Oakland County employers seeking financial assistance to hire and train new talent as well as enhance the skills of existing employees are encouraged to apply for funding and resources through the Going PRO Talent Fund.
Since the program was launched five years ago by the state of Michigan, 216 Going PRO Talent Fund grants were given to Oakland County businesses, totaling $6.43 million. More than 7,000 people have benefitted from the training funds. The funds targeted training programs in Michigan's high-growth industries such as advanced manufacturing, software programming, construction and information technology.
"These grants can provide path to increased productivity and sustainability for many of our companies," Oakland County Executive L. Brooks Patterson said. "They are used for classroom instruction, reimbursement for on-site training and registered apprenticeships. I encourage any company interested in applying for these funds to meet with Oakland County Michigan Works! as soon as possible."
Oakland County Michigan Works! representatives have scheduled seven sessions to show private and non-profit businesses how to apply for the funds. The sessions will be held at the county's L. Brooks Patterson Building Conference Center, 2100 Pontiac Lake Road, Building 41W, in Waterford. There is no cost to attend but employers are required to register in advance at AdvantageOakland.EVENTBRITE.com.
Session dates and times are:
August 13, 1 to 3:30 p.m.
August 15, 1 to 3:30 p.m.
August 27, 9 to 11:30 a.m.
August 29, 9 to 11:30 a.m.
September 4, 9 to 11:30 a.m.
September 5, 1 to 3:30 p.m.
September 11, 1 to 3:30 p.m.
As part of the application process, Michigan Works! staff help companies develop training models that adapt to their changing needs. Short-term training leads to credentialed, industry-recognized skills and the employers commit to retaining the trainees.
Last year, 68 Oakland County employers received a total of $1.8 million in grants, allowing them to train 324 new employees, expand the skills of 1,100 existing workers and create 45 new registered apprenticeships.
Decypher Corporation, in Berkley, was awarded more than $23,000 in training funds to enhance the skills of 13 employees in information technology functions and hire and train a new web applications developer.
"This program allowed our company to utilize training courses that we would not have financially been able to provide otherwise," said Decypher owner Andrew Agbay. "All of our employees participated in at least one course, providing relevant training to each person's expertise and enhancing the offerings our company can provide."
In addition to the meetings at the county campus, Oakland County is hosting a Going PRO Talent Fund information session at Oakland Community College on Aug. 27 at 1 p.m. Interested companies should register at www.eventbrite.com (Event: Going PRO 2019).
Additional information is available at www.michigan.gov/sttf.
Published: Fri, Aug 09, 2019
