Dr. Barbara Bolin

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Dr. Barbara Bolin President www.nationalocc.org 8
04-310-2552 bolinb_at_earthlink.net Career Readiness
Certificate Consortium www.crcconsortium.org
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Working with Employers BUILDING THE WIIFM
CASE Getting and keeping employers engaged in
your CRC efforts
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Suggestions Recommendations
1. Develop and/or enhance working relationships
with your employer colleagues assume
the Account Executive role

2. Investigate the realities of the new global
economies
3. Understand employers concerns
4. Learn the language of the CRC, and use it
correctly to address those concerns
5. Catch the vision and excitement
6. Develop and execute a marketing plan
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1. Develop and/or enhance working relationships
with your employer colleagues

• Visit, meet, and interact with employers
• Go to where they are. Otherwise, set meetings at
  your place but
• on THEIR time
• Remember
• They are immersed in their world
• They do not understand your world
• They are usually not interested in your world
• They suspect/expect that you are mired in the
  government or
• education bureaucracy and speak only that
  language
• (Im from the government/education and Im
  here to help you!) you!!)

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Surprise them!!
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2. Investigate the realities of the new global
economies
If you havent done so yet, read Friedmans The
World Is Flat. Then move on to The Emerging
Markets Century by Antoine Van Agtmael, and The
Elephant and the Dragon by Robyn Shepherd.
Just for fun and a new perspective, try China
Road by Rob Gifford Read The Wall Street
Journal, Business Week, Fast Company, Inc, and
Fortune every now and then to expand your
conversations and to show that you are an
interested citizen of the emerging world. Take
notes as you read!!
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Pop-Quiz (UNGRADED) . . .

• What is a BRIC?
• 2. What country controls the largest natural gas
  reserves on
• the planet?
• Which countrys engineers are helping US steel
• manufacturers to modernize their plants?
• Which country sells more beer to the US than
  Heineken?
• Which country is the largest seller of cement in
  the US?
• Where are the regional jets flown by US airlines
  made?
• Which Asian country has an RD budget larger than
  Intels?
• Which Asian company had 2005 profits greater than
  
• those of Dell, Motorola, and Nokia?
• 9. What is meant by the disassembly line in a
  discussion
• on globalization?

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Facts of Life . . .

• We are living in an era of TECTONIC ECONOMICS
  the rise of
• India and China is causing the entire earths
  economic and
• political landscape to shift before our eyes.
• China opened its doors in 1978 India followed
  cautiously 25 years
• later
• In the last decade, hundreds of millions of
  Indians and Chinese
• have been lifted out of abject poverty as jobs
  came their way while
• the American and European middle class has been
  put under
• tremendous pressure
• India and China each add more college graduates
  to their workforce
• annually than are produced by the US and Europe
  combined
• China now exports in a single day more than it
  sold abroad
• during all of 1978
• The Elephant and the Dragon, Robyn Meredith,
  2007

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Facts of Life (cont) . . .

• Global economy is still run by the same
  multinationals. Theyve just moved to China and
  have often formed partnerships with Chinese
  (Made by XXX in China)
• Foreign companies are HIRING and therefore
  TRAINING Chinas skilled workforce

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INDIA CHINA

• Democracyconsensus building Communistauthorita
  rian
• Slow and steady emergence Sprint
• Small economic zonessingular focus Large
  economic zonesmulti-focused
• Braincreative, innovative Brawnbut fast
  becoming brain
• Few attractions for foreign companies Incentives
  to foreign companies
• Specialized in small companies Can handle mass
  production
• -handmade items
• -problems with mass production
• Government persuades, may have to Government
  spearheads change
• let private companies take the lead
  champions big development projects
• Millions of well-educated, English Millions of
  science engineering grads
• -speaking workers, low wage unsuitable for
  employment in multi-
• expectations nationals, poor English and
  bad work
• ethic, emphasis on rote learning
• BACK OFFICE to the world FACTORY to the world

The Elelphant and the Dragon, Robyn Shephard
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Facts of Life . . .

