RECENT ARTICLES
- From Accenture: This gen AI-fueled, strategic shift towards reinvention has created an enormous need for a digital core: one that amplifies machines, humans and the interaction between the two in new and significant ways. Our analysis of 1,500 companies across 10 countries and 19 industries reveals that a digital core that is “reinvention-ready” is non-negotiable today. Click here to read more.
- From The Annie E. Casey Foundation: Government funding often overlooks the value of culturally-based services designed by and for specific communities. The report cites the Family First Prevention Services Act as an example. It prioritizes specific “evidence-based” programs over culturally relevant approaches proven effective by communities themselves. This focus on quantitative data can be detrimental to families of color, as their needs may not be reflected in traditional metrics. When services are created without attention to culture and identity, research suggests that they can be less effective at best and harmful at worst. In contrast, programs that do pay attention to cultural needs can be more effective than those that do not. Click here to read more.
- From The Aspen Institute: Weavers show that, by starting with a vision built on strength, treating everyone as a leader, and centering on strengthening relationships, Americans can weave a new social fabric built on trust Weavers show us that a more united America is within reach, and perhaps even closer than we think. They teach us that one of the most awesome powers of a community may just be its ability to cultivate effective leaders from within. Click here to read more.
- From Brookings: What Janesville went through is classic deindustrialization, and manufacturing certainly has ebbed; it accounts for one job in six in Rock County, which includes Janesville—nearly 3,000 fewer than just before the assembly plant closed, even after some manufacturing has reappeared. Its identity as an automaking town ripped away, the local economy has become more diverse. As the county’s economic development manager for the past quarter-century, James Otterstein, told me, “It takes 20 to 30 employers to replace the vacancy created by the GM machine.” Some new businesses have arrived, including a Dollar General distribution center that drew thousands of applicants for about 500 advertised jobs when it opened several years ago. Some longtime businesses have grown. And along Main Street, fewer storefronts are vacant, with a block of historic brick structures now including a wine bar and a shop specializing in olive oils. Click here to read more.
- From Center for American Progress: The No Tax on Tips Act would leave out most low- and moderate-wage workers and provide no or paltry tax cuts to many tipped workers—far smaller than the tax cuts many of these workers would see from Congress restoring the American Rescue Plan’s EITC and CTC expansions. At the same time, Sen. Cruz’s bill would open the door to tax abuse that could provide a windfall to hedge fund managers, lawyers, and other high-income professionals. Click here to read more.
- From Center on Budget and Policy Priorities: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) gave millions of newly eligible people access to affordable, comprehensive health insurance. Undoing the ACA’s coverage expansions or undermining its consumer protections — let alone repealing the law — threatens to bring back serious challenges people used to face in accessing coverage. Click here to read more.
- From Economic Policy Institute: ESSER funds allowed Chicago Public Schools to not just weather the pandemic but also strengthen the school system and improve outcomes for children. The end of ESSER funds should not lead CPS to change directions. CPS students, especially those in low-income parts of the city, need adequate staffing to have the best chance at a good education. CPS should continue its focus on recruiting and retaining qualified educators. Click here to read more.
- From FedCommunities: While these overlapping problems might seem intractable, the fact that they concentrate in neighborhoods presents an opportunity. For example, combining resources and ideas from those working on solutions in all three sectors can help communities overcome all three problems at once. And while joining forces from discrete workstreams may sound expensive and complicated, the reality is that states can save money in the process and unleash potential in underinvested places. This integrated strategy for addressing climate, health, and economic vulnerabilities is more just, cost-effective, and efficient. It’s also healthier for people and better for the environment. Click here to read more.
- From the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta: The CLIFF pilot and implementation evaluation provided many valuable insights. For organizations that want to adopt tools to coach clients on career advancement, public assistance changes, and benefits cliffs, understanding client readiness is critical. Stabilizing the individual’s financial situation, for example, is often an important step to take before using longer-term planning tools like the CLIFF Dashboard or CLIFF Planner. Successful implementation of the CLIFF tools and similar calculators also requires a careful consideration of how such tools will be integrated into counseling workflows. The utility of these tools may be limited unless coaches have adequate time to walk through them and thoroughly discuss the findings with clients. Click here to read more.
- From Gallup Workplace Insights: The percentage of U.S. adults readily able to access and afford quality healthcare when they need it has dropped six percentage points since 2022 to 55%, the lowest since West Health and Gallup began tracking healthcare affordability in 2021.Although adults aged 50 and older are more likely than those younger than 50 to be “cost secure” — meaning they have had no recent problems affording care or medicine and can easily access care — their scores have fallen faster and further over the past two years. The percentages of cost secure adults aged 50 to 64 and 65 and older have both dropped eight points since 2022, to 55% and 71%, respectively. At the same time, the percentage of younger adults has slipped five points, from 52% to 47%. Click here to read more.
