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Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study

Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study. Business and Economic Research Center Jennings A. Jones College of Business Middle Tennessee State University. Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study. Business and Economic Research Center David Penn, Director Murat Arik, Associate Director

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Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study

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  1. Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study Business and Economic Research Center Jennings A. Jones College of Business Middle Tennessee State University

  2. Northwest Tennessee Workforce Study Business and Economic Research Center David Penn, Director Murat Arik, Associate Director Susan Harmon, Associate Professor, Marketing

  3. Overview of Study • Current economic structure • Strengths and weaknesses • Preparedness to grow

  4. Research Methods • Analysis of population, employment, income, and wage trends • Survey of local employers • Survey of workforce professionals • Focus group interviews

  5. Research Method Surveys Published Data Focus Groups

  6. Study Area Seven counties stretching from the Memphis suburbs north to Kentucky. Represent between 3% and 4% of Tennessee employment, labor force, and population.

  7. Context • Important trends – • Increasing importance of trade. • Foreign-made goods more in demand. • Exports also growing quickly. • International trade share of GDP on the rise.

  8. Context • Important trends – • Information technology revolution. • IT sector responsible for large share of recent growth. • Widespread usage of IT has reduced production costs, increased productivity.

  9. Context • Consequences • Competition much more intense than ten or twenty years ago. • Companies have little pricing power.

  10. Context • Implications • Pressure to increase productivity will continue. • Pressure to reduce production costs will continue.

  11. Context • Results • More consolidations, downsizing, outsourcing. • Productivity will be a critical factor; can be enhanced with continuing education, training. • Reducing turnover, cutting fixed costs also helpful in increasing productivity.

  12. Current Structure Population, income, employment Among other Tennessee workforce areas, per capita income is one of lowest and unemployment rate one of the highest. Growth of population and labor force flat, lag state growth rate. Personal income growth also lags state growth rate.

  13. Current Structure Industrial Distribution Much more dependent on manufacturing as a source of employment and payroll than the rest of the state, about twice as important as for Tennessee.

  14. Current Structure Educational Attainment Bachelor’s degree or higher – Tennessee: 19.6% NW Tennessee: 7.6% - 12.0% Less than high school – Tennessee: 24.1% NW Tennessee: 25.4% - 36.1%

  15. Current Employment Status

  16. Current Employment Trends

  17. Current Employment Trends • Impacts on payroll employment vary by region of state. • Tennessee down 2.5% from peak in Jan 2000 to June 2003. • Northwest counties down 8.2% from Jan 2000 peak.

  18. Strengths and Weaknesses Weaknesses • Lack of industrial diversity • Low educational attainment • Weak regional cooperation • Not enough resources for post-secondary education

  19. Strengths and Weaknesses Workforce Professionals • Weak regional cooperation

  20. Strengths and Weaknesses Strengths • Location • Strong work ethic There are a lot of people here who do care about other people. It is a strong community in that respect. I think we have some positives; we just need to sell those positives to other people.

  21. Preparedness to GrowEmployers’ Viewpoint Skills in new hires Reading – Not a problem: 34% Moderate problem: 18% High to critical problem: 6% Math – Not a problem: 26% Moderate problem: 28% High to critical problem: 10%

  22. Preparedness to GrowEmployers’ Viewpoint Skills in new hires Writing – Not a problem: 18% Moderate problem: 33% High to critical problem: 9% Soft Skills – Not a problem: 10% Moderate problem: 31% High to critical problem: 24%

  23. Preparedness to GrowEmployers’ Viewpoint Soft Skills Right now, in banking, a high school degree is not enough for the technical skills they need, communication skills, people skills, soft skills are not there...just things that a lot of us who are older learned at home, such as people skills, communication skills, how to dress.

  24. Employers’ View

  25. Employers’ View Occupations in shortest supply: Receptionist/Clerk Machinist Tool and Die Maker Computer Operator Laborer Welder/Fabricator Registered Nurse Licensed Practical Nurse Truck Driver Maintenance Worker Sales Representative Teller Customer Service Representative

  26. Employers’ Viewpoint

  27. Employers’ Viewpoint

  28. Employers’ Viewpoint For occupations in shortest supply: Just 13.4% of jobs could be filled by workers with less than high school diploma. These workers comprise 31.1% of the Northwest Tennessee workforce.

  29. Employers’ Viewpoint For occupations in shortest supply: 17.6% of jobs will be filled by workers with at least a Bachelor’s degree (23.2% for large employers). These workers comprise 10.1% of the Northwest Tennessee workforce.

  30. Employers’ View - Growth

  31. Employers’ View – Hiring Needs Demand for workers with less than high school education will drop sharply during the next ten years. Demand for workers with a high school degree will not grow as quickly as for those with more education and training.

  32. Employers’ View - Constraints

  33. Employers’ View - Constraints

  34. Employers’ Concerns Generally optimistic about long-run future. Concerned about costs of health care. Concerned about workers’ compensation costs. Want to find a way to keep more young people in the area.

  35. Preparedness to Grow Uncontrollable factors Markets trends Competition Growth Controllable factors Quality of human resources Cultural and recreational amenities Infrastructure

  36. Are We Prepared?Context for Northwest Tennessee • Future jobs will require broader skills • Mathematics • Communication • Computer skills • Analytical reasoning • Creativity

  37. Are We Prepared?Context for Northwest Tennessee • A broadly skilled workforce is more able to adapt to changing economic conditions. • Very difficult to identify winners with any degree of certainty. • Workers with broad skills have better chance of success. • Workforce better prepared to take advantage of opportunities that arise.

  38. Final Thoughts Growth is what happens to us. Economic development is nurtured from within.

  39. Business and Economic Research Center www.mtsu.edu/~berc Midstate Indicators Tennessee’s Business Global Commerce Special studies and impact analyses

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