Business Needs Trained Workers: The Employer Workforce Training Fund

DOES WORKFORCE INVESTMENT WORK?

ASK FREELIN-WADE...

"I have to attribute the High Performance Consortium with a lot of the reasons we survived in the last few years." Sherl Hill, Vice President & General Manager, Freelin-Wade, McMinnville, OR

A number of Mid-Willamette companies attribute their ability to weather the recent economic down turn (and in some cases, even to grow) on the training, technical assistance and peer-to-peer learning offered through the Mid-Willamette High Performance Consortium. The consortium formed in 2006 to help the region's manufacturers retrain their workers and increase competitiveness. It is staffed by Job Growers Incorporated, a Local Workforce Investment Board. Much of the training provided to consortium members is supported by the Employer Workforce Training Fund.

Sherl Hill, Vice President & General Manager at Freelin-Wade in McMinnville, Oregon, helped found the consortium. Sherl continues to be a driving force behind the Consortium's success. And she has used the resources made available via the consortium to help her company.

Under Hill's leadership, Freelin-Wade has grown to become North America's largest independent manufacturer of plastic tubing. Even during the recent recession, Freelin-Wade saw its profits grow by 5%, despite slower sales. The company recently started selling its products in China. "It doesn't get much better than that," states Hill. The company is adding employees and provides training to every employee, even temporary hires.

Today, the consortium includes any business that can benefit from high performance lean enterprise training. It continues to offer a robust annual calendar of trainings, learning tours, set-up reduction exercises, lean certification workshops and forums with lean experts such as the Gary Conner, Mike Hoseus and Mike Rother. Events, classes and training are offered at no cost or low cost to consortia members.

Does Workforce Investment Work? Ask Sherl Hill and the other companies in the Mid-Willamette High Performance Consortium.

Category:

News & Politics

Tags:

• sherl Hill
• Freeling-Wade
• Job Growers
• Jody Christensen
• economic development
• skills
• jobs
• growing companies
• enhancing competitiveness
• Oregon workforce partnership