A 2021 survey of 207 Upstate employers revealed a near-universal observation: The demand for more education and technical credentials is going up, not down.
With the release of its Bridging the Talent Gap employer survey in December, the Greenville Chamber of Commerce will use the information to help guide an initiative to improve educational attainment among residents in the coming years.
According to Cheryl Garrison, the chamber’s director of talent and workforce solutions, the feedback offers important insights into how companies view the educational attainment of their employees.
Garrison says understanding employers’ perspectives is an important step in advancing the goal of 60% of county workers having a high-quality, post-secondary certificate, credential or degree that enhances employment opportunities and economic mobility.
“I think we have some gaps in terms of education,” Garrison says. “Education is basically set up the same as it was 150 years ago.”
She adds that while progress is being made, retooling the entire system to meet the needs of current and future job demands is a long-term process.
Other key takeaways
- Nearly all companies anticipate both growth for their companies and community growth in the coming years.
- More than 75% of companies reported challenges in hiring due to the pandemic.
- Companies reported only about a third of employees took advantage of education benefits.
- 12% of companies reported working with colleges and other learning providers to improve employee education.
- A majority of companies indicated an interest in partnering with learning institutions now or in the future to enhance employee learning.
Chamber president and CEO Carlos Phillips says the survey results will help the chamber and community partners develop solutions to a variety of workforce issues.
“The Greenville Chamber and its partners are leveraging the data and insights gathered through the survey to develop effective, targeted talent development solutions, and to work with employers to implement practices and programs to strengthen their businesses,” Phillips says.
Garrison adds that a next step in developing effective plans will be conducting an employee survey to learn the needs and challenges employees face in educational attainment.
“As great as [the employer survey] is, I’m super-excited to see what the employees say,” Garrison says. “There are lots of opportunities for engagement here.”
