Pam Sornson, JD, Author at EWD Pulse

Employers in need of more workforce-ready technicians

Pam Sornson, JD on February 26, 2019

Demand is high for more local and regional skilled, workforce-ready technicians and Northeastern Junior College believes it can play a substantial role in meeting that need through the expansion of its Applied Technology Campus.

At an informational meeting Tuesday evening, advisory committee members for ATC programs, which include automotive technology, diesel technology, wind technology, welding technology and precision agriculture, were invited to learn more about the expansion project, and also share what their needs are.

Mike Anderson, chair of NJC’s agriculture department and a member of the capital campaign committee for the expansion project, started the meeting asking individuals in attendance what the most important things are that they need in order to grow their business or operation.

Russ Adels, who is in production agriculture, said they need a capable and willing workforce that is willing to stay in the area; right now when the “big city” calls, many workers leave and go there.

“It’s hard work to be in agriculture or a lot of other trade industries, we just need the capable people who are willing to work hard, to put in that sacrifice for a better future, not only for them, but for the rest of the world,” he said.

Welding professionals commented there just aren’t enough people to go out and do the jobs that need to be done and Shawn Seifried, a local electrical contractor, said there is a need to supply electricians with qualified help, that can assist with getting parts and equipment.

“We felt like we’ve got some of that feedback from other members in industry, that there’s a huge demand,” Anderson said, asking attendees if they would agree that “there is not a big enough workforce pool of trained technical skilled folks in the Northeastern Colorado region.”

Business professionals at the meeting agreed that is a fair assessment. Professionals from 21st Century Equipment said they need approximately 30 more workers to be fully staffed at all sites.

Anderson then asked what the issues are that they face in trying to retain employees or if that’s even issue.

“It’s when the big city calls they’re gone, unless they have a reason to be here, family or attachments to this area, the salary, 20 percent more salary, more than that even, that alone will alone will take them away pretty quickly,” Seifried said.

Alan Krier, local contractor and owner of Concrete Specialties, agreed that getting people to stay is a challenge, whether they are concrete finishers, truck drivers or equipment operators. He shared that his company is working on part of West Main St. right now, assisting with construction on the S-curve project, because Parsons Construction Group, the general contractor for the project, thought they could come to Sterling, rent a bunch of equipment and hire a number of local operators to assist with the project, but they found no one.

“It’s really hard to find skilled people,” Krier said.

21st Century professionals said being short staffed, they have plenty of work, but employees don’t always want to put in the extra time and work a longer day.

“It’s not always about the money anymore, there’s been a change in the thought process of these young people coming out, they value their time off, they value a lot of different things that previous generations didn’t. That’s probably one of our biggest challenges with our new younger workforce, is what excites them, what motivates them, what can we do to try and keep them around?” the ag equipment leaders said.

They noted there are some tremendous young people coming into the workforce and they are able to retain some of them, but just because they have a great employee today doesn’t mean that person will be there tomorrow, “their loyalty is not as good as it was in previous generations,” the 21st Century representatives said.

Anderson asked professionals at the meeting if there was a large enough pool of people to train, and resources and time were not an issue, what kind of training they want their employees to have when they first arrive.

Jason Hazlett, director of NJC’s renewable energy department, said for electricians they want to have students working at the same time they’re going to school, which means offering classes at night so that students can work during the day. Seifried said math skills are important, but a mechanical background would be good too and that’s something that could be taught in conjunction with some of the wind technician training.

Welding professionals said more and more workers in that industry need robotics skills, but that’s something not a lot of colleges are teaching; for precision ag, workers need an understanding of the technology itself; Jimmy Atencio, said diesel technology professionals are looking for employees with character, with troubleshooting and critical thinking skills; Layton Peterman, auto technology instructor, said soft skills, diagnostics and critical thinking skills are important for that industry.

NJC vision is to address the growing demand that all of these industries have and teach students the skills these businesses are looking through its expanded Applied Technology Campus. The new campus, which will be expanded from 54,000 square feet to 89,153 square feet, will feature centralized administrative offices; a single, consolidated resource library; a program-agnostic “lounge” area where students can study, eat lunch, socialize and/or collaborate; and a virtual classroom to allow NJC instructors to conduct classes in a polysynchronous format.

With the additional space they plan to add specific programs to addressed projected demand, which includes investing money into the precision ag program and adding skilled trades programs such as electrical and HVAC technician.

NJC anticipates breaking ground on the expansion project in May 2020, and completing phase one of the project by August 2021 and phases two and three by August 2022.

“We’ve simply outgrown our space; we can’t offer these opportunities to more students unless we expand this facility,” Anderson said, adding that “we’re trying to build a facility that we think the community will be proud of, that will help support not only NJC, but local community and all the businesses here that need trained technicians.”

Here’s the good news about building a diverse talent pipeline

Pam Sornson, JD on February 26, 2019

A recent S&P Global study reports that firms with women CEOs and CFOs showed increased profitability in the two years after their appointments—but not for the reasons you might think.

