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Corporate Voices 10th Anniversary Celebration Sponsorship Opportunities
With the generous support of our sponsors we will host a special dinner celebration June 16, 2011, where we will celebrate, with our business partners, friends and funders, our many significant accomplishments during the past 10 years.
Our 10th anniversary celebration includes a dinner and program held in conjunction with the Annual Meeting of our 55 partner companies. This event will provide Corporate Voices' partner companies and funders, influential business leaders, policy makers and friends an opportunity to reflect on the success of the last 10 years and look toward the future. VIP speakers and awards presentations will complete the evening.
Click here to purchase a ticket to the celebration dinner, or for information on sponsorship opportunities, including purchasing advertisement space in the 10th anniversary celebration program, click here.
The program will highlight our accomplishments while providing a forum for government and business leaders to offer their congratulations. Please note program text and images must be received by April 28, 2011.
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Business Leaders, Year Up and Corporate Voices Meet with Policymakers to Discuss Effective Investment in Workforce Development
 Business leaders from renowned American corporations will join Year Up leaders and alumni, Corporate Voices for Working Families and representatives from other enterprising pathway programs for meetings with 35 key policymakers on Capitol Hill today. The event's agenda will highlight the most effective, scalable workforce development programs for driving economic growth, ultimately closing the gap between untapped talent and entry level workforce needs.
Current economic conditions have many on Capitol Hill calling for deep cuts - or total elimination - of the workforce training system. At a time of scarce resources, and growing talent demands in the private sector, it is essential that resources be directed to support enterprising pathway programs that help employers develop new talent pipelines and create jobs.
Even in the current economy, employers report difficulty finding skilled entry-level talent. Over the next decade, American companies will need to compete for an estimated shortfall of 14 million workers with the skills necessary to succeed in an increasingly competitive economy. In order to ensure that businesses have the talent needed to drive economic growth, it is crucial that public policies support continued private and public investment in human capital development.
"As a nation, we must commit to strengthening our workforce. American businesses need access to the untapped talent of our country's young people who have the skills necessary to succeed on the job and build a strong economy," said Tom Ryan, Chairman of CVS Caremark. "CVS Caremark's partnership with Year Up is a key example of an enterprising pathway model that works, supplying companies like ours with new sources of skilled and diverse talent."
In order to develop new sources of skilled talent, private sector employers are forging partnerships with innovative nonprofit organizations to create enterprising pathway programs that are highly effective at closing the gap between business needs and potential employee skills. Year Up is a leading exemplar of this approach. A national nonprofit that provides career training to low-income young adults (18-24), Year Up partners with corporate sponsors to provide training and internships that give young adults the skills needed to enter full-time jobs and/or higher education. Newly released research independently conducted by Economic Mobility Corporation indicates that students who complete the Year Up program have access to higher quality jobs and earned up to 30 percent more than those who did not.
"Year Up is about investing in young people who are willing to invest in themselves," said Rep. David Cicilline (D-RI). "Year Up is providing tangible value to corporate partners, growing our country's workforce, and in the long run helping to grow our economy. This program is an excellent example of how public/private partnerships are meant to work: Businesses, educators, and government all working together to build a qualified workforce that local businesses and major corporations are willing to tap."
Year Up and Corporate Voices for Working Families are closely aligned with the New Options Project, a multi-year initiative that seeks to connect more than four million young adults with no high school diploma to meaningful career opportunities that match their talents and skills. Supported by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, New Options works to connect employer talent needs with new sources of previously undeveloped talent.
At a time of scarce resources, it is necessary for policies that encourage public and private investment in developing the talent businesses need to create jobs and reinvigorate the economy. This means public funding must be targeted to those programs that produce outcomes that are tightly aligned to the needs of employers. And because business is in the best position to develop new talent, public policy should incent private investment to develop untapped talent.
"To compete in a global economy and to keep and grow an innovative corporate sector, developing the skills and talents of our workforce must be a priority. To grow, our emerging innovative industries in Colorado and around the country need a first-rate, highly skilled workforce," said Senator Michael Bennet (D-CO). "Through initiatives like Year Up, the public and private sectors can help develop a strong workforce for the jobs of today and tomorrow."
