Bridging the Skills Gap: Solutions that Work - Chief Learning Officer Magazine

In Minnesota, a Right Skills Now pilot is focusing on machining skills for manufacturing. Created through a partnership involving The Manufacturing Institute, ACT, the National Institute of Metalworking Skills, and the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness, the 16-week program integrates the specific needs of the region’s employers with the talent and energy of its community and technical colleges. Darlene Miller, CEO of Permac Industries in Burnsville, Minnesota, is a member of the President’s Council. She helped establish the pilot project as a pathway to solving the skills gap she has observed for years. “This program will bring us people who have a skill set we understand,” she said. “It will lower our turnover, reduce our training time and expense, and help keep manufacturing in America.”