Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

1. Finger Lakes Hired addresses the needs of  businesses and job seekers in the nine-county Finger Lakes region by bringing together workforce partners and community colleges to help prepare and place the long-term unemployed into local, in-demand jobs in the Advanced Manufacturing, Information Technology, and Health Care sectors. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

2. Performance Highlight Performance Measure 281 individuals participated in classroom training at an average cost of $4,616. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

3. Staff Spotlight Karen Hobson One-fourth of grant funds, nearly $1.3 million, were spent on classroom training for participants. We could not have done it without all the hard work that Karen put in behind the scenes. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

4. Partner Appreciation Finger Lakes Community College Jovonna went above and beyond in her communication with students during and after training to obtain credential and employment information. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

5. Staff Spotlight Annette DiPalma “Annette’s blend of energy, enthusiasm, and persistence has been tremendous for the Finger Lakes Hired initiative. I am so appreciative of her willingness to step right in to lead and mentor her team—staff and partners alike.” Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

6. Participant Success Story K.I., a single parent, had been unemployed for nearly 8 years. With the help of a Finger Lakes Hired OJT, she was able to secure a position as an office manager with a small manufacturing company. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

7. Partner Appreciation Genesee Community College Andrew worked very closely with our education and employment specialists. He developed a rapport with participants, helping them to overcome any barriers to graduation. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

8. Thanks to Jennifer Geiger and ACCES-VR for partnering with us on these events! Innovative Practice Reverse Career Fairs Initial results of our first 3 Recruiting for Careers fairs include 51% of job seekers securing follow-up interviews and 27% getting hired. Excellent strategy for a tight labor market! Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

9. Performance Highlight Performance Measure 115 individuals participated in OJTs at an average cost of $11,680. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

10. Staff Spotlight Mary McKeown Mary provided the Finger Lakes Hired team with much-needed administrative support. We especially appreciated her assistance with the confidential baseline information forms for the random assignment evaluation study. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

11. Partner Appreciation Monroe Community College “I just want to say a big thanks to you for helping me get a computer for my studies.” –R.B., a student who would have struggled without help and support from Christina and the MCC team. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

12. Lesson Learned Customized Training We approved customized training grants for only 32 of a projected 75 incumbent workers. We found that businesses were reluctant to commit to advancing their workers. We need a better strategy to couple incumbent worker training with worker advancement. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

13. Staff Spotlight Katie Behan As the veteran staff member on the Finger Lakes Hired team, Katie was the “go-to” for any kind of guidance. She assisted in training new staff and continues to do an excellent job coaching and case managing her participants. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

14. Partner Appreciation New York State Department of Labor We could not have reached the number of job seeker participants that we served without all the excellent referrals from Waring Rd. and Goodman St. DOL staff. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

15. Innovative Practice Use of Technology for Outreach Job seekers and businesses were able to engage with program staff using a contact form on Fingerlakeshired.com. Our Facebook page achieved a 92% view rate from members, and in one 30-day period our LinkedIn page saw a 100% increase in followers and a 164% increase in audience impressions. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

16. Performance Highlight • Where Finger Lakes Hired Shines • Top 5 grantees for total number served • Top 3 grantees for training start target • Top 4 grantees for training completion target • Top 4 grantees for credential target • Data for years 1–3 of the grant Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

17. Staff Spotlight Alexandria Vattimo Alex did a great job coaching and case managing participants, assisting them with their training and job search needs. She stepped up to provide help in the GLOW and Finger Lakes counties on several occasions. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

18. Participant Success Story “I found myself in need of a job with little idea about how to go about getting it. I was 58 years old and had spent most of my adult life caring for and being supported by my family.” –C.G., a participant who was helped to complete a BS degree in computer science. She is now earning $55,000 per year as a software development engineer. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

19. Partner Appreciation Goodman Street Career Center The professional staff at the Goodman St. Career Center welcomed more than 900 Finger Lakes Hired participants in both the treatment and control groups, making for a rich and seamless customer experience. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

20. Staff Spotlight Jeffrey Weise “Jeffrey was always so creative and fun to work with for brainstorming different strategies. He has great interpersonal skills.” Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

21. Partner Appreciation RochesterWorks! Business Services Team The Business Services Team supported this grant effort in so many ways. Creating contract templates, accompanying us on visits to businesses, and assisting with the development and maintenance of the web site are just a few of the things that they did for us. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

22. Innovative Practice Work Experience Tryouts Finger Lakes Hired pioneered the use of the work experience tryout, also known as transitional jobs. 1) Contracting out the payrolling to a staffing agency is very efficient and minimizes risk. 2) The expectation that the tryout leads to an OJT or direct hire yields solid employment outcomes. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

23. Lesson Learned Additional Industry Sectors Our sector-based approach worked. However, we received multiple requests to include additional sectors. What new industries should be added? Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

24. Performance Highlight Be on the Lookout for Detailed Study Results We were one of four grantees across the country selected to participate in a random assignment evaluation study conducted by Abt Associates. We had 617 Monroe County participants in the study. The final report will be released in 2022. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

25. Staff Spotlight Scott Lee “We were proud to have Scott on our team. Being a veteran, he helped us communicate with fellow veterans and introduced them to businesses.” Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

26. Partner Appreciation Monroe County Workforce Development Thanks to Rich and Hanif for their support of these programs that connect businesses with workers in need of a job! Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

27. Staff Spotlight John Beiter John has made connections for Finger Lakes Hired that would never have been possible without him. He has also been instrumental to the success of our reverse career fairs. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

28. Participant Success Story “I’m loving it at St. John’s! I continue to learn and enjoy the new challenges.” –W.S., a participant who with the help of a Finger Lakes Hired OJT was hired as a unit manager in a long-term care facility. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

29. Partner Appreciation GLOW Workforce Development Board Through all our staff changes, Jay Lazarony provided us with a consistent home in the Batavia office. We appreciated being included in key meetings that were held in the GLOW counties. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

30. Innovative Practice On-the-Job Training Grants A total of 115 OJT grants were awarded for Finger Lakes Hired participants. Most resulted in job retention. What made this grant feature so successful? Each education and employment specialist became an expert in engaging with businesses to promote the OJT. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

31. Performance Highlight Cost per… …recruit = $3,816 …participant = $5,007 …placement = $9,523 Through 3/31/2019. These numbers will decrease as placement numbers increase. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

32. Staff Spotlight Nancy Abarca Hernandez Nancy has made some special connections with high-need job seekers. Her “outside-the-box” thinking really benefitted our recruitment efforts. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

33. Partner Appreciation Finger Lakes Workforce Investment Board The support that Jeffrey and John B. received from Karen Springmeier, along with Mike Woloson’s engagement of Finger Lakes business partners, were a key to the success of this grant in Ontario, Seneca, Wayne, and Yates counties. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

34. Lesson Learned Administrative Support In a program of this scale, some of the administrative tasks, particularly those associated with OJTs, could be handled more efficiently by an administrative support worker, freeing up education and employment specialists to do more outreach and case management. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

35. Staff Spotlight Vanessa Tassone “Vanessa’s even-keeled manner and strong research background bring support to all those who deal with her.” Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

36. Innovative Practice Case Management of Special Populations In a workforce system that serves tens of thousands of job seekers from the universal population each year, it is impossible to provide case management for all participants. We have learned that assigning a case manager for small numbers of the most vulnerable populations can be very effective. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary

37. Partner Appreciation RochesterWorks! Finance Department Without our finance department, no one gets paid. We appreciate all the hard work that Mike, Behiye, Nathan, and Rachel put in to this grant. Finger Lakes Hired Initiative Summary