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Workplace Flexibility: Ensuring Success for the 21st
Century
Turck, Inc. Becomes Business Champion in National Campaign
Corporate Voices would like to congratulate Turck, Inc. for
joining its national workplace flexibility campaign and for committing its support for Corporate Voices' Statement of Support for Expanding Workplace Flexibility.
A growing number of employers have joined this campaign as Business Champions to recognize the business imperative for flexibility and how flexibility practices can catalyze success for working families and businesses in the 21st century.
Corporate Voices launched this campaign in 2010 after the first-ever White House Forum on Workplace Flexibility to create a broader awareness of the positive business and employee benefits of successful management strategies like flexibility. This campaign seeks to create the critical momentum needed to expand flexibility within the business community. To date, 53 employers have joined the campaign, including: Accenture, Allstate Insurance Company, AOL, Baxter International, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, Childrens' Creative Learning Centers, Cisco Systems, CVS Caremark, Deloitte LLP, Ernst & Young, Knowledge Universe, KPMG, Marriott International, McGladrey, Merck & Co. Inc., Sodexo and Workplace Options, among others. To learn more about the campaign and how your business can join, visit Corporate Voices' website.
Corporate Voices Releases Updated "Business Impacts" Report and Focus Group Findings at National Flexibility Dialogue in Chicago
Corporate Voices will release an updated version of its "Business Impacts of Flexibility: An Imperative for Expansion" report today at the National Dialogue on Workplace Flexibility in Chicago, organized by the U.S. Department of Labor's Women's Bureau. This updated report, researched by WFD Consulting, continues to document the business benefits of flexibility, as well as its growing role as a strategic business imperative for domestic and global enterprises.
Corporate Voices will also release findings of virtual focus groups it conducted, in partnership with WorldatWork, the Society for Human Resource Management, WFD Consulting and the Twiga Foundation, on the use of flexibility in the manufacturing industry. As global competition, economic and demographic workforce changes create the impetus for more effective workplaces to improve business performance, the findings document the experiences of manufacturing firms with flexibility, including the unique business drivers, solutions, specific business impacts and critical success factors.
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Working Mother and Corporate Voices Announce Best Companies for Hourly Workers
Congratulations to the 2011 Best Companies for Hourly Workers:
 Best Buy, Richfield, MN
Hourly workers 94%
Bon Secours Richmond Health System, Richmond, VA
Hourly workers 82%
Capital One Financial, McLean, VA
Hourly workers 59%
Carlson, Minnetonka, MN
Hourly workers 86%
Cricket Communications, San Diego, CA
Hourly workers 63%
Marriott International, Bethesda, MD
Hourly workers 87%
McDonald's, Oak Brook, IL
Hourly workers 90%
Sodexo, Gaithersburg, MD
Hourly workers 87%
University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics, Madison, WI
Hourly workers 74%
UNM Hospitals, Albuquerque, NM
Hourly workers 92%
USAA, San Antonio, TX
Hourly workers 69%
Valassis, Livonia, MI
Hourly workers 65%
The winners are detailed in Working Mother's May issue, at www.workingmother.com/bestcompanies and on iPad (search: working mother).
The only initiative of its kind, Working Mother's second annual Best Companies for Hourly Workers celebrates companies that create best practices to support their hourly employees. Companies must have a minimum of 50 percent hourly workers in order to submit their data for this distinction. With nearly half the U.S. workforce-73 million Americans-punching in and out as hourly employees every day, companies are finding a competitive edge when they support hourly workers. Working Mother's Best Companies for Hourly Workers provide family-friendly benefits that promote health/wellness, education, flexibility and work-life balance.
Emphasizing the importance of education as a means to advance one's career, this year's winning companies offer tuition reimbursement and life skills training including computer training, financial literacy programs and GED classes during working hours. Even more impressive, 83 percent of the companies pay regular hourly wages while employees attend such life-training classes.
Corporate Voices for Working Families serves as knowledge partner for the Working Mother Best Companies for Hourly Workers initiative.
Working Mother Media will honor the 2011 Best Companies for Hourly Workers at a special luncheon with special keynote speaker, U.S. Secretary of Labor, Hilda Solis May 3, 2011 in Washington, D.C. The event will bring together many of the nation's companies employing hourly workers for the second annual Hourly Workers in America Forum and Awards Luncheon. At this can't-miss event, leading companies will come together for a frank discussion of issues, needs, and best practices for hourly workers.
