The document discusses effective practices for workforce development aimed at linking low-income individuals to economic opportunities, creating employment solutions in low-growth communities, and unlocking potential in high-poverty urban areas. It emphasizes the need for diverse networks, radical openness, and ongoing experimentation to cultivate new leaders and build impactful community partnerships. The document serves as a guide for workforce leaders to innovate and adapt strategies for enhancing employment and economic viability in various regions.

1. Increasing
Workforce
Development
ImpactSUJATA SRIVASTAVA, STRATEGIC ECONOMICS
VINZ KOLLER, KRISTIN WOLFF, SOCIAL POLICY RESEARCH
ASSOCIATES (SPR) & YOU

2. WHYare you here

3. Agenda
 Small-group work
 Discussion of effective
practices for leading
workforce development
initiatives
 Reflection

4. The Wise
Counsel
Challenge!
PROSPERITY FOUNDATION TRUSTEES, STAFF, PARTNERS &
SUSTAINABLE COMMUNITY COLLEAGUES

5. THE WISE COUNSEL
CHALLENGE
Based on your experience, what are the most effective ways to…
1. Link low-income people and communities to the economic opportunities in
regions with diverse and growing economies.
2. Create employment solutions in low-growth communities, including former
manufacturing communities, in which unemployed workers may be skilled
and experienced, but not in the areas in demand in the regional labor
market.
3. Unlocking economic opportunities in isolated, high-poverty, urban
communities. Typically, such communities also face many related
challenges - including access to transportation, education and training
opportunities, and capital that could help people start their own enterprises.
4. Opening advancement opportunities (increasing income generation) for
low-income people (often disproportionately women and people of color).
5. "Anchoring" workforce development in sustainable community efforts.

8. WEADERSHIP.ORG

9.  519+ workforce leaders
 A guide/Blurb book
 A blog/website
 Short briefs & curated
collections of media
 Social media friends
 Video
 A changed
understanding of what
was possible in solving
workforce problems
WEADERSHIP.ORG

12. Workforce Memes
 Workforce Boards
 Sector Strategies
 Career Pathways
 Skills Gaps
 Middle Skill Jobs
 Workforce
Competitiveness
 Minimum Wage
 Wage Inequality
 Long term Unemployed
 Youth Unemployment
 Community College
Access
 Ready to Work
Partnerships

13. 1
Adopt A
Wide-angle
View
Photo by Hockley Photography

16. Photo by CaptainMcDan (Flickr)
Co-Working Spaces,
Labs & Incubators

17. Photo by CaptainMcDan (Flickr)
Co-Working Spaces,
Labs & Incubators

18. 2
Build Diverse
Networks

22. Meetings
 Invitation
 Agenda
 Pre-meeting
packets
 Refreshments
 Minutes

23. Engagement
 Hackathons
 [Fill-in-the-blank]
Camps
 Co-design/co-creation
sessions
 Labs
 Collective impact
partnerships

24. Photo by donabelandewan@flickr

25. 3
Embrace
Radical
Openness

31. “We don’t expect every student to
become an Etsy seller, but rather
to apply the skills they learn to any
entrepreneurial path they want to
follow. We do believe, however,
along with the City of Rockford,
that this will lead to real economic
impact.”
“This pilot program has the
potential to be not just what Mayor
Morrissey calls a “pathway to
prosperity” for Rockford, but a
blueprint for similar programs
across the country and around the
world.”

33. http://vimeo.com/61305313

34. “Thank you for
inspiring us…”

35. 4
Experiment &
Repeat

39. GPAs and test scores are
worthless for hiring…they
don’t predict anything. The
proportion of people at
Google without college
degrees is increasing.
We look for leadership, in
particular, emergent
leadership rather than
traditional leadership…

40. 5
Add Unique
Value
Photo by Creatica.com

41. 1. Started 2004; Completed 2006
2. Number of steel plates required: 168
3. Size: 33x66x42
4. Weight: 110 tons
5. Designed by Anish Kapoor
Cloudgate

42. Photo by: Opusfotos

43. 6
Cultivate New
Leaders
Photo by Chnines (Flickr)

44. “Building leaders is not
just a possibility or
opportunity, it is
something you should
make your goal to
achieve.”

45. ADOPT A WIDE
ANGLE
VIEW
BUILD
DIVERSE
NETWORKS
EXPERIMENT
&REPEAT
ADD
UNIQUE
VALUE
RE-
GENERATE
EMBRACE
RADICAL
OPENNESS
6 Practices for Building Community Partnerships, Creating
Jobs & “Changing the Odds”

46. Thanks!
Sujata Srivastava, Strategic Economics
(SSrivastava@strategiceconomics.com)
Vinz Koller, Director, TAT (vinz_koller@spra.com)
Kristin Wolff, Adjunct Researcher (kwolff@thinkers-and-doers.com)
@kristinwolff
@Social_Policy
@Weadership
WEadership.org

47. ADOPTAWIDE
ANGLE
VIEW
6 WEadership Practices
BUILD
DIVERSE
NETWORKS
EMBRACE
OPENNESS
ENCOURAGE
EXPERIMENTA-
TION
ADDUNIQUE
VALUE
CULTIVATE
NEXT
GENERATION
LEADERS
Description Resources Cited
Leaders look broadly for resources to help them
achieve their goals and seek to deploy their assets
in creative ways. They focus on solving important
community problems.
- CodeforAmerica.org on repurposing solutions
- GitHub.com for sharing solutions
- Beehive (co-working):
http://etcbaltimore.com/beehive/
Leaders collaborate with partners creatively, using
informal networks alongside traditional hierarchies.
They make engaging people with diverse perspectives
a priority.
- http://inmaps.linkedinlabs.com/network for
mapping networks
- Power of Hackathons in Government:
http://open.nasa.gov/blog/2012/06/29/the-
power-of-hackathons-in-government/
Leaders share the role of leadership with staff,
partners, and the public. They use social technologies
to listen, inform, and collaborate.
- Kiva.org for small business lending
- P2PU.org for un-school example
- http://meshing.it/companies for shareconomy
companies
- Etsy entrepreneurship example:
https://blog.etsy.com/news/2013/etsys-craft-
entrepreneurship-program-launches-in-
rockford-and-nyc/Leaders know their industries and organizations
needs new ideas, and new ideas need testing.
Leaders find ways their unique contributions can
make a real difference in their communities. Those
who add value remain relevant.
Leaders build skills, share knowledge, and create
opportunities for others to lead, so that new leaders
can emerge.
- AmericanSamoaRenewal.org for video
- Prototyping Framework (NESTA)
http://www.nesta.org.uk/news_and_features/a
ssets/features/prototyping_framework
- Cloudgate
http://www.cityofchicago.org/city/en/depts/dca/
supp_info/millennium_park_-
artarchitecture.html#cloud
- Embrace multigenerational workplace and
boardroom
- Leadership as mindset http://arnander.comwww.weadership.org

48. Kristin’s Famous Postcard
Reflection Exercise
1. Address the postcard to
yourself
2. Write down one idea you will
take away from this session
what you will do about it (feel
free to discuss with your
neighbors)
3. Give your completed postcard
to Kristin
4. During the next two weeks,
watch your snail mail
Insert
photo of
postcards

49. “Part of that struggle is that there’s
no vision for what’s emerging. It’s
not just that the old world doesn’t
work anymore, it’s also that the old
story that gave it meaning isn’t
believable and there’s no credible
story to replace it.”

50. “…progress almost never comes
from an accident or natural
evolution. It requires constant
pressure, new ideas and sustained
engagement…”