Employment Academies over five years in three priority areas: science, technology, engineering and math; hospitality/culinary arts, and health sciences. Another part of the plan is to increase by 25% the number of students able to obtain a two-year degree or certification from Trident Technical College. Warner at the Development Alliance points to the work the Chamber’s Education Foundation is doing with its career academies that tie real-world business needs to student education. He also noted a recent announcement that Clemson University will build the Zucker Family Graduate Education Center, offering advanced degrees in energy and engineering.

For all the progress these programs are initiating, Crissy Ortiz knows it is incumbent upon individual businesses to take on some of the responsibility for creating a skilled workforce. Ortiz is the executive director of Optimal Talent SOlutions, a talent management consulting group. A subsidiary of the South Carolina Federal Credit Union, Optimal Talent SOlutions provides assistance with acquisition and transition, corporate culture, performance and development and employee regulations.

THe group fills a need for not only fellow credit unions but businesses around the country as they struggle to train employees, attract new talent and minimize turnover.