- From the International Association of Workforce Professionals (IAWP): Community colleges offer an accessible and affordable option for students seeking to improve their skills and employability. With lower tuition costs compared to four-year institutions, community colleges make education attainable for a broader range of students, including those from low-income backgrounds or those who are the first in their families to attend college. The open-enrollment policies of community colleges mean that they serve a diverse student body, including recent high school graduates, adult learners, displaced workers, and individuals seeking to change careers. This inclusivity is vital for addressing the varied needs of the modern workforce. Click here to read more.
- From Jobs for the Future: Obtaining a degree is still a valid way of gaining skills, but too often, young adults without degrees are not given the opportunity to talk about their skills and speak directly to how they would apply them on the job. At a recent convening, the Young Adult Talent Development Network (YATDN), a network of 50-plus organizations working to train and place young adults into quality jobs, expressed deep frustration with many employers who still, to this day, continue to overlook skills and show preference for pedigree and credentials. This shuts many young adults out of opportunities for advancement. Click here to read more.
- From JPMorganChase: Together, our findings suggest that reducing heat-related welfare inequality will require lowering the cost of air conditioning for low-income households. Are current utility assistance programs structured to accomplish this? At a federal level, two major energy assistance programs are the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP), which subsidizes energy efficiency investments for low-income households, and the Low-Income Home Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), which provides grants that are sent directly to beneficiaries’ energy providers. By improving energy efficiency, the WAP directly targets the cost of air conditioning. However, a large-scale randomized survey found that despite reducing participating households’ energy bills by 10-20%, the WAP is expensive and its overall rate of return is negative (Fowlie et al. 2018). LIHEAP, by contrast, mechanically provides a dollar-for-dollar cash transfer to households, but it does not necessarily increase the amount of cooling households consume. Currently, 51 state grant recipients provide heating assistance, but only 24 provide cooling assistance. Typical grants to assist with heating costs are about 600 dollars for an entire season.22 If these transfers are inframarginal, i.e., less than households would spend on heating anyway, then the program acts as a cash grant, not as an energy-specific subsidy. Thus, participating households are likely to spend “too much” of the cash grant on other consumption rather than increased energy use. Click here to read more.
- From Manpower: The rapid progress in large language models and generative AI technology has been a driving force behind the surge in AI agent capabilities. Today’s AI swarm agents are capable of making decisions and acting independently, therefore changing the game when it comes to integration of AI with conventional IT infrastructures. AI swarm agents can interact with a wide array of systems and services, and because they can be deployed by the millions and even billions to tackle a given challenge collectively, they can perform tasks traditionally done by humans on a much larger scale.In an era of persisting labor shortages, it’s critical that staffing organizations learn to use technologies such as AI swarm agents to recruit and develop top talent faster and more effectively than we have in the past. Click here to read more.
- From McKinsey & Company: Today, insurance industry CROs are facing multiple demands from both relatively well-known and new risks. Industry leaders are resisting short-term actions and are instead focusing on the financial and nonfinancial risks that matter most, making selective investments in capabilities such as advanced analytics and gen AI. CROs, working with the CEO, the full executive team, as well as the board’s audit and risk committees, are also building proper emerging-risk identification capabilities, fostering a culture of innovation, enhancing strategic agility and resilience, and prioritizing the management of technology. All of this is in service of protecting the firm, its customers, its employees, and in the end, its shareholders. While risks are ultimately owned by the first line of defense, the CROs—whether they have been in the seat for long or are new to the role—are playing a more strategic role than they did just five years ago. We expect this trend to accelerate. Click here to read more.
- From the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE):New college graduates are clear about what they are looking for in a job and in an employer: economic security tops their wish list, according to a new study conducted by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. Among the nearly 2,300 bachelor’s degree level graduates taking part in NACE’s annual student survey, economic security is defined as job stability, annual salary increases, and a good benefits package—featuring a company-matched 401k and employer-paid health insurance. These were the top attributes they cited in their dream job. Click here to read more. (
- From the National Association of Counties (NACO): AT&T said in an FCC filing last month it would gain “no license, lease or other spectrum use authorization” because the spectrum would go to a “band manager,” the Public Safety Spectrum Alliance. Meanwhile, the FirstNet network currently serves more than 28,000 public safety agencies and organizations in every state and territory in the United States, with over 6 million connections on the network, completed last year. The authority Board recently approved a $684 million budget package for 2025 that includes funding to cover and evolve the Nationwide Public Safety Broadband Network. Click here to read more.
