A new coalition is working to bring and retain talent in metro Detroit and all of Southeast Michigan.
Announced on Thursday, the Detroit Regional Workforce Partnership includes leaders across business, government and philanthropy in Wayne, Oakland and Macomb counties.
The new initiative will be managed by the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan, and the Ralph C. Wilson, Jr. Foundation has provided the initial funding, with a total commitment of $3 million over the next three years.
According to the group, it will build on the success of the City of Detroit's Workforce Development system and hopes to establish a regional, employer-led collaborative and sustained engagement of industries to close the gap in workforce development.
Input was gathered from businesses in automotive, health, energy and real estate, as well as government representatives from across the tri-county area.
It will be led by Jayme Powell, who was previously the senior director of education and employment at the Rocket Community Fund. During her time there, she co-designed and championed Connect313 which aimed to bridge the digital divide in Detroit, and launched several other programs.
According to the group, healthcare will be the first sector to work with the partnership. According to the initiative, there are more than 4,000 job openings in health care throughout the region.
“We are enthusiastically harnessing the power and proven success of the Detroit Regional CEO Group and this new initiative to help address the sector’s talent needs,” said Henry Ford Health President & CEO Bob Riney said in a statement. “The opportunity to break down systemic barriers to employment, as well as work collaboratively regionwide to provide people with great-paying jobs, lifts everyone.”
