The Workforce Summit

The Governor's 2010 Summit on Workforce Solutions

Sessions

PRE-CONFERENCE JOB AND EDUCATION FAIR

Thursday, 7:30-11:00am @ McMurry Training Center, 2220 N. Bryan Stock Trail
The Job & Education Fair is aimed at providing tools for job-seekers, and tips for employers in finding the right employees and utilizing the services provided by the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services. Click here for the Job Fair Session Details.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS

Thursday, 12:30-2:00pm @ Central/South Ballroom
Where There's a Will, There's a Way: Succeeding in the Face of Turbulent Times, Desi Williamson
After 20 years as a corporate sales and marketing executive, Desi Williamson has gone on to become a successful entrepreneur, real estate investor, motivational sports coach, restaurateur, author, and speaker. Through his many business and life experiences, he has learned what it takes to achieve your dreams, especially during turbulent times. After surviving the mean streets of St. Louis as a child, a successful career with Johnson & Johnson, PepsiCo, Rain Bird, Dr. Pepper/Snapple, Johnson Wax Company, and a Hall-of-Fame professional speaking career, Williamson had a serious fall in 2005 and broke his neck in two places. Along the path from paralysis to recovery, he discovered new perspectives and was inspired to write Where There's a Will, There's a Way: Succeeding in the Face of Turbulent Times, published in 2009. He is dedicated to showing people how to do more than just survive turbulent times - he shows them how to thrive despite their adversities! Desi has mastered the art of transferring energy to empower people. The results of his insightful and motivational keynotes will ignite your team to raise their level of performance, develop a culture that cultivates strong leaders, and shifts people's mindsets from being victims of circumstance, to masters of change.

WORKSHOPS

Thursday, 2:30-3:30 p.m.; Thursday, 3:45-4:45pm @ Central/South Ballroom
Managing Your Time, Priorities and Schedule, Laura Stack
Do you find yourself continually racing against time? Do you feel that you have so much to do that it's difficult to get anything done? Time management is much more complicated than making a list and checking things off. Managing time effectively is the key to managing your individual performance. Learn from Laura Stack, the Productivity Pro®, how to set priorities and focus on what's truly important, plan and schedule your day, and organize your calendar and tasks.

Thursday, 2:30-3:30pm & 3:45-4:45pm @ Teton Room
Wyoming's Economy: Where Are We Headed?, Buck McVeigh
Wyoming was slower to join the national recession. Will it be equally slow to join the recovery? State economist Buck McVeigh will examine a variety of economic indicators that are used to formulate the state's projected revenues and measure Wyoming's overall economic health.

Thursday, 2:30-3:30pm & 3:45-4:45pm @ Theater
Childcare as Economic Development, Rob Grunewald
High-quality early care and education allows parents to work, confident that their pre-school age children are nurtured, safe and developing the skills necessary to succeed later in life. A quality child care system reduces absenteeism at work and improves productivity and, therefore, builds a better current workforce. Mr. Grunewald, Associate Economist for the Federal Reserve Bank of Minneapolis, has co-authored "Early Childhood Development: Economic Development with a High Public Return," an economic policy paper. His presentation will center on how affordable, high-quality early care and education is essential for the success of American businesses.

Thursday, 2:30-3:30pm @ Room 158
Greening of the Workplace: Which Jobs are Green?, Doug Leonard, Patrick Manning
Much attention has been placed on creating a greener economy, but how do we know which jobs are really green, and which ones should be the focus of publicly funded worker training efforts? The Department of Employment's Research & Planning Section is looking into those questions, thanks to a federal grant that encourages a multi-state, collaborative approach to green jobs research.

Thursday, 2:30-3:30pm @ Room 110
Employing the 50+ Worker, Les Engelter and Cathy Gonzales
Despite the economic downturn, managers say there's a shortage of skilled workers in Wyoming. Learn about success stories from Wyoming businesses that have put the concept of the flexible workplace to work - bringing them experienced workers and improving the bottom line. Learn how to keep the good workers you have and attract the skilled workers you want.

Thursday, 2:30-3:30pm @ North Ballroom
Partnering with Wyoming Youth and Business to Prepare our Future Workforce, Mike Griffin
Through partnerships between Wyoming's businesses and youth, we can develop a skilled, competitive workforce for the 21st century. Find out what the Department of Workforce Services is doing for our youth that can benefit your business. The programs in place can improve your company's recruitment, development and retention. The presentation will include a panel of business partners and testimonials from youth participants, along with next steps you can take in collaboration with the Department of Workforce Services.

Thursday, 3:45-4:45 p.m. @ North Ballroom & Friday, 10-11 a.m. @ Central/South Ballroom
Reinvigorating Your Workforce, Tim Walther
Tim Walther, an expert in human psychology and experiential learning, understands the intricacies of leadership and team dynamics and how to tap into unknown realms of human performance. Mr. Walther is the co-author of Seeking True North: The Pathway to Freedom, Beauty and Success, an engaging book which provides over 120 models, methods and tools for personal and business success. His combination of business savvy, mountaineering experience and leadership lessons make for a cutting-edge presentation that will inspire you long after the Summit ends.

Thursday, 3:45-4:45pm @ Room 158
Employee Training Opportunities for Wyoming Businesses, Tobi Wickham
If your employees need updated training, a number of opportunities are available through the Wyoming Department of Workforce Services. Learn about the variety of worker training programs at your disposal and how to access funding.

Thursday, 3:45-4:45pm @ Room 110
Unemployment Options for Employers, Wendy Tyson
Employers and business people have a variety of options available when faced with the unpleasant prospect of layoffs. These options, which can ease the pain for both business owner and the employee, will be explored in depth.