- From the National Association of Workforce Boards (NAWB): Asked about his top priorities at ETA, Rodriguez noted the “number one focus is on job quality,” and the vital role of partnerships in supporting successful employees in quality jobs. He also noted ensuring equitable employment pathways for everyone, the accelerating pace of economic change, and dislocation related to automation and climate. Also on the Assistant Secretary’s mind are the future of work, clean energy infrastructure, advanced manufacturing plants, sector strategies and tracking DOL investments. He also noted the role of NAWB and workforce boards in facilitating sector strategies and acknowledged high quality programs that demonstrate that the workforce investments have a high return on investment. Click here to read more.
- From the National Conference of State Legislatures: At least 20 states enacted legislation related to public employees’ position requirements or qualifications, up from 18 in 2023. Positions targeted by states ranged from judicial branch employees and public safety personnel to teachers and even conservation employees. States are altering prerequisites for public sector employment by reducing previous experience required, reevaluating or removing degree requirements, and convening work groups or task forces to make administrative recommendations. Other strategies include examining citizenship requirements and increasing the accessibility of positions to people with disabilities. Click here to read more.
- From the National League of Cities (NLC): Muskogee continues to become a beacon of entrepreneurship and economic vitality, with the city standing in a moment of transformation. From its beginnings as a railroad town to its status as a thriving port city, Muskogee has continually reinvented itself. Now, with the implementation of ecosystem resource mapping and the collaborative efforts of local stakeholders and partners, it is prepared to nurture an active entrepreneurial community. With these efforts developing, Muskogee looks forward to a future of economic prosperity and community resilience, driven by a vibrant ecosystem that embraces entrepreneurship at its heart. Click here to read more.
- From the National Fund for Workforce Solutions: Balancing work and childcare responsibilities is a daunting task for many employees. The demands of parenting coupled with professional commitments often lead to stress and decreased productivity. According to the Center for American Progress, the difficulty of finding reliable and affordable childcare is a significant issue for many working parents. This struggle can lead to absenteeism, decreased job satisfaction, and high turnover rates. Click here to read more.
- From the National Skills Coalition: There is a significant need for more rigor and detail in many states’ plans for improving and measuring digital skills. Policymakers and advocates can draw on the examples of leading states to help strengthen their own states’ plans. NSC’s earlier recommendations on measuring digital skills may also be useful. State broadband leaders should also lean into the expertise of their workforce and education partners. For example, state higher education leaders have invested significant time in developing strategies to , and their findings can help to set guardrails around quality for digital skills credentials. Similarly, state adult education leaders have experience implementing digital skills policies under WIOA and can help inform the design of Requests for Proposals and for DE funds. Click here to read more.
- From Prosperity Now: As we look back on April’s Second Chance Month, it is important to remember that every year, more than 600,000 people are released from prison and given a chance to build a new life. Discriminatory hiring practices and other barriers often present obstacles to securing stable employment. In fact, nearly 75% of formerly incarcerated people are still unemployed a year after their release. Click here to read more.
- From the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM): The research showed that fostering inclusion should be part of the solution to reducing burnout at work. “The data shows that whether or not a person feels like they are part of a team or can bring their best self to work also contributes to feelings of burnout,” Novacek said. “That makes intuitive sense—if you don’t feel like you fit in or if you don’t get along with co-workers, that creates stress.” Click here to read more.
- From the U.S. Chamber of Commerce: During the pandemic, when many people were discovering pickleball for the first time, Katy noticed a lack of fun, high-quality gear on the market. She saw an opportunity to create a unique brand that provides quality gear to a variety of pickleball players with a creative and lively design. At the time, other pickleball companies focused on selling highly priced gear to pro-level players. Big Dill’s mission is to help new players join the sport by making paddles, balls, and accessories that are affordable and have fun designs that appeal to lots of potential players. Click here to read more.
- From Workforce Monitor: The lack of formal processes or less burdensome development and approval processes for microcredentials is a significant benefit to organizations that want to rapidly develop credentials. Having no definition or a broad definition of a microcredential—and not having to seek accreditation—offers organizations significant flexibility to structure and develop microcredential. It means that any experience, course, series of courses, assessment or activity can be represented by a microcredential if desired. For both types of credential issuers, these faster processes mean microcredentials can move at the speed of business and be responsive to changes in the skills the labor market demands. For this reason, microcredentials may be particularly suited to signal technical skills in rapidly changing industries. Click here to read more.
- From Workday: By prioritizing skills over traditional factors such as past credentials or background, companies are accessing more talent pools, upskilling their existing talent, and finding new agility in the ever-changing world of work. And now, AI is helping companies accelerate their transformations. In theory, the concept of a skills-based talent strategy is simple: identify the skills a company has, the skills it needs, and how well they match. Then infuse skills into the talent lifecycle to close gaps and move the business forward. Yet according to RedThread Research, a whopping 58% of HR leaders surveyed said their organization doesn’t have a skills strategy. What’s more, companies still face barriers and challenges with implementing a skills-based approach, such as legacy mindsets and insufficient skills data, according to Deloitte. Click here to read more.
