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If We Build Them...
New state program helps companies train workers
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Business New Haven
10/4/1999
By: Michele Beck
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Help is here for small businesses.
The Connecticut Business Training Networks are a new venture of the Governor's Council on Economic Competitiveness & Technology, the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA), the state's Department of Economic & Community Development (DECD), the Connecticut Economic Resource Center Inc. (CERC) and the state's Department of Labor (DOL).
The program is intended to help businesses cope with the increasingly difficult task of finding skilled workers in an unskilled marketplace. The grant program will provide companies with the necessary funding to develop training curricula, hire consultants or to purchase materials needed to develop training courses. Once completed, the curriculum will be able to be used by the companies to train existing employees and new hires.
CBIA's Judith Resnick, director of the Connecticut Business Training Networks, will oversee the program and accept applications from small and mid-sized businesses in the state. To qualify, applicants must have fewer than 500 employees. Once an application has been submitted by snail mail or online it takes about 45 days to process the information and make a final decision.
"What we will do is pair about five companies together, based on a common thread," Resnick says. "Those companies will work collaboratively as a network to develop a plan. The ultimate goal of the program is to make companies more self-sufficient."
Participation in the program can be used as a recruitment tool because employers are investing time, energy and money into their employees. Resnick says applicants will be more likely to seek jobs at companies which invest in their employees.
Jim Watson, a spokesperson for DECD, says the new program is a response to the shortage of trained workers in the state.
"We wanted to make sure that groups - or 'networks,' as we call them - were getting the training they needed," Watson explains. "They first have to identify the problems and then get their needs met."
The program has three phases:
The first stage is the exploratory phase, in which companies outline their long-term goals. Firms will seek to identify the causes of their labor shortages and clearly define objectives for their pilot projects.
"They need to figure out what their needs are," Resnick explains.
During the exploratory stage companies will be eligible to receive a grant of $10,000, with a matching requirement of either in-kind services or cash.
Resnick explains that the money can be used not only for training but for designing a curriculum and hiring consultants. She says this makes the program unique and will therefore generate a higher success rate.
Next is the development stage, a two-year program under which companies are eligible for a $25,000 grant to test the plans and procedures.
Resnick notes that some companies opt for instructor-led training sessions, while others lean more towards Internet-based courses.
"This stage really puts some flesh on the original plans," Resnick explains. Applicants must re-submit their applications at each of the three stages. Resnick says she will do her best to insure the success of the businesses so that they may continue through the program and achieve their end goals.
The final component of the program is the operational stage. This is where the finishing touches and pilot testing occurs. With the studies and data collected over the years, companies are expected to have a finished training program to turn unskilled into skilled workers.
"This is a tight labor market," Resnick says. "The number of skilled workers is down, which makes it very difficult for companies to hire people who can do the job well."
Watson says the Connecticut Business Training Networks are different from most existing programs.
"We don't just hand out checks," Watson explains. "There is such extensive planning that goes into each of the phases that involves communication and research."
This program began in May. Although no companies have been accepted yet, Resnick says there are a number of applications under review.
One of the reasons for the dearth of skilled workers in the labor force is that colleges and universities are not collaborating with industry as much as they might, Resnick says.
"Colleges don't train for specific careers," she explains. "Oral and written communication is a must. There are skills like teamwork, interpersonal skills, critical thinking, and problem-solving that workers must possess in certain fields."
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