The Barren River Workforce Investment Board serves the Barren River Area Development District with the mission to be a leader and catalyst in creating a comprehensive, customer-driven workforce development system for its constituents.

In order to focus the Board’s efforts on current and emerging needs, input and feedback from the employers in our district was gathered through a board designed survey instrument. Distributed in both written and electronic formats, the survey targeted existing employers in the BRADD region for input relating to workforce development. The survey addressed three major components: Applicants and Employees; Recruitment Issues; and One-Stop Career Services.

The Applicants and Employees section focused on current and expected employment levels within the region, minimum education requirements, applicant flow and perception of the quality of applicants. Additionally, basic skill needs and deficiencies were reported.

In terms of Recruitment, companies were asked to describe positions within their organizations that they found difficult to fill and retain; to highlight methods for recruitment, recruiting costs, and perceived “return on investment.” Employers were also asked to describe training methodologies most frequently used, training costs per employee and perceived “return on investment.”

The One-Stop Career Services section addressed the “branding” of the “One-Stop Career Centers” in terms of employer recognition and familiarity with available services. Respondents were asked about service utilization and impressions of the quality of services received.

Over 100 surveys were distributed to existing employers with 52 surveys returned. A comprehensive summary of the results will be presented to the Workforce Investment Board later this summer.