The WorkPlace Mobilizer - March 2006
HOME-TOWN.US: New service improves match between jobseekers and employers
The business of filling jobs is often time-consuming, expensive, and frustrating for employers and candidates alike.
Declining state funding threatens transit services vital to workers and businesses
A growing number of people in Southwestern Connecticut depend on public transportation to get to and from work everyday.
Business Spotlight: Pepsi Bottling Group job fairs get boost with the CTWorks Career Coach
Pepsi Bottling Group job fairs get boost with the CTWorks Career Coach.
The President's Report by Joe Carbone
A capable workforce (skilled, educated, prepared, motivated) is on of the keys to successful economic development.
The WorkPlace, Inc. welcomes Seni "Shaney" Akinlade to the Board of Directors!
HOME-TOWN.US: New Service improves match between jobseekers and employers
The business of filling jobs is often time-consuming, expensive, and frustrating for employers and candidates alike.
Enter HOME-TOWN.US, a new service which promises “a better match, the first time.” This unique program provides numerous benefits:
- ~For Employers, it contains a cost-effective and targeted recruiting & selection suite of tools;
- ~For Jobseekers, it offers proven assessment & search tools, including video interview training; and
- ~For the Region, it better connects the services of the workforce system to employers.
HOME-TOWN.US makes its first national appearance this month through Southwestern CTWorks.
The heart of the new system is customized software which matches an employer’s job type profile to the jobseeker’s psychometric assessment results. The job type profile, selected by the employer when posting a job opening to the HOME-TOWN.US Portal, correlates specific “success traits” to a particular job.
The psychometric assessment measures the jobseeker’s behavioral and cognitive traits such as problem-solving, decision-making, team skills, and planning. RightMatch™ software automatically finds job/candidate matches and sends the employer a daily email of recommended jobseekers in a numerical ranking.
More than 18 area employers have signed up to participate already, representing a collective 783 open positions annually. Interest is very high. Jobseeker enrollment kicked off on March 14 and will be extended through area job fairs and partner organizations. As the number of postings and candidates grows, the power of the match will approach its full potential.
The WorkPlace is pleased to be the first pilot in the United States. For more information, contact Jo Shute at (203) 610-8504.
Declining state funding threatens transit services vital to workers and businesses
A growing number of people in Southwestern Connecticut depend on public transportation to get to and from work every day. 77% of these riders reported that new services enabled them to secure their job and 41% reported that without their bus service they would be unable to maintain employment, according to a survey conducted by People to Jobs.
People to Jobs, a regional transportation task force, ensures that bus service is coordinated regionally to meet the needs of riders. The Task Force examines existing service lines of the Greater Bridgeport Transit Authority (GBTA), Norwalk Transit District, Milford Transit District, Valley Transit District, and CTTransit, makes recommendations for service enhancements, and distributes funding for changes that benefit riders and businesses.
Employers also count on public transportation and increasingly make business decisions based on transit access for their employees.
“We just relocated last year and one of the criteria was that we were on the train line with the building having a shuttle to and from the station,” said Margaret A. Judge of Octagon in Westport. “We have two shuttles to two train stations and it’s great!”
Services include Commuter Connections (shuttles that run between train stations and major employment sites), and interregional services like Coastal Link (Milford to Norwalk) and Route 7 Link (Danbury to Norwalk).
Unfortunately, People to Jobs’ services are in danger of disappearing because federal and state funding for the program is shrinking. Without a continuation of funding, many riders will need to find alternatives. This will affect the availability of qualified employees for employment at businesses in Southwestern Connecticut.
The preferred method of restoring funding is incorporating it in the Transit Operations Budget. This approach serves to ensure that services created through the People to Jobs pilot receive sustaining funding as part of overall public transit priorities.
For more information visit www.peopletojobs.org or contact Debbie Venditti at (203) 610-8544.
Pepsi Bottling Group job fairs get boost with the CTWorks Career Coach
The CTWorks Career Coach is a career center on wheels and mobile classroom that provides vital services to businesses in Southwestern Connecticut and beyond. The Pepsi Bottling Group (PBG) used the Coach recently to supplement its hiring efforts for hard-to-fill jobs.
“Over two Saturdays, we had more than 300 frontline candidates visit our PBG locations in Stratford and Windsor,” said Senior Human Resources Manager Phil Golino.
The Coach facilitated recruitment for CDL drivers, merchandisers, warehouse workers, and area sales representatives. Job seekers were able to complete online profiles and applications aboard the CTWorks Career Coach, boosting the speed and capacity of the PBG Process.
At PBG Windsor the Coach enabled more than 30 driver candidates to apply online --- those candidates were interviewed later in the week.
Career Coach staff provided on-site assistance for applicants with little or no internet experience.
“Also critical to the event was the ability for CTWorks to get the employment information out to many organizations throughout the state of Connecticut,” said Golino. “Thank you, your staff, and the entire CTWorks family for your help in making our recent Career Fairs such a success.”For more information on the Career Coach, contact Joyce Barcley at (203) 610-8520.
The President's Report by Joe Carbone
A capable workforce (skilled, educated, prepared, motivated) is one of the keys to successful economic development. As leaders throughout our region and across the state work to address the challenges of transportation, housing, and energy, we focus our efforts and partnerships on workforce development. Parts of Southwestern CT, for example Bridgeport and some of the Valley towns, have transportation and housing advantages but need to ensure quality education and training for both younger and older residents in order to fully realize their potential.
The “One Coast, One Future” initiative (co-managed by the Business Council of Fairfield County and the Bridgeport Regional Business Council) seeks to create a more regional approach to economic development by encouraging jobs, housing, and development opportunities between the urban centers of Bridgeport, Norwalk, and Stamford. This formalizes the interdependency which already exists, and initiates a series of building blocks to strengthen coordination.
We are increasingly one labor market, with permeable boundaries into other counties and across the NY state line. The workforce challenges we face –lack of entry-level preparation, need for stronger foundations in math & science, growth in immigration, and transitions due to the aging workforce – are not unique to Southwestern CT, and regional strategies can help to create local solutions.
The WorkPlace, Inc. welcomes Seni "Shaney" Akinlade to the Board of Directors!
Seni "Shaney" Akinlade is the President and COO of Mr. Handyman of Fairfield County.
