Traditionally prosperous in manufacturing and agriculture, the Piedmont Triad Region is now emerging as a major player in a variety of industries requiring new skills in the workforce. In order to meet this demand, the region has instituted a number of strategies to leverage all of the region’s educational and training resources to transform and create a best-in-class workforce training system. The Piedmont Triad Partnership utilizes federal government WIRED funds (Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development) to build these systems through:
- Needs assessments, gap analyses and identification of training and development programs
- Curricula and program development
- Delivery of demand-driven workforce training and development programs and services
Workforce Collaboration. Providing a link to training opportunties and jobs available, TriadWorks, a regional consortium of Workforce Development Boards, offers a workforce support system that can meet the needs of any employer in the world. The collaboration of these organizations offer the best resources available throughout the region. A new regional portal site, triadworks.org, reflects this regional approach with a central entry to workforce resources including a virtual job fair and a comprehensive Literacy & Lifelong Learning Resources Guide.
Another major component in talent development is collaboration and partnership with the Piedmont Triad's nine community colleges. Working with local industries to establish demand-driven training, the NC Community Colleges’ Customized Training Program is offered through the state community college system and provides free training.
The College Foundation of North Carolina (CFNC) is an additional regional partner working to leverage all of the Region and State’s educational and training resources available through the CFNC.ORG website. TriadWorks supports this effort and has provided training to the front line staff at each of the region’s 17 JobLink Career Centers.
Each of the industry clusters – Advanced Manufacturing, Creative Enterprises & the Arts, Health Care, and Logistics & Distribution – has a major focus on talent development needs as an important part of their mission. Working with community colleges, universities and other resources, the industry clusters are committed to building and growing skills sets for their industry. Visit each of these clusters for more information on programs and focus grants for these industry areas.
Improvements in K-12 school-to-work programs are also included, supported by the Piedmont Triad Education Consortium and other K-12 resources. Activities focus on aligning future needs of business in the region through collaboration with the industry clusters. This link between business and education provides a vehicle for sharing issues and challenges in K-12 system. Program details and best practices are located on the right.