In tracking the performance of 5,825 new executive appointments 24 months after appointment, S&P Global’s Market Intelligence Quantamental Research team found that firms with female CEOs saw a 20% increase in stock-price momentum. Those with female CFOs saw a 6% increase in profitability 8% larger stock returns.

Daniel Sandberg, senior director of the research team, says that, by using natural language processing to analyze the bios of CEOs and CFOs of both genders, researchers found “a common set of characteristics driving success for both male and female executives,” demonstrating that women had experience consistent with the most successful male executives. The report, entitled When Women Lead, Firms Win, refuted ideas from previous studies that said women’s leadership behavior was different than men’s, and that’s why they succeeded.

However, women still remain underrepresented in the C-suite, according to the study. By year-end 2018, the male-to-female ratio for CEOs was 19:1, and it was 6.5:1 for CFOs, which the researchers called a “persisting underrepresentation of females in key executive positions, despite recent advancements.”

The takeaway for HR is that creating a pipeline of top-achieving women leaders in the overall talent pool will reap financial benefits—a strong business case for firms struggling to achieve gender diversity. In fact, the 435 firms with female CFOs were more profitable than others, generating excess profits of $1.8 trillion.

Tagged to a campaign called #ChangePays, the report’s data has been promoted as part of S&P Global’s “Vital Statistics” Corporate Responsibility initiative. Launched in January 2019, the campaign’s goal is to provide hard stats on the benefits of women in the workforce to help global communities thrive.

Dimitra Manis, chief people officer for S&P Global, says the #ChangePays theme came out of the data itself. “We found that adding more women in the workplace would actually add about $5.87 trillion to the global market [capitalization],” she says.

“I don’t think in this day and age that we should be having to convince anybody. It’s a no-brainer. [Adding women to the workplace is] financially beneficial for the company and … is a good business practice,” Manis says.

Supporting gender diversity—as well as diversity across the board—is a matter of getting leadership on board and tying the issue to key performance indicators. Manis notes that the topic is included in the company’s quarterly balanced scorecard to promote accountability and performance. A diverse workforce is also supported in day-to-day operations—through programs and policies around workplace flexibility, increased investment in career development, mentoring, initiatives to broaden talent-acquisition practices, talent-succession and pipeline programs, and more.

Related: Here are 5 reasons gender equality is becoming a reality

“It’s up to us as leaders to emphasize [the data] and utilize it to the benefit of the company and for the benefit of the market and shareholders,” Manis says.

“We have a role to play in elevating the message of gender parity in the workplace,” she adds. “We believe that we can really showcase these insights to increase awareness.”

How San Gabriel Valley Students Scored In Standardized Tests

Pam Sornson, JD on February 26, 2019

ARCADIA, CA — Southern California students continue to make modest gains on state standardized tests, although only half of them met or exceeded the state standard in English and less than half met or exceeded it in math, according to scores released Wednesday by the California Department of Education.

The performance of Los Angeles County and Orange County students on the California Assessment of Student Performance and Progress tests generally mirrored that of students statewide, according to the department.

The CAASPP tests were administered in the spring to more than 3 million students across the state in grades 3-8 and 11.

Statewide, 22.23 percent exceeded the standard in English, while 28.64 met it, 22.4 nearly met it and 26.73 failed to meet it. In math, 19.69 exceeded the standard, 20.04 met it, 25.41 nearly met it and 34.86 failed to meet it. The statewide scores were all also moderately improved from the previous year.

In Los Angeles County, 21.73 percent of the more than 740,000 students who took the tests exceeded the state standard in English, up from 20.58 percent the previous year. According to the state, 28.48 percent met the standard, up slightly from 28.35 percent last year; while 22.65 percent “nearly” met the standard, down from 22.84 percent last year; and 27.14 percent failed to meet it, down from 28.23 percent last year.

In math, 19.15 percent exceeded the standard, 19.96 met it, 25.42 nearly met it and 35.48 failed to meet it. The percentages from the previous year were 17.66, 19.8, 26.04 and 36.5, respectively.

The Los Angeles Unified School District — the nation’s second-largest — showed across-the-board year-over-year gains, but students continued to lag behind their counterparts across the state. According to state figures, 17.73% of LAUSD students exceeded the standard in English, 26.17% met it, 23.45% nearly met it and 32.65% failed to meet it. In math, 15.08% exceeded the standard, 18.39% met it, 25.83% nearly met it and 40.7% failed to meet it.

In Orange County, 29.82 percent of students exceeded the state standard in English, while 29.66 percent met it, 19.74 percent nearly met it and 20.78 percent failed to meet it. In math, 28.53 percent exceeded the standard, 21.91 percent met it, 23.03 percent nearly met it and 26.54 percent failed to meet it. The figures all reflected slight improvements over the previous year.

State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond acknowledged the overall improvement, but said he was concerned that gains were less consistent in later grades of 7, 8 and 11, while performance continues to lag among some students of color.

