The Penn Foster Blog

When the average person thinks about manufacturing, they picture huge multinational corporations with hundreds of employees. However, most manufacturing companies are small businesses with fewer than 20 employees. If you're running one of those small manufacturing facilities, you know first-hand how difficult it can be to find qualified employees. 

Veterinary medicine is a booming industry. With an estimated 67% of US households claiming at least one pet in the American Pet Products Association (APPA) biennial survey, there's no question that veterinary practices, both private and corporate, should be booming. However, with an influx of new pet owners, it's difficult for practices, small and large, to keep up with appointments and quality patient care without credentialed veterinary technicians on board. 

The gig economy, the free market system in which temporary positions are common, has grown exponentially in the past decade, from 10.1% in 2005 to 15.8% in 2015.1 The growth of this industry falls to the development of new technologies that enable transactions directly between providers and consumers and the increasing disinterest in acquiring traditional 9-5 jobs.1 More than ever before, people are filling temporary roles including working as handymen, cultivating content as freelance writers, and performing administrative work.Despite the temporary nature of these roles, they often require new skill sets to be learned. Free educational services and skills development programs provided through libraries have become critical to job placement and advancement for many gig positions and demand continues to increase.

A well-developed job posting is the first step toward attracting the right talent to fill open positions. With a yawning skills gap, and a plummeting unemployment rate, quality job postings are more important than ever. If you're still repurposing the same job postings you used a decade ago, you're probably missing great candidates. 

The time has come to rethink hiring. If your company is using the same processes and requirements it was using 10 years ago, you're probably struggling to find qualified candidates. You're not alone. Businesses of all sizes are finding jobs hard to fill. Tech giants like Microsoft, IBM, and Amazon are no exception. 

By now most corporations recognize that the United States is facing a skills gap. Yet there are still some people who refuse to believe the skills gap exists. While it's tempting to claim that these skills gap deniers have some political agenda that can only succeed if the skills gap is proven false, the reality is that most people who don't believe in the skills gap are looking at the problem too narrowly. 

While libraries have significantly evolved over the last decade to become more technologically advanced, they have also progressed considerably when it comes to providing educational services to their patrons. This is especially important in a time when 73% of American adults consider themselves lifelong learners.1 Nick Buron, Chief Librarian at a location that serves nearly 2.3 million patrons, takes it one step further and insists that lifelong learning is "no longer a luxury " it is a necessity."

High-profile business leaders know the value of employee training. PwC Chairman Tim Ryan told the Wall Street Journal, "In the next three years, upskilling will be a required employee benefit just like a 401(k) or health care." The promise of training helps you attract great employees when included as part of your benefits package. But employees aren't the only ones to benefit. Your business can realize a positive return on investment by offering learning and development opportunities for your employees.

Alternative energy, especially solar energy, has become an increasingly in-demand resource over the last decade. There have been several reasons that have driven this demand, including environmental motivations as more and more people are looking for renewable energy resources. Additionally, the cost of installing solar panels has decreased dramatically. Since 2010, PV panel cost estimates have declined by almost 56% for residential installations, and over 70% for both non-residential/commercial and utility-scale installations.1 The falling costs have increased the accessibility and demand, ultimately making solar installation skills more valuable in today's job market.

You might already be convinced that giving your employees access to training and educational opportunities is good for them and good for your business. Now you have to decide what kind of learning opportunities to offer them. Should you hire an in-house trainer? Partner with a local community college? Provide tuition assistance for a traditional four-year institution? Online learning is becoming more and more popular. Is that an avenue worth exploring?