- From WorkingNation: “That is significant in a universe in which 92% of those 43 million job ads said digital skills were important,” says Amanda Bergson-Shilcock, NSC senior fellow. “So, if you have 31% of workers who haven’t had the opportunity to build those foundational skills, and 92% of jobs are requiring digital skills, there’s a disconnect there.” While we may think of digital skills being needed just in “tech” jobs, in fact they are needed in all industries, from health care to property management to farming. Click here to read more.
- From WorkRise: A new project from the Urban Institute finds that while clean energy jobs are more likely to be high quality (or offer better wages, benefits, and job security) compared with the overall labor market, women and people of color are underrepresented in the potential clean energy workforce. Our analysis also finds that high-quality jobs in clean energy are generally in the following occupations: engineering and architecture; management; installation, maintenance, and repair; and construction and extraction. To advance equity in the clean energy workforce, communities could work with universities, employers, and unions to address barriers to high-quality jobs and help women and people of color access higher education and workforce development opportunities. Click here to read more.
DATA TOOLS
- From Atlanta Regional Commission: Each week ARC, in partnership with Neighborhood Nexus, provides updated research and analytics through the 33on blog. From a look at housing, rental rates, and cost of living to the job market and latest on wages, this blog is a one-stop portal to a treasure trove of local and regional data. Click here to learn more.
- From Brookings: Using data from hundreds of thousands of real job transitions, the Job Mobility and Smart Growth Toolkit shows how workers can advance through labor markets—featuring national and city-by-city data on wage levels, local labor demand, and job mobility rankings for 441 occupations, from retail salespeople to cooks to computer programmers. Click here to see the toolkit.
- From the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, Center for Workforce and Economic Opportunity (CWEO): The Unemployment Claims Monitor displays data from the weekly and monthly unemployment claims reports from the U.S. Department of Labor. It is updated every Thursday. Users will find weekly and monthly data on claims and on who have filed for unemployment insurance, including special unemployment programs like Short-Time Compensation (or Workshare), Unemployment Compensation for Federal Employees, Ex-Service Members, and Extended Benefits programs. The Opportunity Occupations Monitor displays opportunity employment and its prevalence across labor markets. Opportunity employment is an estimate of the number and share of jobs accessible to workers without a bachelor’s degree that pay more than the national median wage. Click here to learn more.
- From the Georgia Department of Labor: The Georgia Department of Labor provides access to a complete set of data tools for workforce developers to better understand the labor market conditions in Georgia. The portal also includes resources for job seekers and employers. Click here to learn more.
- From Georgia Power: Georgia Power’s Community & Economic Development team maintains interactive tools to take a deeper dive into the data on target industries, the labor force, and more. Click here to learn more.
- From the National Fund for Workforce Solutions: The National Fund for Workforce Solutions’ Workforce Equity Dashboard provides disaggregated data that uncovers racial gaps in workforce outcomes, identifies opportunities to advance racial equity across systems, and informs high-impact strategies to build a future where employers, workers, and communities prosper. This dashboard was developed in partnership with the National Equity Atlas. Click here to learn more.
- From Neighborhood Nexus: Neighborhood Nexus, a data partner of ARC, developed Data Nexus, a powerful tool to find, visualize, analyze, and download community data including demographic, education, health, and economic indicators from state and national sources, all in one place. Click here to learn more.
- From the Partnership for Southern Equity: The Metro Atlanta Racial Equity Atlas (MAREA) is designed to offer an immersive, story-centric experience that contextualizes personal narratives with engaging, interactive community data and historical background. This tool has been developed by the Partnership for Southern Equity, Neighborhood Nexus, and archi. Click here to learn more.
- From Prosperity Now: The Prosperity Now Scorecard is a comprehensive resource for data on household financial health, racial economic inequality, and policy recommendations to help put everyone in our country on a path to prosperity. Click here to access.
- From the Technical College System of Georgia: TCSG’s Data and Research provides access to the System Scorecard, enrollment data, and more. Click here to learn more.
- From the University of Georgia, Carl Vinson Institute of Government (CVIOG): CVIOG has developed toolkits and other resources on a variety of workforce topics. Click here to learn more.
- From the U.S. Chamber of Commerce: Right now, there are too many jobs without people to fill them. As a result, businesses can’t grow, compete, and thrive. The America Works Data Center captures trends on job openings, labor force participation, quit rates, and more. Click here to learn more.
- From WorkSource Georgia: Through its portal, WorkSource Georgia provides access to labor market facts, area profiles, industry profiles, educational profiles, and occupational profiles. Click here to learn more.
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Through our MAX Resource Library, count on MAX to help connect you with reports and studies, data tools, websites and online portals, and other sources of information related to workforce development. Click here to learn more.
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