In Oregon’s Mid-Willamette Valley, the partnership of Chemeketa Community College, the Small Business Development Center, the Willamette Workforce Partnership, the Strategic Economic Development Corporation, and the Oregon Manufacturing Extension Partnership form a coalition of organizations with resources designed to strengthen the region’s manufacturers and workforce.
The organizations have announced a formal partnership and will kick off with an online event for businesses on February 2nd at noon.
“The colocation of these partners in the Chemeketa Center for Business and Industry building has allowed for the opportunity for coordination of effort and resources,” says Celia Nunez, CCBI Interim Executive Director.
“The strides made for greater delivery of resources during the COVID-19 crisis has not only strengthened the relationship of our organizations but also our collective resolve to develop a more permanent structure to provide demand-driven programming, training, consulting and other resources aimed at the region’s manufacturers,” Says Mike Vanier, VP of Client Engagement at OMEP.
Through this collaboration, the Chemeketa Business & Industry Resource Alliance provides employers in Marion, Polk and Yamhill Counties with a variety of workforce and business support services.
“While we have always worked well together on various economic development and workforce projects, we’ve collaborated together this year in many new and creative ways. We’re looking forward to continuing to bring that creativity to best serve businesses in the area.” Says Erik Anderson, President of SEDCOR.
The organizations will focus on service such as
- Customized Training for Employers that create high-performing employees, managers, and organizations.
- Identifying local labor market needs and trends and delivering collaborative services to meet the current and future needs of the region’s industries.
- Workshops and events to keep the Mid-Valley business community up to date on issues and opportunities important to their bottom line. Industry-specific networking events to strengthen business relationships and group the region’s supply chains.
- One-on-one training in lean manufacturing to increase production efficiency. Providing tailored solutions in operations, finance, strategy and organizational development to help the region’s manufacturers grow and prosper.
- Resources for businesses of all sizes in every industry and at every stage of growth, from startups to well-established companies.
- Helping region’s industries solve production and workflow issues through developing and applying advanced technology solutions.
Kim Parker-Llerenas, Executive Director of Willamette Workforce Partnership stated, “We are excited to launch this unique, collaborative endeavor in partnership with the fantastic organizations in the alliance. This will strengthen Oregon businesses, and as we all know, small businesses are the backbone of Oregon’s economy, so this work is more important than ever.”
