It's time to connect the dots on skill shortages Saturday, April 05, 2003 Last week, Don Iannone pointed out a good article on labor shortages in his weblog. According to a report by Capital Area Michigan Works, a looming retirement boom and population flight are pushing the Lansing area toward a "severe" labor shortage. This problem is not limited to Lansing. Across the country, we are facing the looming problem of skill shortages brought on by the coming retirement of the "baby boom" generation. We have three major imbalances: 1. We have too many young people dropping out of high school feeding a cycle of dependency. 2. We have too many students graduating from high school with weak skills and no career plans. 3. We have too many people caught in a working poor cycle with inadequate training options to move them ahead. It's time that we connected the dots. We have shortages of nurses (and other skilled health care workers like radiologists); engineers; pharmacists; truck drivers; skilled machinists; teachers; automotive technicians. This list goes on. These shortages are symptoms of regional workforce systems that are badly out of balance. Lansing is not alone. posted by Ed Morrison |		This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License. links Some Background on EDPro Weblog The purpose of this weblog is to help economic development professionals -- EDPros -- keep up with the changes sweeping our profession. Strap on your goggles. It's a whole new game. There are no experts any more. The only place to learn about economic development is from other EDPros who are doing it. One other point: the prevaling approach (paradigm, if you like) in economic development is shifting from competition to collaboration. There are a lot of reaasons underlying this shift, but here's the important insight: You, your community, and your region will do better by collaborating and sharing information. So, spread the word...Share the knowledge. Tell a friend about EDPro Weblog. If you are using a news reader, here is the link to syndicate this site: Here's the link if you are a bloglines subscriber: Speaking and workshops on Open Source Economic Development As the idea of Open Source Economic Development starts spreading, more people are asking about it. Visit the I-Open web site to learn more. My colleagues and I are happy to explain the basic concepts in a talk or a workshop. E-mail Susan Alshuler if you'd like to learn more about workshops and speaking. Background on Ed Morrison Download some background information on me here.

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