Montana’s 2-year colleges want to hear from employers about their short-term employee training needs. 12/2 in Billings and 12/3 in Bozeman

MMEC will be hosting two lunch sessions: Lunch is included and free.

* Billings, December 2nd, 11:00 am-1:30 pm, Big Sky Economic Development, 222 N 32nd St.

PLEASE RSVP http://www.bigskyeconomicdevelopment.org/calendar/focus-group-for-manufacturers/

* Bozeman, December 3rd, 11:00 am-1:30 pm. MMEC, 2310 University Way, Building 2,

PLEASE RSVP [email protected]

Thomas P. Miller & Associates (TPMA) has been engaged by the Montana college and university system to reach out to Montana employers in order to determine the potential demand for short-term (less than 4 week) post-employment training for the current and future Montana workforce. TPMA would like to engage representatives from Montana-based manufacturers in an upcoming focus group to better understand current and anticipated training needs, workforce challenges, and potential solutions that could be offered. TPMA asks for your participation in a 90 minute session for interactive discussion. Potential questions include, but are not limited to, the following:

What are your company’s greatest needs related to skills?

* Employability/soft skills?

* Academic skills?

* Technical/Occupational skills?

How do you currently address short-term (less than four-week) training needs related to the following occupations?

Welding Technician

Industrial Maintenance Technician

Welding Fabricator

Energy Technician

Machinist

Commercial Vehicle Driver

Industrial Electronics Technician

Diesel Technician/Mechanic

* If you engage a short-term (less than four-week) provider, what provider? Why?

* If you provide training in-house, what are the benefits? What are the challenges?

* What is the ideal blend of hands-on instruction and classroom learning?

* Which method do you prefer for your employees?

* Is there any training that your employees need, but you are not able to access or provide?

What is the ideal scenario for accessing training support?

The data collected from these sessions will be used to determine overall demand for future post-employment training programs. While the data collected will be aggregated into a final report, all individual responses will remain confidential outside of the focus group discussion.