To our employers out there, you know better than us that a lot of employee learning takes place on the job, getting their hands dirty and seeing how things are done. As a business owner, you might want to fast forward an employee right to the…
The demand for trained workers in industries like healthcare and IT continues to skyrocket. According to CNN, the U.S. will need to hire 2.3 million new health care workers by 2025. With the help of FastForward, Virginia’s Community Colleges are preparing students for local, in-demand jobs for healthcare…
FastForward programs at each of Virginia’s 23 community colleges work hand-in-hand with local businesses to ensure training programs are designed to meet regional hiring needs. In turn, local Virginians have affordable, flexible opportunities to train for in-demand jobs. While our career coaches and faculty work hard…
Like the falling leaves or the bursting forth of springtime blooms, the coming and going of seasonal workers is inevitable. That’s why workforce training programs, like FastForward, are designed to help employers stay ahead of the curve on hiring during busy and slow seasons. Between an…
FastForward is a unique program that exists across all 23 of Virginia’s Community Colleges. In different geographical areas, different industries are more prominent. For example, the shipbuilding industry is big in the Hampton Roads area, but without a coastline, it is not as relevant of an…
“Everybody’s got the same equipment and machinery. What differentiates us from anyone else out there in the marketplace is our people.” – Jeff Stapel Shickel Corporation H.R. Manager Jeff Stapel knows that skilled, industry-credentialed workers give his Shenandoah Valley firm its edge in a very competitive…
Look, we know this is going to sound of preachy, but we need to have a serious chat for a moment about why you should take job interviews VERY seriously. According to a study conducted by the Society of Human Resources Management the average cost to…
Chuck Rodgers means it when he says that he’d hire someone with an industry recognized credential over someone without a credential. Rodgers is operational superintendent at S.W. Rodgers, a site development contractor in Northern Virginia. Rodgers needs a workforce that’s serious, focused, and safety-conscious because operating…
There’s a lot at stake when it comes to hiring a new employee. Will they have the skills required to do the job? What’s their workplace attitude like? Will they reliably show up to work? These are the realities businesses across the country are facing when…