The forum will provide attendees with a chance to hear directly from representatives from some of the 2011 Best Companies for Hourly Workers at a special issues panel discussion titled, The Value of Business Beyond Job-Related Training. During the panel, the companies will share what their programs are and how they go beyond expectations to increase the skill level of their employees, while creating future opportunities for professional and personal development.
Other highlights include the following Breakout Discussions:
- Skills Gap: How Big is it at Your Company? - How companies can develop strategies to help bridge that gap, and open up more opportunities for hourly workers to attain the necessary skills to advance professionally.
- Taking the Leap: Entry-Level to First Line Managers - Learn how the Best Companies have been able to successfully help entry-level employees make the transition into managers.
- Learn + Earn - Companies are interested in helping their employees grow so that they can retain top talent. Learn what new programs and best practices should be implemented to keep employees happy and loyal.
- Life-Skills Training - People cannot grow in any field of employment unless basic skills are first established. Learn what companies are doing to help their employees gain the confidence and knowledge to take the next steps in their careers and lives.
To register for the Hourly Workers in America Forum and Awards Luncheon or for information on sponsorship, click here!
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Forging Community-Business Partnerships: Newest Addition to the Ready by 21 Toolkit
 Corporate Voices' Ready by 21® team remains busy with business engagement and education efforts around this ambitious national initiative to ensure that more youth are ready for college, work and life. Most recently, we released a valuable new resource to help local leaders and employers collaborate to support children, youth and families in their communities. Understanding the Needs of Your Business Partners: Building and Conducting a Successful Business Survey offers practical advice to community organizations, helping them work strategically with employers in their region and guiding them through a business survey to better understand the landscape of business investments in their community.
The publication is the latest addition to a unique suite of tools offered by Corporate Voices, based on a decade of experience studying the workforce needs and expectations of employers nationwide. It was released last week at "Community Solutions", a conference of Ready by 21 communities across the Southeast. At the gathering, our staff also contributed to a discussion around the importance of partnerships to support postsecondary education. The Forum for Youth Investment led the event, which was held in Atlanta.
Commenting on the new toolkit, Corporate Voices' Steve Wing said, "At a time when our nation's prosperity depends more than ever on a well-educated workforce, too many young Americans remain poorly equipped to excel in school today and in the economy of tomorrow. Our community-business tools aim to address an urgent goal: Strengthening the most effective public-private partnerships to ensure that more young people can step confidently into the exciting jobs of the future."
For more on our suite of tools for business and community leaders, please see: http://www.cvworkingfamilies.org/our-work/workforce-readiness/ready-21/tools-resources-business-community-leaders
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Greater Louisville, Inc. Recognized for 55,000 Degrees Initiative
 Greater Louisville, Inc. (GLI), Louisville's regional chamber of commerce, was recently highlighted by the Institute for Competitive Workforce for their 55,000 Degrees initiative. Formed in 2010, 55,000 Degrees is a public-private partnership intended to support the Greater Louisville Education Commitment to vastly improve education achievement in Kentucky, and to bring about 40,000 bachelor's degrees and 15,000 associate degrees by 2020.
As a Ready by 21 City, Louisville continues lead others across the country in its ability to mobilize private and public partnerships to improve the lives of working families, such as the relationship between Metropolitan College and UPS in partnership with Jefferson Community and Technical College - one of the premier schools within the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS). Corporate Voices is a proud to support the work of GLI and their postsecondary completion initiative by lending our experience, research and national findings to support GLI's grant from the Lumina Foundation to create an educational delivery system for adult learners. In the Kentucky region, Corporate Voices continues to work with KCTCS through the support of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. |
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Corporate Voices' Partner Company IBM Sponsoring 2011 International Corporate Volunteerism Workshop
 Join major multinationals and their implementing partners at this workshop to discuss best practices and experiences from global companies that have implemented International Corporate Volunteerism (ICV) employee engagement and leadership development programs.
The workshop, sponsored by Corporate Voices' partner company IBM, will provide opportunities for learning and networking with other thought leaders and practitioners in the volunteerism and leadership development space as we share best practices in design, implementation, and measurement.
To register for the workshop, please click here.
Date: Thursday, April 14, 2011
Workshop: 9:00 AM - 5:30 PM
Networking Reception: 5:30 PM - 7:30 PM
Place: The Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center
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