Chambers and Classrooms: A Powerful Partnership for Workforce Readiness

Those times, they are a changin’. Right? That’s how the song goes, at least.

But it certainly is true in today's rapidly evolving job market. With AI and other tech, we’re seeing an evolution in how we work, impacting many sectors. Students preparing for college may be reexamining their courses of study to leverage the best opportunities upon graduation. Businesses are looking at the types of employees they’ll need in the future and where they will get them. Will they hire in their own backyards, recruit from elsewhere, or allow remote work, making it possible to hire from anywhere?

Collaboration between chambers of commerce and educational institutions has become increasingly crucial for developing a skilled workforce and fostering economic growth. After all, if businesses view the local talent pool as limited, they may choose to locate (or relocate) elsewhere. A strong partnership between the chamber as a voice of business and educational institutions bridges the gap between academia and industry, ensuring that students are well-prepared for the demands of the modern workplace.

Aligning Education with Industry Needs

As the voice of business, chambers are uniquely positioned to understand the skills and talents required by area employers across industries. By actively engaging with educational institutions, chambers can help shape curricula and training programs to meet these needs.

This alignment ensures students graduate with the relevant skills and knowledge businesses seek, increasing their employability, reducing the skills gap in the workforce, and making the community more attractive to companies.

Most chamber workforce development plans incorporate a three-pronged approach—high level initiatives and conversations, working programs, and advocacy/marketing of the initiatives and programs.

Workforce Development Initiatives

Bringing everyone to the table for “big picture” and future work lays the groundwork for solid workforce development. You can do that through:

Skills Forecasting

Some chambers are involved in skills forecasting. For example, the Italian Chamber of Commerce manages 'Excelsior', a survey-based system that provides information on current and projected labor demands regarding skills, qualifications, and professions within a five-year period. This data can inform the design and delivery of vocational and technical education curricula. Austria also uses a ‘Talent check’, which analyzes the skills of 13- and 14-year-olds to provide tailored guidance to future workforce initiatives.

Apprenticeships

Chambers can help facilitate apprenticeships, particularly for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) needing more resources to manage such programs independently.

Vocational Education and Training (VET) Programs

Many chambers are directly involved in delivering vocational education and training. According to the European Commission Report, 80% of Chambers of Commerce in Europe are involved in education and training, with 48% delivering initial or continuous vocational education and training.

Partnerships with Higher Education

Chambers can collaborate with local colleges and universities to develop entrepreneurship programs and engage alums in mentoring roles, providing valuable real-world insights to students in vocational and technical programs.

Now, let’s cover individual events and programs that make a difference in workforce initiatives.

Collaborative Program Ideas

Here are a couple of ways to help you create chamber-classroom partnerships at a higher level:

Education Summits. By bringing educators, business leaders, and community stakeholders together, you can lead the conversation about challenges and opportunities in public and private education sectors from a neutral role.

Principal (or President) for a Day. This program allows business leaders to experience the challenges faced by school (or higher education) administrators, creating more meaningful collaborations and support for schools. The same can be accomplished by bringing educators into the boardroom.

Since students are the future workforce, getting them involved is also essential.

Real-World Learning Opportunities for Students

Chambers can facilitate hands-on experiences for students, giving them career pathways they may not have otherwise known about or chosen.

Youth Leadership Programs. Host a leadership program or assist another community group to host one. These programs empower young individuals with leadership skills and expose them to diverse career paths and community issues.

Career Awareness Expos. These events give students insights into various career paths available in your community, helping them make informed decisions about their future.

Life Reality Check. This program for 8th-grade students explores cost of living and salaries of career options, helping them understand potential career choices and the impact of wages on things like college debt.

Employer Provided Innovation Challenges (EPIC). This initiative connects businesses with students to tackle real business challenges, providing valuable hands-on experience. Students from Clinton College worked with Comporium to enhance the buyer experience for young adults in their newly renovated flagship store. It gave the students real-world experience, while the employer received valuable insights on its target market from its target market.

Additionally, look at what Denison University’s Red Frame Lab is doing with businesses like Wendy’s.

Advocacy and Communication

Bringing the leaders in education and business to the table is just one component of working together. You still need to advocate for workforce development initiatives and market your successes. Do this through actions such as:

Represent business needs at workforce development discussions

Advocate for streamlined processes and reduced administrative burdens for participating in apprenticeship or other workforce development programs

Communicate student milestones and successes to the chamber's network and broader community

Represent SME interests in discussions with policymakers and educational institutions

Invite chamber members to participate as guest speakers, field trip hosts, and business mentors

Additionally, not all workforce paths lead to college. Chambers should advocate for the importance of vocational and technical education. Communicate the needs of local businesses to educational institutions and policymakers, ensuring that vocational programs remain relevant and effective.

Workforce Development Assistance the Business Community May Need from the Chamber

While focusing on the future is critical to business success, it’s not always in the realm of possibility for every business. In those situations, chambers can act as intermediaries/partners/extensions to simplify the workforce development process for its members through:

HR Assistance

Helping structure open positions into apprenticeships

Assisting with recruitment by connecting businesses with relevant educational institutions

Supporting SMEs in navigating administrative requirements and relevant legislation

Financial Support

Chambers with foundations or sponsors can help offset the costs associated with workforce initiatives like apprenticeships.

Here are a couple of examples:

Provide salary reimbursements, such as the 50% reimbursement offered by the Chicagoland Chamber Apprenticeship Program (CoCAP). CoCAP provides one year apprenticeship opportunities to City Colleges of Chicago students at small and mid-sized Chicagoland companies

Seek and distribute funding from government grants or other sources to support workforce and hiring. Check out what the Duluth Chamber of Commerce is doing

Training Support

Chambers can offer training and ongoing support to SMEs:

Train "apprenticeship coaches" within chamber staff to help SMEs host apprenticeships

Provide guidance on structuring effective apprenticeship programs

Awareness and Education

Calling attention to the importance of these programs is critical to their success.

Organize information sessions and workshops on the value of workforce development and its programs

Highlight the potential for developing loyal, skilled employees through training programs

Workforce Development Benefits for the Community

Partnerships between chambers and classrooms yield numerous benefits, including:

Enhanced Workforce Readiness
Students gain practical skills and industry exposure, making them more prepared for the job market.

Economic Growth
A skilled workforce attracts businesses and fosters innovation, contributing to economic prosperity.

Reduced Skills Gap
By aligning education with industry needs, the mismatch between available jobs and qualified candidates is minimized.

Community Engagement
These initiatives encourage active participation from various stakeholders, strengthening community bonds.

Overcoming Workforce Challenges
Many industries and organizations face workforce challenges; student and apprentice programs can help them overcome these quickly, while businesses work with educational entities to help in the long term. Through Lenawee Now, students from LISD Tech Center in Michigan developed a digital marketing campaign for the Lenawee County Chemical Collaborative, gaining hands-on experience in market research and digital marketing. This collaboration addressed workforce challenges in the chemical sector while opening students' eyes to exciting local career opportunities.

While bringing together businesses and classrooms is an excellent idea for the community, it has its challenges. Ensuring consistent engagement, leveraging resources, measuring long-term impact, and adapting to rapidly changing industry needs are ongoing concerns. They’re something you should consider if workforce development is part of your ongoing strategic plan.

Chambers are well-positioned to foster the type of partnerships that can prepare students for successful careers, meet the needs of local businesses, and drive economic growth. Continued collaboration and innovation in this space will be crucial for building resilient, skilled workforces capable of meeting the challenges of tomorrow's economy.