New York State Department of Labor
Profiles of Promising Practices
"IT WORKED FOR ME!" - A MARKETING SUCCESS STORY
Rochester Resource Alliance
January 2001 - May 2001

Purpose

• To market incumbent and newly employed-worker training programs to the business community in Monroe County.

How It Works

• The Rochester Resource Alliance (RRA) developed guidelines for a customized training program focusing on helping local companies train and upgrade the skills of employed workers.
• To market the business training programs to the 16,800 employers in Monroe County, the RRA utilized grant applications to the State for incumbent worker training resources.
• Rochester Resource Alliance was successfully awarded several grant proposals from the State for incumbent worker training on behalf of three consortia representing over eighty-five companies.

Results

• In April of 2001, Monroe County led 28 areas in the State that were awarded grants to train workers for high-tech careers with local businesses.
• In one award, RRA was the second largest grant recipient in the state, representing the Local Workforce Investment Board (LWIB) and 29 companies, awarded $2,251,505 to train 395 employees.
• In another award, RRA, representing eight engineering firms in the Eastern New York area and four WIB areas, received $258,457 to train 158 employees.
• In addition, two companies in Monroe County that heard about a grant opportunity through RRA’s marketing efforts filed separate applications to the State and were awarded over $1million in training funds.
• Local training providers and educators are now taking the lead role in helping employers apply for such grants, allowing RRA to focus on strategic planning and workforce development.

How They Did It

• In the Spring of 2000, a collaboration of the County of Monroe, the City of Rochester, the Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce, and the Industrial Management Council (IMC) created RRA to act as staff to the Monroe County/Rochester WIB and act as the fiscal manager for the local workforce development system known as Rochester Works!

Start-Up Costs

• Writing the applications required an extensive amount of time on the part of RRA’s staff and partner organizations. A specific amount is not available.

Operating Costs

• RRA committed six weeks of two staff members to the grant coordination and application process. For each staff person, approximately four weeks was spent part-time and two weeks full-time on these activities.
• Grant management takes 50% of one staff person’s time. This task is ongoing.

Funding

• WIA Title 1.
• All partners and most consortium companies have seen a benefit from the grant process and therefore have expressed a willingness to make an even greater commitment of time and resources in pursuit of competitive State and Federal grant initiatives in the future.

Lessons Learned

• RRA’s role has changed over time. It no longer assists companies in applying for grants, but instead focuses on strategic workforce development planning for Monroe County and the City of Rochester.
• There is a tremendous cost associated with incumbent and employed-worker training. Companies are putting a lot of money into training just to keep their heads above water. This process helped to make companies aware of the cost of training, and how it can be most efficiently implemented.