TPM Kickoff: About ten years ago, the US Chamber of Commerce developed Talent Pipeline Management (TPM), an employer-centered process for identifying hiring and training needs, discovering common pain points and solutions, and delivering localized and verified data to workforce service providers. TPM builds “sector partnerships” where multiple employers within a particular industry work collectively to develop solutions to their common needs. Recognizing the already strong work of Greater Peoria in organizing and mobilizing the workforce development system, the Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity selected GPEDC and the Regional Workforce Alliance as a pilot region to roll out TPM in Illinois. With the help of a certified TPM consultant, we will be organizing three sector partnerships to run TPM initiatives concurrently: healthcare, manufacturing and distribution/transportation. On Tuesday we hosted a packed house for our kickoff meeting to explain the TPM process and get buy-in from employers. We had over 40 people attend the meeting from some of our largest companies, including Carle Healthcare, Komatsu, Caterpillar, Federal Companies and Morton Industries. We are excited by this opportunity to really shape the future of our workforce pipeline and improve outcomes for both employers and employees alike. Pay attention to this weekly newsletter for updates, and let me know if your company is interested in participating.
Investor Education: Distillery Labs (which also means Greater Peoria EDC!) and Central Illinois Angels co-hosted a great event Monday night. “Impact Investing Education Forum: Funding Greater Peoria Startups” provided some introductory information and hopefully a bit of inspiration to individuals interested in investing in startup businesses. For the past few years, we’ve worked really hard to improve the startup ecosystem in Greater Peoria. But much of that work has focused on entrepreneurs and innovators. This event was designed to address the other half of the startup equation: the people who might provide the financial support that fuels startup growth. Hosted at the newly relocated Creve Coeur Club, the event was centered around a panel discussion about investing that was moderated by Kip McCoy of OSF Healthcare and Central Illinois Angels and included Anna Palmer, Bruce Sommer and Ken Zika. We had really great feedback from the event and plan to host another before the end of the year.
Startup Showcase: Speaking of startups, please join Distillery Labs and its sponsors for our annual Startup Showcase. The ten startups that went through the last two gBeta cohorts will be making their debut pitches. The event will also include a keynote speech by Bobby Hambrick, the founder of AutonomouStuff and current Executive Director of the Hambrick Foundation. Join us on Wednesday, June 28 from 5 – 8:30 pm at the Peoria Riverfront Museum. Food, drinks, entertainment, networking, inspiration and it’s all free. All you need to do is register here.
IT Workforce Accelerator: As we’ve mentioned before, our region was the winner of a $14.5 million US EDA Good Jobs Challenge grant that will train 1,000 people in IT career skills over the next three years. The partnership is lead by Illinois Central College but includes Bradley University, Eureka College and a host of community partners, including Greater Peoria EDC. They just launched their new website that has all you need to know: https://icc.edu/it-workforce-accelerator/.
Have a great holiday weekend, and please remember those that gave their lives in the defense of freedom and our rights.
Chris