• Companies in former Third World frequently serve
• dual roles of competitor and partner with
  established
• First World multinationals.
• Emerging multinationals are
• Widely recognized as leaders on a Global basis
• A Global presence in exports and often
  production
• Globally competitive not only in price but also
  in
• quality, design, technology, and management
• Benchmarked favorably against the biggest
• best in the world

The Emerging Markets Century, Antoine van
Agtmael, 2007
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Facts of Life . . .
Just as the rise of the United States after the
Industrial Revolution turned American companies
from Imitators into Innovators, emerging market
multinationals will increasingly do the
same. As time goes on, more emerging-markets
firms will take over long-established Western
companies, including those they now
supply. Our ever-shrinking world is poised on
the threshold of a new period of competitive
threat, but also one of thrilling opportunity,
when the global field is not just leveling (as
Tom Freidman has persuasively argued in his book
The World Is Flat) but tilting away from its
former owners.
The Emerging Markets Century, Antoine van
Agtmael, 2007
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• Korean Samsungs brand is now better recognized
  than Sonys
• its RD budget is larger than Intels and 2005
  profits were
• higher than those of Dell, Motorola, Nokia
• Regional jets we fly in are made in Brazil
• Mexicos CEMEX is largest cement company in US,
  second
• largest in UK, third globally
• Computers are being DESIGNED, not just made, in
  China
• and Taiwan
• Indians help us to fix those computers

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• Russias Gazproms gas reserves are larger than
  those of all major oil companies combined. Europe
  would freeze without Russias gas supplies
• Modelo in Mexico sells more beer to Americans
  than Heineken
• Korean engineers are helping aging US steel
  companies to modernize outdated plants
• New drugs are being developed in India and
  Slovenia
• New inventions in consumer electronics and
  wireless technology are moving from Asia to the
  US and Europe

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So, is it all over for American companies and
our economy? NO!!! US companies are
now relying on American workers for more
sophisticated and high skilled work Many who
dont have the skills required will be LEFT
BEHIND It is now even MORE imperative that we
produce TRAINABLE WORKERS here!!
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Manufacturing Employment by Skill Level, 1983-2002
High Skilled Jobs 1.2 million (job
increase) Mid -1.3 million (job
loss) Low-skilled -2 million (job loss)
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3. Understand employers concerns

• WORKFORCE
• Aging workforce
• Unskilled/untrainable replacements
• Poor work ethic
• ROI
• Healthcare costs
• Legal issues
• COMPETITION
• Global pressures
• Cheap imports
• Off-shoring
• TECHNOLOGY
• Cost
• Keeping up

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4. Learn the language of the CRC and use it
correctly

• What To Say--
• The CRC is a legally-defensible skills credential
  that will
• Pre-screen potential employees at no cost to the
  employer
• Certify quality and competence at a specific
  skill level
• Ensure a potential or incumbent employee is
  trainable for the job
• Reduce turnover and training costs
• Increase probability of hiring/promoting the
  right person
• Increase ROI and bottom line results

• What NOT to say initially--
• The CRC is based on WorkKeys assessments
• WorkKeys may be used to profile jobs

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The name Career Readiness Certificate was
NOT chosen randomly. Career v Job Ready/Trainabl
e v Fully Trained Certificate v
Diploma/License/Qualification The CRC has a
DEFINITION that is standard across the nation
and use of the name is legally protected.
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CREDENTIAL Shows someone has the ability,
knowledge, experience, etc. to do job
CERTIFICATION Intent of certification is to
inform the public that certified individuals
have demonstrated a particular degree of
knowledge and skill usually a VOLUNTARY process
(Fabrey, 1996) LICENSURE Generally refers to
MANDATORY government requirement to offer
practice and title protection. (Shrock
Coscarelli , 2000) QUALIFICATION An assessment
after training of whether a person understands a
process or technology. No task analysis so no
way of measuring competence on the job (Shrock
Coscarelli, 2000)
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• CERTIFICATION
• A formal validation of knowledge or skillbased
  on a
• qualifying examination.
• The goal is to produce results (from the testing)
  that are
• as dependable or more dependable than those that
  could
• be gained by direct observation on the job.
• (Drake Prometric, 1995)
• Should provide an objective and consistent
  method of
• measuring competence and ensuring the
  qualifications of
• technical professionals
• (Microsoft, 1995)
• Measures a persons competence against a given
• standarda criterion-referenced test
  interpretation
• (Shrock Coscarelli, 2000)

