Delta County Area Chamber of Commerce

Minding our own business for January, 2005

DELTA COUNTY ECONOMIC AND DEVELOPMENT ALLIANCE

Training. It’s an ongoing need for any business that is moving forward, improving customer service, adding market, and increasing productivity. A quality workforce is one of our competitive advantages in the UP, and our definitions of what attributes are needed vary depending on industry, timing, and where we are in the “pecking order” of worker’s entry into the market.

One concern we have of late with the state of the budget in Michigan is the decline in matching training funds available under the “Economic Development Job Training” program. What happens is that extra monies are needed for training in exactly the times when cash flow is already strained- growth. Our ability as “the public” to provide assistance in keeping our workers and our products competitive on the global market influences our ability to retain jobs, grow jobs, and attract new business. Our inability may force even the most community minded business to outsource if it is not cost-effective to hire local and lose not only productivity but also cash-flow in training them.

But there are some bright spots on the training stage. One of the most exciting things the state has offered recently is in response to their declining ability to provide training assistance to companies. What they have created is an online system of training modules available at no charge to any business or any worker in Michigan. So people who would like to upgrade their skills to look for a better job can have access to these computer-based, self-paced training modules just as easily as an employer can find a module to help a lower performing or just hired employee beef up his or her skills. These modules can be found 24/7 at www.edjtmodules.org.

Michigan Skills Training Curriculum database has 215 training modules for skilled workers in manufacturing, construction, and information technology available on the website www.MISTcurriculum.org. It is a project of the Michigan Economic Development Corporation, the Michigan Community College Association and others and is designed “to enhance skills in technology intense environments.

The content areas of these modules include: CNC lathe, CNC mill, CAD, IT, E-Commerce, Hydraulics, Machining, Math & Measurement, & PLC. Module information includes goals, outcomes, estimated completion time, and recommendations for prerequisite knowledge and skills.

Access and Excel database applications for Microsoft Office 2000 are also available on these sites. For those interested in brushing up specifically on the Microsoft Office applications, Michigan Works has recommended another free site sponsored by Florida Gulf Coast University: www.fgcu.edu/support/office2000. Another site I have not looked at but which was recommended is www.free-ed.net.

M-TEC at Bay College provides not only customized training to employers, but also many topical classes to help businesses. A series with wide-appeal may be the workshops for business professionals beginning February 21^st. The five workshops are: Creating Successful Interactions, Improving Communication Through Effective Listening, Business Ethics, Developing Assertiveness, and Managing Conflict at Work.

One of the most interesting coming up soon is Financials for the Non- Financial Manager. This course will be held two mornings in March. It’s not too soon to register to get a better understanding of how to actually understand and USE those reports that your system or CPA can already generate for you. You can even bring your own financial reports for hands-on learning in the sessions!

People call my office all the time asking about grants. What most don’t realize is that if there is a grant out there for them, it is going to be something specific. Those with research & development interests are more likely going to find grants to support their innovation. Even so, it is not “so simple” to write a winning grant proposal. Help is on the way, however, through an M-TEC workshop running four Fridays beginning February 18^th.

Two certificate programs are also coming up through M-TEC this Spring: Essentials of Human Resource Management in March and Essentials of Leadership in April.

For more information about these and other programs available through M-TEC, call 789-6902 (press 2) or visit www.mtec.baycollege.edu/train.

Speaking of Human Resources, Michigan Works! The Job Force Board is in the middle of a three-part strategic planning session and part II will have focus groups identifying the Central UP’s Top 10 Human Resource Issues. If you have information or issues you’d like to see us address, please get your comments or recommendations to me or to Orrin Bailey or Gwen Wood at Michigan Works’ administrative offices (789-0558).

In May, the Chamber and EDA will be co-hosting an Uppertunities workshop “A Passion For Service” featuring customer service training just in time for the summer tourist season. And today kicks off the 2005 series of 10 Delta Force Community Leadership in Action. As always, we can be reached at 786-2192.

Training is important in this changing world, and the ability to improve skills at little or no cost while staying close to home is a priceless opportunity for individuals, companies, and the community. It is our hope that area employers and employees alike will invest the time to seek training for a brighter, more profitable future.

-by Linda Hirvonen, Delta County EDA DIrector

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