Workforce Development Strategic Planning for the Energy Sector
City of New Martinsville
The City of New Martinsville and the surrounding region has a rich history of employment in the energy sector, and the region continues to have a high concentration of energy sector jobs. By investing in workforce development, New Martinsville seeks to maintain the region’s competitive edge in the industry, help prepare the workforce to fill these jobs, and grow the jobs in the years to come.
New Martinsville engaged Fourth Economy to identify energy job trends and workforce skill gaps to inform the creation of training curricula.
Our Approach
To inform the creation of a training curriculum, Fourth Economy started by developing an understanding of current and future workforce trends. The team analyzed employment data to identify regional energy industry trends, interviewed industry stakeholders to learn the experiences of regional energy employers. Then, the team presented initial findings during two meetings with industry employers and workforce development organizations to confirm results. Finally, Fourth Economy worked with the client team to create a strategy for addressing the identified workforce gaps.
The Results
The project had unexpected results. The client team initiated the project expecting to create a curriculum to close technical skill gaps. Instead, through this project they learned that the region has many technically skilled workers but too few workers with the needed soft skills. In response to this observation, the client team is convening industry leaders and schools to try to close this gap.
Location
New Martinsville, WV