Evaluation of Sector Strategies: What We Know Matters to States Impact on Jobseekers and Workers Increased availability of good jobs Improved working conditions Expanded work supports Increased opportunities for education and training for high-demand occupations Increased employment and wage gains Impact on Employers and Industry Shared costs and risks Increased availability of skills training Guidance on ways to improve human resource practices Reduced turnover Effectiveness of the Partnership The right partners “at the table” Industry challenges identified Appropriate solutions designed/implemented Plan of action, road map, goals and outcomes Partners agree the Partnership is valuable New and leveraged funding Systems Change Changes in how education, workforce, economic development and employers work together New social and business supports Changes in public policy Changes in employer practices 1 Two Notes: 1) NGA White Paper and Evaluation Framework offers full detailed discussion on these categories; 2) a 5 th category of growing interest is “impact on community” (such as reduced poverty/unemployment)

Is There One Formula for Evaluation? First, can we fairly compare outcomes? Consider... Over 1,000 healthcare service workers trained every year by a metropolitan sector partnership About 130 students per year trained and placed in employment by a solar installation sector partnership 3 Journeyman apprentices supplied to Grand Coulee Dam as a result of a Power Generation partnership Second, do we assume training outcomes? Consider... A small manufacturing sector partnership that focuses on career awareness Or an energy partnership that develops skills standards (that can be used to develop training) but that primarily is valuable to align titles and HR selection criteria across employers 2 No single formula, but there are templates to capture some consistent data across partnerships.

From Washington State

PA INDUSTRY PARTNERSHIP ANNUAL REPORT * Category of ImpactDescribe ActivityImpact? Incumbent Worker Traininge.g. new/revised curriculum or new credentials based on industry needs Organizational Effectiveness (of the workplace/business) e.g. mentorships, management training, career pathways, support services, case management Building the Pipelinee.g. career awareness, job shadowing, internships, outreach to special populations Influencing Regional Institutionse.g. changes by LWIB, one-stops, post-secondary, k- 12, business associations, labor orgs, CBOs, econ. dev. Governance, Collaboration & Sustainability (of the IP) e.g. core competencies such as industry analysis, capacity building, planning, coordinating, implementing, self-evaluating their business impact Annual Report also includes requests for 1) testimonials; 2) greatest success; and 3) greatest challenge From Pennsylvania *Note: Adapted and condensed from 7-page Annual Report Template – PA Overview: Pennsylvania’s Workforce Development system is increasingly focused on promoting Industry Partnerships (IPs), a key institutional innovation for meeting the skills needs of businesses, the career goals of workers and the economic development goals of the commonwealth. To help improve the effectiveness of IPs, the Department of Labor and Industry requires each IP to complete an Annual Report, also known as the High Performance Standards for Industry Partnerships.

Annual Report August 2009* Purpose: To provide an opportunity for each project to reflect on its progress toward meeting its goals and share what is learned with Commonwealth Corporation. These reports offer a means to learn more about how projects are unfolding - both at the level of individual projects and across the WCTF initiative. From Massachusetts Category of PerformanceType of Information Requested Part I: Quarterly UpdateDescribe activities during last Qtr, successes, innovations, challenges, next steps Part II: Program Goals (of jobseeker or worker participants) # participants; # un-/underemployed; # incumbent; # completers; # new credentials; # wage increase; other On Track? Y/N Will reach goal when? Part III: Outreach, Recruitment and Selection (of participants) Describe any successes/challenges, changes you plan to make within each area. On scale of 1-5, rate your success with each. Part IV: TrainingHow are providers selected? How do they participate? Please provide your assessment of training to date. What changes will you make? Part V: Participant SupportsWhat types of supports do your participants need (paid release time, coaching, case management, tutoring, childcare, etc)? Describe challenges and changes. Part VI: PartnershipList partners, their roles and indicate in which types of activities they participate. Describe benefits for partners, challenges, future partner contributions. Part VII & VIII: Employer Engagement and Biz Impact How are employers involved? Is engagement low, medium or high? Using the “Getting Started” plan, what baseline and impact data do you have? Part IX: Products of ProjectDescribe progress on contractual deliverables. Describe other products such as new curriculum, new certificate program, new partnerships, others. * Note: Adapted and condensed from 10-page WCTF – Annual Report, Round Two, Year 1, August 2009

Employer Engagement [Source: WCTF Final Report 2009] To help us understand the nature of employer engagement in your project, please complete the following table. For each activity listed, check ( ) the share of employers (all, most, some/a few, none) who engaged in the activity. – Attend regular partnership meetings – Provide guidance on the overall direction of the project – Contribute to financial match – Participate in on-going strategic planning for sustain-ability – Recruit Participants – Screen and select participants – Participate in training provider selection – Provide input on training content/ curriculum – Participate in training provision – Interview, hire or offer internships to participants – Other (Please specify):

Systemic Change [Source: WCTF Final Report 2009] Please describe any systemic changes that have occurred as a result of your project. Focus on the three areas described here as appropriate. Your responses may include, but need not be limited to, changes such as the examples provided in each area. 1 ) Education, Training, Social and Business Supports – new, leveraged and/or redeployed resources that improve service delivery – changes in practice or policy within educational institutions – improved responsiveness to employers from public institutions 2) Employer Practices – new HR practices – new career ladders – new/leveraged private resources 3) Public Policy – new/leveraged funding from legislature – industries engage with the public sector to address workforce needs

Some Evaluation Resources* Evaluations of Sector Initiatives Targeting Industries, Training Workers, and Improving Opportunities: Final Report of the Sectoral Employment Initiative, Public-Private Ventures, 2008: BEST (Building Essential Skills through Training) Benefits: Employer Perspectives, Volume 2, Issue 4, Research and Evaluation Brief, Commonwealth Corporation, 2004: Benefits of a Sector-Based Approach, Volume 2, Issue 3, Research and Evaluation Brief, Commonwealth Corporation, 2004: Performance and Evaluation Models for Sector Initiatives An Evaluation Framework for State Sector Strategies, product of 11-state project of the National Governors Association, The Corporation for a Skilled Workforce and the National Network of Sector Partnerships, 2008: Evaluating Industry Skill Panels: A Model Framework, Commissioned by the Washington State Workforce Education and Training Coordinating Board, Corporation for a Skilled Workforce with the Paros Group, June 2008: * All available at

Field of Evaluation is Ever- Evolving Since March ‘09, six states in this project (MI, MA, PA, WA, IL, WI) convened four times via conference call to discuss key issues in sector strategy evaluation Short (but rich) summaries of each call are on the blog at (have you registered yet?) Topics for discussion have included: – “Systems Change” can be a nebulous, confusing term; there’s a need to de-mystify; concrete indicators of systems change already exist within our repertoire of sector evaluation, including career ladder development, changed HR protocols, new certificate/degree programs, others. – A “lessons learned” discussion about measuring impact on employers from MA’s experience in the healthcare/long-term care industry; Common data points: turnover, vacancy rates, reductions in agency fees – i.e. for firm to contract out for skilled work –, and overtime costs. Lesson learned: must collect qualitative testimony in addition to quantitative because latter not always available, and certainly not quickly. – Measurement Consistency across sector partnerships: WA takes the “choose 3” approach; not perfect. Also need common definitions for indicators (such as reduced cost of turnover). PA drew heavily from the NGA projects framework to develop the annual report. Two other issues: how do we get honest results? How do we account for differences across industries? – PA put a healthcare impact report together summarizing efforts and outcomes of 13 healthcare partnerships – this is potentially a powerful way to capture impact more specifically.

Any Questions?