Northshore Workforce and Talent

St. Tammany’s talented workforce and strategic geographic location are two distinct competitive advantages for our community. Workforce is a foundational element of our economy and is consistently the primary topic of discussion in meetings with businesses of all sizes and across all industries, among business groups and in economic development professional organizations. St. Tammany Corporation leads and facilitates a workforce roundtable alongside workforce development and education partners including St. Tammany Parish Public Schools, Northshore Technical Community College, Southeastern Louisiana University and Tri-Parish Works. These organizations and their representatives are professionals in education, workforce development, customized training and employment engagement.

Our dynamic and collaborative approach to workforce development and talent retention solutions results in effective and efficient engagement for business and industry. Through consistent meetings and ongoing engagement, our workforce roundtable representatives share their insights about the current workforce landscape, innovative and collaborative educational programs, customized industry training initiatives, ongoing talent retention strategies and exploring the workforce needs on the horizon.

Our access to educational institutions in the region presents the unique and transformational opportunity to train and educate lifelong learners at all levels and in a vast array of disciplines. In addition to Northshore Technical Community College and Southeastern Louisiana University, there are 35 higher education institutions within a 70-mile radius of St. Tammany, plus an excellent public school system with career and technical training programs. Individuals are currently earning industry-based credentials through a variety of programs that meet their current learning and training needs, whether at an area high school, Northshore Technical Community College or through an initiative powered by Tri-Parish Works. In fact, Northshore Technical Community College is the top provider of dual enrollment among the state’s two-year colleges. St. Tammany businesses can recruit employees from these institutions and retain local talent in the area as those employees pursue their own educational goals.

In December 2019, St. Tammany Corporation launched the St. Tammany Partnership for Industry, Workforce, and Economic Development. The Partnership is the platform for private sector engagement and collaboration to create industry-focused talent solutions in our community. With the aim of enhancing the talent pipeline, we are addressing the short-, mid-, and long-term needs of business and industry for this generation and the next. This formalization builds upon the fruitful relationships and successful collaborations of the individual entities, to the institutionalization of the aligned workforce development and talent retention priorities as a competitive advantage for business recruitment, retention, expansion and formation in St. Tammany.

Since its launch, the programming elements of the Partnership have been facilitated through a series of sectorspecific virtual engagements. The industry focus of these virtual sessions includes manufacturing, distribution and logistics, information technology, professional services, construction, customer service and hospitality. The expertise of area business and industry leaders is used to best understand the needs, challenges and opportunities of our business community as it pertains to attracting, retaining, and training talent. The insights from business and industry help our workforce and talent partners develop relevant and timely programs to ensure our local companies have an adequate pipeline of talent to meet their current and future needs.

At these industry-specific virtual meetings, we share a brief current look at the state of each specific industry from a data perspective, engage in a dialog led by business and industry, and provide highlights of existing training and education efforts to support and scale the talent pipeline needs of this industry. These virtual meetings last no longer than an hour and a half. An organization’s senior workforce, talent, and/or training professional may be the preferred company representative to participate in these engagements. Be sure to subscribe to St. Tammany Corporation’s newsletter to get the latest information for upcoming workforce and talent programming.

If your business is interested in exploring specific talent solutions for your organization, currently hiring or looking to hire in the next six months, let St. Tammany Corporation and our workforce and education partners help maximize your opportunities to find the talent that meets your business’s needs. To get started or learn more about our workforce and talent initiatives, call St. Tammany Corporation at 985-809-7874 to speak with our team.