Across industry sectors, communication and critical thinking skills are essential competencies of a successful workforce in existing jobs and will only become more critical in this new world of work. In a workforce skills assessment published in the 2022 Oregon Talent Assessment by ECONorthwest, most employers expressed that soft or interpersonal skills were among the skills most lacking in existing staff. Regardless of future improvements to development of these skills in K-12 curriculum, those individuals already in the workforce are in need of essential skills training. Managers will be critical in addressing and supporting development of essential skills in new and existing employees.

In 2023, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce designed a Train-the-Trainers: Essential Skills workshop to give managers, and management teams, tools and processes to work with their employees in essential skill areas – communication, collaboration, adaptability, and problem solving. During this workshop, we’ll share why, how, and what happened during the process of designing and delivering this essential skills workshop for managers, so that you may scale this type of training for your community.

• Understand the essential skills gap from an industry perspective, how we got here, and how organizations positioned as conveners of business and industry can begin addressing this gap.
• Develop a strategy for collecting data and feedback from local business and industry around the gaps in essential skills for their incumbent workforce.
• Design a training for managers in the local community to give managers tools and processes for working with employees on essential skills.

About Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce:

When businesses succeed our community thrives. A hub for businesses, the Springfield Area Chamber of Commerce is a trusted resource and connector, known for opening doors, taking bold steps, and moving our business community forward positively and fearlessly.