From 1997 through 2007, WINs worked with local employer organizations across the country that are on the cutting edge of workforce development, testing the proposition that they can play a unique intermediary role in achieving a dual goal:

• Improving the economic prospects of disadvantaged job seekers and workers; and
• Meeting the needs of their member firms for employees at the entry level and above.

In 2006 and 2007, the WINs partnership disseminated the lessons learned over the initiative’s 10 years. The partners are publishing these lessons in a variety of media, taking part in conference sessions across the nation, and engaging in various other outreach strategies.

Rationale

Efforts to help individuals succeed must provide education and training that meet employer needs for knowledge and high skills. Similarly, individuals—particularly those with low education and skill levels—will not succeed in gaining family-sustaining employment unless they acquire the skills necessary to perform in today's complex work environment.

Goals

• Build the capacity of employer organizations to broker and support employer involvement in local workforce development systems; and
  
• Design collaborations between employers and other stakeholders to undertake innovative strategies that promote the retention and advancement of low-skilled employees while meeting employer needs for skilled workers.

JFF's Approach

Between 1997 and 2002, WINs laid the groundwork for involving employers and their organizations in the public workforce development system. The WINs partners began by exploring the concept of the "employer intermediary," and then tested it in nine demonstration sites. WINs also promoted its ideas to the members of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the National Association of Manufacturers, as well as to other employer organizations, policymakers, and the public.

With funding from the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, the WINs partners applied the lessons they learned in two major ways from 2002 through 2005:

JFF has completed the WINs multiyear effort to accelerate the development and expansion of demand-driven workforce strategies by working with four exemplary programs across the country. Jobs for the Future created strategic partnerships with New Century Careers, the Skillpoint Alliance, the Wisconsin Regional Training Partnership, and WorkSource Partners, with a primary focus on approaches that advance lower-skilled individuals into better-paying jobs while meeting the needs of employers.

Partners

• Institute for a Competitive Workforce, U.S. Chamber of Commerce
• Center for Workforce Success, The Manufacturing Institute, NAM

Funders

Publication References

• Providing Business Services: A "How To" Manual
• Partnering with One-Stop Career Centers: A "How To" Manual
• Creating Community Advancement Intermediaries: A "How To" Manual
• Organizing and Supporting the Employer Role in Workforce Development
• Building Employer-Responsive Workforce Systems at the State Level: A "How To" Manual
• Private Employers and Public Benefits
• WINs Announcement of New Project Sites to Help Boost Skills and Job Prospects Through Employer Involvement: Background Information
• Getting Ahead: A Survey of Low-Wage Workers On Opportunities for Advancement
• Hiring, Retaining, and Advancing Front-Line Workers: A Guide to Successful Human Resources Practices
• High-Leverage Governance Strategies for Workforce Development Systems
• Working Together on Worker Training
• From Stakeholders to Partners: Organizing Community Partnerships for Workforce Development
• Mentoring
• Building a Nation that Works: Designing TANF for the Workplace
• Theory of Change for Workforce Innovation Networks (WINs)
• Everybody WINs: Effectively Involving Business in Workforce Development
• The Employer Workforce Development Initiative: Partnering with Communities to Create a Workforce for the New Millennium
• Public Benefits for Employers and Their Employees
• Making the Connections: The Role of Employer Associations in Workforce Development