“Disparities between students of color and their white and Asian peers continue from year to year and demonstrate the importance of our priority initiative of closing the achievement gap,” Thurmond said in a statement. “Education equity should mean equity for all students and right now, we are not there. All students should have an equal opportunity to succeed academically and enter the workforce prepared with the needed skills to compete in the industries that drive our state forward.”

Hispanic entrepreneurs more optimistic in business survey

Pam Sornson, JD on February 26, 2019

Hispanic entrepreneurs are feeling better about their businesses and the nation’s economy than other business owners, a new report reveals.

Bank of America’s 2019 Hispanic Small Business Owner Spotlight survey says 51 percent of Hispanic-owned businesses plan to hire more workers this year compared with 26 percent of non-Hispanic owned companies. Moreover, 87 percent of Hispanic businesses plan to expand their operations compared with 67 percent of all other businesses.

ESCO Aerospace Manufacturing in La Puente is one of them. ESCO makes components for Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman. And business is picking up.

“I have 12 employees now and we’re looking into starting another shift,” company CEO Yvonne Escobedo said. “That means more people and more equipment. I’ll probably have to bring on another 12 people.”

Escobedo said the Trump administration’s pro-business stance has given her confidence to move her company forward.

“The big thing is the corporate tax break,” she said. “They lowered the corporate tax from 35 percent to 21 percent. That’s the catalyst for everything … it makes you feel comfortable with buying equipment and hiring. They are thinking about the little guy who is trying to succeed.”

Other survey data worth noting:

74 percent of Hispanic-owned businesses expect their revenue to increase this year, compared with 57 percent of non-Hispanic business owners
28 percent of Hispanic-owned businesses intend to apply for a loan, compared with 14 percent of other business owners
68 percent of Hispanic-owned businesses expect the economy to improve over the next 12 months, compared with 54 percent of other companies

Sergio Rivas, small business banking manager for Bank of America’s Los Angeles market, has a theory about the optimism.

“Many of them own newer businesses that haven’t seen the roller coaster kind of economy more established businesses have, so there is more confidence,” he said.

Still, some aren’t taking any chances.

“We dealt with a tortilla manufacturer that was concerned about commodity prices, so they bought up to six months worth of supplies as a hedge against the economy,” Rivas said.

More workers, more equipment

Frank Montes, chairman of the California Hispanic Chambers of Commerce and founder and CEO of Inland Body & Paint Center in Fontana, is looking to hire five new employees to augment his current workforce of 19. He also plans to invest $100,000 in new equipment.

“I think our culture has always been optimistic,” he said. “When times get tough in our community we refocus. I’m a strong believer that when something bad happens, you look at how you can turn it around and make it positive.”

Still, Montes admits that California isn’t the easiest place to do business.

“More than 2,000 bills were introduced this year that will somehow impact our businesses,” he said. “If you want to scare small business away from California keep introducing all of these bills. The one thing that scares small business is the unknown.”

Health care costs topped the list of concerns among both Hispanic-owned businesses and others surveyed for the BofA report. Additional concerns included commodity prices, trade tariffs, consumer spending and minimum wage increases.

A tight labor market

Hispanic entrepreneurs are among many other businesses grappling with an ultra-competitive job market that has made it harder to attract and retain talent.

Sixteen percent of Hispanic businesses surveyed said they have lost at least 10 percent of their workforce over the past 12 months while 11 percent of non-Hispanic businesses faced the same problem.

To counteract that trend, Hispanic entrepreneurs are offering a variety of perks to attract job candidates. Fifty-five percent offer flexible hours, 36 percent offer flexible locations, 35 percent offer professional development and 32 percent offer discretionary bonuses, the report said.

Alex Guerrero, chief development officer at Valley Economic Development Center in Sherman Oaks, said his organization helps businesses in underserved communities gain access to technical assistance and loans.

“In the last 12 months, 21 percent of our loans have gone to Hispanics and those companies have created 111 jobs as a result,” he said. “It used to be mainly restaurant owners and manufacturing companies, but now we’re funding loans for dentists, accountants and other professionals.”

Increasing gender diversity in the STEM research workforce

Pam Sornson, JD on February 26, 2019

Women experience substantial, gender-specific barriers that can impede their advancement in research careers. These include unconscious biases that negatively influence the perception of women’s abilities, as well as social and cultural factors like those that lead to an unequal distribution of domestic labor (1, 2). Additionally, sexual and gender-based harassment is a widespread and pernicious impediment to the retention and advancement of women in many science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)–related fields (3). Although there is substantial evidence documenting systemic barriers that women face in scientific careers, less is known about how research institutions and funding agencies can best address these problems (see references below and in the supplementary materials). We outline here specific, potentially high-impact policy changes that build upon existing mechanisms for research funding and governance and that can be rapidly implemented to counteract barriers facing women in science. These approaches must be coupled to vigorous and continuous outcomes-based monitoring, so that the most successful strategies can be disseminated and widely implemented. Though our professional focus is primarily academic biomedical research in U.S. institutions, we suggest that some of the approaches that we discuss may be broadly useful across STEM disciplines and outside of academia as well.