Friday, 8:45-9:45am @ Central/South Ballroom
Education, Training and Workforce Development, Dr. Martha Kanter
Martha J. Kanter was nominated by President Obama to be Under Secretary to the Department of Education and was confirmed by the Senate on June 19, 2009. In this position, she reports to Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and oversees policies, programs, and activities related to postsecondary education, vocational and adult education, and federal student aid. Her presentation will touch on the connections between education and workforce development.

Friday, 10:00-11:00am @North Ballroom
The Multigenerational Workplace, Karen St. Clair
The landscape of the work environment is changing. For the first time in modern history, the workplace now spans four generations. It is human nature to work and communicate how we are most comfortable; however that may not be a match to your employees' comfort zones. Participants will learn the characteristics, attitudes, values, and motivators of the different generations and understand how to coach and manage the generational differences into a successful work environment.

Friday, 10:00-11:00am & 11:15am-12:15pm @ Teton Room
Utilization of Apprenticeships, Michael Ann Broad
The Registered Apprenticeship program is a national system that offers on-the-job training in many of today's sought-after careers through partnerships with businesses. This network includes approximately 250,000 employers in 1,000 careers. Over the past 70 years, Registered Apprenticeship has developed millions of apprentices and strengthened America's workforce - one program at a time. Attendees will learn what is a Registered Apprenticeship; what are the advantages; how Registered Apprenticeship can be aligned to present business practices; how to develop a Registered Apprenticeship program designed to meet industry and employment needs; and how to register an Apprenticeship Program.

Friday, 10:00-11:00am @ Room 158
Industry Partnership Solutions, Mary Burman, Matthew Sholty, Veronica Taylor
The Wyoming Center for Nursing and Health Care Partnerships (WCNHCP) was established to "Strengthen the nursing workforce through ongoing collaboration, communication, and consensus building to meet the health needs of the people of Wyoming." The purpose of the NWPW is to facilitate the development of a high-quality nursing workforce in Wyoming specifically through the creation of a permanent nursing workforce center to house and distribute training materials, resources, and data that will facilitate the recruitment, training, and retention of nurses in Wyoming. Key to development of the WCNHCP have been studies addressing the supply and demand for nurses in Wyoming conducted by the Wyoming Department of Employment. This presentation will provide an overview of the process of developing the center and the partnership, with emphasis on long-term sustainability and lessons learned.

Friday, 10:00-11:00am & 11:15am-12:15pm @ Theatre
Career Readiness Certificate: Setting Skill Standards for a Thriving Workforce, Thomas Kilijanek
The State of Wyoming has joined over 30 other states across the country in the establishment of a Career Readiness Certificate for students and job seekers. The Certificate provides employers with objective certifiable proof that a job applicant has the basic work skills to be a productive employee. The certificate is based on WorkKeys, an assessment system measuring "real world" skills that employers believe are critical to job success. These skills are valuable for any occupation and for any employer. WorkKeys is developed by ACT Inc, and is used by employers and workforce systems across the country.

Friday, 11:15am-12:15pm @ North Ballroom
Health Care Reform Update, Anne Ladd
Health care is dominating the news and changes are afoot. Our employees are no healthier than they were 10 years ago. Meanwhile, costs in Wyoming increased 129 percent between 2000 and 2007 - the fastest in the country. As employers you are the ultimate payer. You pay the premiums that cover your own employees and you pay the taxes that cover all public beneficiaries. Yet business leaders in both the public and private sectors were remarkably absent from the health care negotiating table. The Wyoming Business Coalition on Health is working on practical, market-driven approaches to confronting the rapidly rising cost of healthcare. There are programs you can put in place that have a proven track record of improving employee health, reducing employer costs and raising productivity.

Friday, 11:15am-12:15pm @ Room 158
Succession Planning, Leonard Holler
If you own a family business and want to pass on the business when you retire, it is important for you to develop a thoughtful succession plan. You will need to consider who is going to manage the business when you no longer work in the business and how ownership will be transferred. How will your retirement funds be paid? What is the value of the business? With family businesses, succession planning can be especially complicated because of the relationships and emotions involved and because most people are not comfortable discussing topics such as aging, death, and their financial affairs. This session will help you understand and manage these issues and assist with a smooth transition between you and the future owners of your company.

AWARDS DINNER & BANQUET

Thursday, 6:30-7:30pm @ Central/South Ballroom
Shop Class as Soulcraft: An Inquiry into the Value of Work, Matthew Crawford
Mechanic and author Matthew B. Crawford will destroy the pretensions of the high-prestige workplace and make a case for working with one's hands. An experience that was once quite common - making and fixing things - now seems to be receding from society. Those who sit in an office often feel a lack of connection to the material world and find it difficult to say exactly what they do all day. Anyone who felt hustled off to college then to a cubicle, against their inclinations and natural bents, will enjoy Mr. Crawford's quest to restore the honor of the manual trades as a life worth choosing.

Thursday, 7:30-8:30pm @ Central/South Ballroom
Awards Presentation, Joan K. Evans and Jon Conrad
Department of Workforce Services Director Joan K. Evans and Wyoming Workforce Development Council Chairman Jon Conrad will present five awards to recognize Innovation in the Workplace, Outstanding Individual Performance, Outstanding Investment in Younger Workers, Outstanding Investment in Older Workers, and Workforce Partnership.

GOVERNOR'S ADDRESS

Friday, 12:30-1:30pm @ Central/South Ballroom
Closing Address, Honorable Gov. Dave Freudenthal
Gov. Dave Freudenthal closes the Summit with an overview of Wyoming's business and workforce communities.