Workforce collaboration leads to new opportunities for NPCA members
When NPCA President and CEO Nick Rhoad was interviewing in 2023, members of the board and the search committee all told him the same thing: Workforce was the single biggest challenge they faced.
What started as a discussion about how to address the workforce challenges within the precast industry has become a new focus for NPCA and resulted in new programs and tools for members to use.
Christina Trexler, NPCA’s vice president of Workforce Innovation, has been hard at work over the past year tackling the workforce challenges. Trexler has focused on evaluating the precast industry and determining how to improve workforce education, training and programming.
In Trexler’s ongoing efforts to improve workforce training, the NPCA Workforce Initiative (NPCA WFI) has partnered with three companies that all focus on developing and delivering content to provide solutions and growth for the workforce culture. Along with Trexler, Work Institute, The Kevin Eikenberry Group and Fire Starters Inc. will provide educational content and webinars to members, as well as offer opportunities to tailor content for members’ specific needs.
“The great part about this quasi-affinity program is if a member has a targeted need or problem at their plant that they want assistance with, they can contact NPCA WFI to discuss their needs — a promise that I made to the NPCA Board of Directors,” Trexler said.
In addition to traditional webinars, this content will include topic specific articles, resources, templates, tools, research and data accessible to members at any time. The content will cover a variety of topics such as organizational or strategic alignment, competitive strategies and trends to leadership development, team development, retention strategies, evaluation of incentives or perks, and recruitment strategies.
Each topic presented also will have actionable tools or templates that can be utilized in implementing that specific topic. If a tool or resources doesn’t fully align with a member’s operations, the member can contact NPCA WFI to discuss how the tool or resource can be customized to fit their operation.
“Work Institute is excited to partner with NPCA’s Workforce Innovation group to provide its members with the workforce intelligence needed to retain and engage employees and build a stronger future,” said Danny Nelms, CEO of Work Institute.
Aside from the workforce training provided to NPCA members, members also will receive a discounted price from each partner company should they want to explore additional training or programs. To access this benefit, contact Trexler directly.
MEET THE PARTNERS
All three partners share the same objective: workforce education.
The goal with this partnership between NPCA WFI and these companies is to continue the workforce initiative discussion but with new benefits for members. Each company has its own unique qualities and approaches to workforce education, giving members access to a multitude of resources for their own workforce initiative discussions.
The first partner, The Kevin Eikenberry Group, is a leadership and learning company aimed at helping leaders, teams and their organizations reach their goals and potential. The company’s practical approaches and global perspective help its clients develop new mindsets and different skillsets and assist them in utilizing those skills.
The group focuses on delivering learning for everyone in an organization in a wide range of approaches and mediums, with topics about cultural development, team development and organizational change.
“We at The Kevin Eikenberry Group are excited to partner with NPCA WFI to assist their members in creating cultures and organizations that have strong leadership and pipelines of future leaders, become great places to work and are industry leaders through the strength of their leaders, teams and cultures,” Chief Potential Officer Kevin Eikenberry said.
The second partner, Work Institute, specializes in evidence-based intelligence that empowers organizations to retain talent and enhance employee engagement. Their approach identifies actionable insights, helping employers proactively address turnover risks, disengagement and workforce challenges before they become costly.
“We bring customized solutions that will enable members to build stronger, more sustainable workforces in the precast concrete industry,” Nelms said.
Aside from analytics, Work Institute also provides human resources counseling and strategic guidance to help organizations implement effective solutions for retention and engagement challenges. Through all these different strategies and workforce intelligence, Work Institute will equip NPCA members with the right tools to foster a high-performing engaged workforce.
“By leveraging our research-backed insights, we can help NPCA members turn workforce challenges into opportunities for long-term success,” Nelms said.
The third partner, Fire Starters Inc. (FSI), focuses on sustainable growth and change through unique and customized training and coaching solutions. These solutions are practical and applicable in real-time to have an immediate impact.
“We start with the core of the person or group and build the training from the ground up in partnership with the client — no out of the box programs here,” Chief Fire Starter Jason Barnaby said.
What makes FSI’s approach stand out is the belief that real growth and change happen outside of the comfort zone status quo. Clients are challenged to think and do differently ensuring they stay relevant and competitive.
“Fire Starters Inc. is fired up to partner with NPCA WFI to spark and ignite lasting change and development in a fast-paced, quick-change business landscape,” Barnaby said.
SO, WHAT’S NEXT?
While this partnership is still in its development stage, Trexler says the contracts have been signed and it is officially go-time to start thinking of next steps to get the ball rolling.
“I’m focused on bringing the resources that members have asked for and that is exactly what this is,” Trexler said. “I am looking forward to launching this new benefit for our members and I am excited to see how they utilize this tool to continue the workforce education discussion.”
For more information about this initiative, you can reach out to ctrexler@precast.org.