Gary Box
Business Retention Coordinator
WIB of SW Missouri
Gary Box has successfully used Strategic Advantage to provide convincing data on workforce availability to businesses looking to relocate to his region. Recently, he had the opportunity to assist in a project that resulted in the acquisition of a Best Buy/Geek Squad call center. He used Strategic Advantage to show the site selectors that Southwest Missouri has the necessary number of available workers in the target occupations within a 30-mile radius. The Best Buy/Geek Squad call center has already hired 200 employees and is now open and in full operation.
Erika Volker
Partnerships for Innovation
FutureForce Nebraska
Erika Volker recently used Strategic Advantage to provide data-driven reports to a consortium of educational providers throughout Nebraska. This group, Partnerships for Innovation, aims to improve programs, increase student achievement, and meet Perkins IV requirements throughout the state. Erika created three reports for secondary schools in 20 service areas. These reports included a look at the educational attainment, economy overview (industry size and growth), and career clusters (ranked by size) of each region. These reports connect the economic demand/labor market side of program creation with student interests, which student surveys provide. Both are necessary to provide program development with a well-rounded, data-driven and student-driven environment. These reports have already begun to generate dialogue among secondary and post-secondary institutions, and Erika hopes that the education consortium will use these reports to form common goals and data-driven program offerings.