Prior to the recession, Wisconsin was already experiencing shortages of middle-skill workers - that is, those jobs requiring more than a high school diploma, but less than a four-year degree - in crucial industries. The impending retirement of large numbers of baby boomers will keep demand for middle-skill workers high for years to come. According to a report written by The Workforce Alliance, sixty- seven percent of the people who will be in Wisconsin's workforce in the year 2020 were already working adults in 2005- long past the traditional high school-to-college pipeline. This trend is consistent across many states and in the nation as a whole. As with most states in the country, filling those vacated positions will require attention not only to educational opportunities for young people, but also for those already in the workforce through the development of industry-specific training programs.

Source: Wisconsin's Forgotten Middle-Skill Jobs was written for the Skills2Compete-Wisconsin campaign by The Workforce Alliance (TWA), Washington, D.C., as part of its national Skills2Compete Campaign.

Are you working to grow your business internationally? Understanding compliance and documentation requirements is critical to help you meet customer requirements. Moraine Park's seminars in International Business will help your staff understand compliance and documentation requirements to prepare your products for successful export.

Upcoming Seminars:

• Export Compliance: January 11, 2010, 8:30 to 11:30 a.m., Fond du Lac
• Export Documentation: January 11, 2010, 12:30 to 3:30 p.m., Fond du Lac

The cost for each seminar is $99 per participant and includes all materials.

To register, call 920- 924-3449 or e-mail training@morainepark.edu

Lomira-based Kondex Corp., a manufacturer of agricultural cutting tools, is proving that you don't have to be big to reap the benefits of improving your workforce. The company identified Six Sigma as one of the tools it could use to become a more customer-driven organization.

Kondex partnered with Moraine Park to conduct Six Sigma Green Belt training on site at their facility. The training was partially funded through a Workforce Advancement Training grant which Moraine Park helped to secure.

As part of the training, associates at Kondex applied Six Sigma tools to a workplace project, ensuring that Kondex saw an immediate return on their training investment. Kondex sees training their workforce as an investment that yields a competitive advantage. "The overall objective as more projects are completed will be to continue to reduce costs and wastes at Kondex, thereby making us the desired supplier for our customers, " says Kondex President, Jim Wessing.

Source: Corporate Report

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