1. Creating a Culture of Innovation The State of Michigan’s Review of a Work Readiness Credential Alisande Henry Administrator for The Council for Labor & Economic Growth

2. Creating a Culture of Innovation The Council for Labor & Economic Growth(CLEG) CLEG is an advisory body within the Department of Labor & Economic Growth established to recommend innovative workforce development strategies for the State of Michigan

3. Creating a Culture of Innovation Why Consider a Statewide Credential? Employer demand for qualified candidates Educators and training providers using assessments Regional transformation work helping to push the question

4. Creating a Culture of Innovation CLEG Work Readiness Credential Committee Accelerating Reemployment Matt Chambers, Three Rivers Health – Chair Increasing Educational Attainment Michael Schmidt, Ford Motor Company Fund – Chair Additional input from DLEG, MEDC, and MDE staff members

5. Creating a Culture of Innovation Charge to CLEG Committee Recommend whether Michigan should create/adopt a statewide Work Readiness Certificate (WRC) and, if so, help design and implement the new system

6. Creating a Culture of Innovation Summary of Research –Survey of Michigan Works! Agencies –Conversations with WIRED regions – What’s happening/has happened in other states –Survey of Michigan employers

7. Creating a Culture of Innovation Michigan Works! Agencies Survey Results All 25 MWAs responded to the survey 76% see value in creation or adoption of statewide WRC 72% of MWAs are currently using some type of assessment tool 80% of MWAs see “soft skills” as most important

8. Creating a Culture of Innovation WRC State Research Responses Reasons for adopting a WRC:Reasons for adopting a WRC: –Promotes a common standard, uniformity, & language –Used as an economic development tool –Ability to quantify and qualify skills of workforce –Means to measure the workforce –Verifies attainment of worker skills

9. Creating a Culture of Innovation WRC State Research Responses Reasons for not adopting a WRC:Reasons for not adopting a WRC: –Difficulty in employer buy-in and recognition of WRC –May “label” individuals –Disagreement among local areas –Areas with local WRC not in favor of statewide assessment due to success with locally developed tools

10. Creating a Culture of Innovation Employer Survey Responses STATEWIDE 161 responses to survey 55% said they would find a statewide WRC valuable More than half of survey (59%) respondents not currently utilizing an assessment tool/test for hiring WIRED REGIONS 91 responses to survey 45% said they would find a statewide WRC valuable More than half of survey respondents (56%) not currently utilizing an assessment tool/test for hiring

11. Creating a Culture of Innovation Employer Survey Responses Most important criteria to consider STATEWIDE Cost to employers Connection to employee retention or productivity Ease of use by employers Assessment of soft skills WIRED REGIONS Ease of use by employers Cost to employers Connection to employee retention or productivity Statewide or national acceptance

12. Creating a Culture of Innovation Committee Recommendation Adoption of a statewide work readiness certificate for economic development purposes CLEG supported this recommendation

13. Creating a Culture of Innovation Next Steps The committee is inviting vendors to answer questions about their tool: What skills does the tool assess? What is the target population for the assessment? Who is the issuing body for the results? Are assessment results statistically valid and reliable? How broadly is the tool used (both in terms of geography and the number of employers and educators users)? What remediation training is included with this assessment?

14. Creating a Culture of Innovation Next Steps, continued What accommodations are made for test-takers with disabilities? Has there been a formal evaluation of the tool’s impact on employee retention or productivity and if so, what impact has there been? What other feedback has been received from employers regarding the assessment? How easy is it for employers to use this assessment tool? What is the cost (to employers or other entities) of using this tool? What vendor support, technical assistance (and associated costs) are offered with this assessment?

15. Creating a Culture of Innovation Questions for WorkKeys Users Was it difficult learning how to use WorkKeys? Was it difficult getting employers, individuals, and education & training providers to understand the value of WorkKeys and a work/career readiness credential? How did you get the word out to employers? What questions still exist around soft skills assessments and how are these questions being addressed?

16. Creating a Culture of Innovation Questions, continued Where is the testing being done within regions and local areas? Who grades the assessment? Who pays for the testing and how are costs managed? What would you do differently? What recommendations/advice do you have for the state if WorkKeys is selected as a statewide assessment tool?

17. Creating a Culture of Innovation Key Dates November 7 – Vendor Presentations November 15 – Committee Meeting December 3 – CLEG Quarterly Meeting

18. Creating a Culture of Innovation For More Information: Alisande E. Henry, Administrator Council for Labor & Economic Growth MI Dept. of Labor & Economic Growth PO Box 30004 Lansing, MI 48909 Phone: (517) 241-2336 Fax: (517) 241-8493 aehenry@michigan.gov http://www.michigan.gov/cleg