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CERTIFICATION Measurement focuses on an
individuals performance in terms of SPECIFIC
SKILLS There is no grading curve so there is
no limit to the number of test-takers who can
succeed on a criterion-referenced
test. Everyone who scores beyond a given level
is judged to be a master or to have mastered
the competencies measured by the test. Master
is NOT a comparative term.
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Employers have TWO major concerns with
potential and incumbent employees

• Poor work ethic

How do you legally assess and train to overcome
deficiencies?
2. Lack of basic learning skills, i.e.
TRAINABILITY for rapidly changing technologies
and careers Employers are as interested in what
a person can DO, not only what they KNOW!!
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• To be legally defensible, a Certification
• process must
• Measure true knowledge and skill on
• the job
• Support the program with training and
• information so that candidates can
• adequately prepare for the test, and
• Sustain the program by providing
• ongoing training and education

TD Magazine, ASTD, January 2005
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The Career Readiness Certificate meets these
criteria and was designed to address the
trainability issue,
Also to be the basis for expanded credentials for
specific industry sectors and careers
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• What has the CRC brought to Morningstar Foods?
• In the hiring process, a candidate who brings a
  CRC to the table will reduces testing cost by
  64.
• In 2005, that would have accounted for a total
  savings of 10,860.00.
• When hiring an individual who has a CRC, they
  know that they have the requisite aptitudes for
  positions.
• The on-the-job training costs for these new
  hires has been reduced by 50 (or better,
  depending on position).
• OJT cost was reduced to between 1,280.00 -
  2,560.00 per employee.
• During 2005, that saving was 128,000.00 to
  256,000.00 in strictly regular, hourly wages
  required to pay another employee to handle the
  OJT for a new hire.

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Henry Stroup, President and CEO, Coach-Net, AZ,
2006

• Hiring/training costs 3500-5000 per employee
• CRC helps employer and employee by showing where
  each
• employees talents are and where they need
  training
• It quantifies the hiring process and removes
  subjectivity
• CRC helps keep employees and helps them screen
  for
• new employees better
• Its not just about money. Morale is high, more
  positive
• feedback from company
• Everyone may sign up for the next 10 things the
• company tries!

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Suggestions Recommendations
1. Develop and/or enhance working relationships
with your employer colleagues

2. Investigate the realities of the new global
economies
3. Understand employers concerns
4. Learn the language of the CRC, and use it
correctly to address those concerns
5. Catch the vision and excitement
6. Develop and execute a marketing plan
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5. Catch the vision and excitement

• Results from around the country show
• Thousands of people are being helped into
  employment from
• various situations,
• Students are demonstrating skills not assessed
  in the academic
• system,
• Employers are demonstrating strong ROI data,
• Expanded credentials, CRC, are now being
  developed, and
• Economies are benefiting

The CRC has changed the perception of the WFD
system. The US DOL can no longer deny what is
going on in the states.
You are part of a VERY EXCITING initiative!!!
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CRC Consortium October 2007
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6. Develop and execute a marketing plan
Where to go for help?

• The Career Readiness Certificate An
  Implementation Handbook
• Chapter 7
• Second edition of Handbook on NOCC web site
  January 2008
• Your colleagues, including employers (especially
  for ROI data)
• CRC web site, www.crcconsortium.org is a good
  resource for
• ideas and contacts
• NOCC newsletters

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Embrace your role as an Account Executive-- see
yourself as an emissary with good (ROI) news, and
be persistent.
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Dr. Barbara Bolin President www.nationalocc.org 8
04-310-2552 bolinb_at_earthlink.net Career Readiness
Certificate Consortium www.crcconsortium.org