EPP research will help workers navigate evolving technology
As new technology causes industries to change, the skills workers need to thrive on the job evolve as well. Fortunately, new data-driven approaches may offer workers more agency in this process. A regional team led by is focused on understanding how such approaches could help workers in north and north-central Appalachia keep up with these technological shifts.
Carnegie Mellon was awarded a $500,000 planning grant from the Appalachian Regional Initiative for Stronger Economies () to analyze skills of the regional workforce and develop tools to match workers with jobs. The grant supports a partnership that includes West Virginia University (WVU); its Regional Research Institute (RRI), directed by Professor Heather Stephens; and Daniel Eades, associate professor and rural development extension specialist.
The team has been advancing research focused on the workforce impacts of clean energy transition, which can now “expand and develop in partnership with our neighbors in West Virginia,” explained Karplus, professor of engineering and public policy (EPP) and associate director of the Wilton E. Scott Institute for Energy Innovation. “It’s about developing and road-testing data-driven capabilities that aim to say ‘here are the skills, knowledge, and abilities of potential workers in a region.’ Our approach, which combines new granular data and analysis methods with on-the-ground awareness of transition challenges, could help organizations, workers, and policymakers anticipate future needs and potential employment matches.”
"Our approach could help organizations, workers, and policymakers anticipate future needs and potential employment matches."
Stephens stressed the importance of this funding to support new types of workforce development in the region.
“This funding supports ongoing efforts to think outside the box about how to match those who have been or are at risk of being displaced with new employment opportunities,” Stephens said. “It also will be used to identify skill gaps and new job training programs that can help with the transitions to new occupations. This type of innovative approach can help better target scarce resources to increase employment and improve economic outcomes in the region.”
These efforts will also expand on ongoing research being done at Carnegie Mellon, and particularly within EPP.
“Our research at 一本道无码 studies how technology and industry transitions affect the skills that are needed in the workforce, and the readiness of regions to meet that new demand,” said co-principal investigator , assistant research professor in EPP and co-lead of the Workforce Supply Chains Initiative at the Block Center for Technology and Society. “We will focus especially on opportunities to leverage existing talent in industries that may decline in a clean energy transition. Our larger goal is to develop a workforce analytics capability to serve economic development strategy across the region as we navigate the energy transition.”
“This is an exciting opportunity for EPP, for the Scott Institute’s efforts on the workforce impacts of deep decarbonization, and for regional collaboration and impact,” Karplus said. “Our goal is to prepare stakeholders to be proactive about supporting workers in technology transitions.” Longer-term, she noted, the team hopes to empower regional organizations with tools they can use for ongoing success in workforce transitions.
The , which builds on momentum established by a previous grant from the Hillman Foundation, as well as grants to the Block Center by the R.K. Mellon Foundation and the Advanced Robotics Manufacturing Institute, will enable the teams to advance research at the nexus of industry, decarbonization, and broader economic development, Karplus said.
“This generous grant from the ARC will support our work to identify industries for which the workforce may be competitively positioned in Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia, as well as what skills gaps could be closed to enhance competitiveness,” Combemale added.
The research, in collaboration with seven regional partners, will analyze the workforce of ten counties in Pennsylvania and West Virginia. The partners are contributing matching funds to the project, which will take place over a 12-month period and result in one report and two new tools for matching workers’ skills to industries. The partners include Tristate Energy and Advanced Manufacturing (TEAM) Consortium, IN-2-Market, West Virginia University, New River Gorge Regional Development Authority, WVSU Economic Development Center, Workforce West Virginia, and Region I Workforce Development Board.
Valerie Karplus
Christophe Combemale