The GuilfordWorks Business Engagement team assists employers through various services, including labor market info, training grants and learning opportunities, including apprenticeships and other support services.

A Lot on Our Plate

During the first six months of Performance Year 21-22 (July 1 – December 31, 2021), the GuilfordWorks Business Engagement team was busy on a variety of levels. We worked hard to offer job seekers in our community equitable opportunities for meaningful employment. Our driving resolve is to support anyone willing and able to work in their pursuit of a sustainable career.

We held hiring, resource, and rapid-response events, empowering job seekers to pursue new careers and employers with the tools to find qualified employees. We hosted virtual and in-person workshops, focusing on career readiness and opportunities within various industries. And, informed our audiences through a variety of mediums and channels.

Hiring Events

This program year began with a huge push to assist local employers with their staffing shortages. We hosted several large hiring events to enable job seekers to pursue new career opportunities and employers to fill their open positions. The chart below highlights these hiring events and exposes some continuing issues in the labor market.

*City of Greensboro, City of High Point, Guilford County Gov. represents over 30 departments.

Major League Hiring Event

View images from this event below.

Colossal Career Fair

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And now, for something completely different!

Admittedly, some of our in-person events have produced less than stellar results. That doesn’t mean we’ll stop trying. On the contrary, we put on our thinking caps and tried something different.

Employer Info Sessions

Purpose: Our Info Sessions are a networking opportunity for job seekers to learn and engage with employers recruiting for employment opportunities. Typically, the employer will prepare a presentation where they can provide company background, mission and values, open positions, benefits and next steps. Additionally, job seekers can speak directly to company reps and ask any pertinent questions. Employers can use this time to receive and review resumes and interviews on the spot.  Employers use these sessions as a part of their overall recruitment plan with some companies even hosting sessions monthly and alternating between the Greensboro and High Point locations.

Employers that have utilized these Info Sessions:

• General Dynamics Missions Systems
• Noregon Systems
• HAECO
• Essentra

Recruitment: Once employers have created their NCWorks.gov account with job orders listed, our consultants are able to create the Info Session and post it on the NCWork’s events calendar. From there, the event is visible to the public and potential candidates can register to attend the sessions. Additionally, our consultants can send direct messages to candidates that have viewed the job order, met the required skillsets, and then invite them to the sessions. This enables our team to select an interested and qualified pool of candidates for this exclusive session.

Estimated participation per session: Adhering to safety guidelines due to COVID, we host these in-person sessions in our Greensboro and High Point Center locations. We typically have between 5-15 jobseekers present.

Many employers have provided positive feedback regarding these sessions. Read what they have to say:

The info session provides a more relaxed atmosphere.

Candidates asked more questions during the info session as opposed to hiring events.

I was able to offer more insight about the company, more so, than I would during a hiring event.

The candidates responded well to my questions and were more engaging during the info session.

The allotted time went over (a good thing) because myself and the candidates felt more connected than if we would have met during a hiring event.

Dislocation and Transition Services (Rapid Response)

For businesses facing closures and employee layoffs, we work closely with the NC Division of Workforce Solutions to deploy what is referred to as Rapid Response at the state level. Rapid Response is an early intervention program that helps the employer and the workers face layoffs, closures, or other sensitive business actions.

We facilitate meetings between management and appropriate workforce agencies and participate in employee information sessions to help educate employees about their eligibility for Dislocated Worker programs. We continue working with management and employees during the transition period, using job fairs and financial planning workshops to assist during this time.

Conduit Global Hiring Event

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Commscope Hiring Event

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