What is Workforce Development?

• You can benefit from workforce development with your skilled people’s increased productivity and efficiency.
• Investing in your workforce creates stronger loyalty and improved employee retention, reducing hiring and training costs.
• Knowledgeable workers have better adaptability to changes in technology and industry trends, which helps your business stay competitive.
• You get more engaged employees with higher productivity and job satisfaction if you invest in their growth.
• Cultivating your workforce also helps you attract top talent, giving your business a competitive advantage.

• A skilled local workforce gives you easier access to qualified talent.
• Higher employment rates mean people have more disposable income to spend back to your small business.
• More innovation and business opportunities flourish as skilled workers bring fresh ideas to help small businesses become more competitive.
• Skilled employees get better jobs, leading to a higher quality of life with better wages, stronger schools, and safer neighborhoods, making it easier to do business and retain customers.
• Working with schools and supporting training programs builds stronger community engagement.

A Zippia study revealed that 58% of workers say that professional development is a big factor in their job satisfaction. As such, helping your employees have a clearer vision of their career path within your organization can help your retention rates. Workforce development is one of the key programs that provide mentorship and skill-building opportunities to advance your employees’ careers so they can realize their goals.

A simple yet clear sales career pathway in a small business may look like this:

• Entry-level: Sales Associate (assisting customers, handling transactions)
• Mid-level: Store Supervisor (managing daily operations, training new employees)
• Advanced: Store Manager or Operations Manager (overseeing staff, handling inventory, and driving business growth)

When employees see a clear route for growth, they are more likely to invest in their roles, enhance their skills, and remain committed to the organization. In fact, 94% of employees choose to remain in their organization if they’re offered training and development opportunities.

The job market is evolving fast, and this brings opportunities and challenges to business owners and employees alike. To stay ahead, you can tap into various private and public employment services to help you adapt and grow.

These resources provide support for hiring, training, and workforce development, ensuring businesses and workers can thrive despite market shifts. In fact, the International Labor Organization (ILO) also considers employment services and support as the foundation of an inclusive, well-functioning labor market.

Employment services and support include:

• Professional Employer Organizations (PEOs): PEO services such as ADP TotalSource and Justworks help small businesses with HR, employee training, benefits management, and compliance assistance.
• Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA): Small businesses can also apply for a WIOA grant, which provides you with funds to train your employees through formula grants. This covers on-the-job training, incumbent worker training, and apprenticeship programs.

Championing workforce diversity and inclusion is both the right thing to do and a smart business move. When all your employees from different backgrounds, races, genders, and abilities feel welcomed and valued at work, they bring creativity to the table. This gives everyone equal chances to succeed, and you also create a fairer and more inclusive work culture.

An effective workforce diversity and inclusion initiative includes several factors:

Inclusive recruitment practices

Tailored training programs

Mentorship and support networks

Inclusive workplace policies

Regular monitoring and evaluation

Leadership commitment

By collaborating with schools, universities, and training providers, you not only create workforce-ready graduates but also ensure that the talent entering your organization has the exact skills and knowledge they need to thrive.

This is also a great opportunity to provide industry insights to educational institutions so they can adjust their curricula accordingly. In exchange, educational institutions can stay current with industry trends, secure external funding, and improve their programs with input from experienced employers.

Here are some real-world examples of these partnerships:

• IBM and P-Tech: IBM partnered with high schools and community colleges to create Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH). This program combines high school, college, and work experience, allowing students to earn a high school diploma and an associate degree, as well as gain hands-on experience at IBM.
• Starbucks and the University of Arizona: Starbucks has partnered with the University of Arizona, through which employees can pursue a degree in fields such as business and communications. In addition, Starbucks offers financial support and flexibility for those balancing work and education.
• Walmart’s Live Better U Initiative: Walmart’s Live Better U offers flexible, online learning options that allow employees to continue working while pursuing their education. This initiative helps employees improve their qualifications, increase job satisfaction, and advance within the company. It also strengthens Walmart’s workforce by fostering a more skilled and loyal employee base, which, in turn, benefits the business’s long-term success.

Having internships, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training grants your business the following:

• Access to a pool of fresh talent
• Opportunity to evaluate potential hires before making permanent commitments
• The ability to shape employees’ skills to meet your company’s specific needs

Internships and apprenticeships allow you to introduce young or inexperienced workers to your industry, while on-the-job training helps existing employees improve and expand their skill sets.

To implement these programs effectively, you should:

• Provide mentors and adequate resources, such as access to training materials, tools, and technology
• Assign meaningful tasks
• Offer regular feedback to help participants develop their skills
• Create a structured onboarding process to ensure trainees understand the company culture and expectations

To effectively support community workforce development, identify specific community needs and align your efforts with those priorities. You can do this by collaborating with local non-profits, workforce development boards, and community organizations that have a deep understanding of the area’s employment challenges. Your business can also offer funding, resources, and expertise to support these initiatives, such as sponsoring vocational training programs or providing technology and equipment for training centers.

Other valuable strategies include:

• Creating volunteer opportunities for employees to mentor or coach local job seekers that aid community members and enrich the employees’ professional development
• Hosting community job fairs and career workshops can help connect local talent with employment opportunities
• Offering scholarships or grants for vocational education can make a direct impact on individual career prospects