There’s no time like the present to promote economic development opportunities that have a vested interest in the city, ensure a bolstering economy and bring more jobs online for the people of Detroit — even one year after the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Those massive responsibilities are being shouldered by Detroit At Work, and as the City of Detroit’s staffing agency, the entity keeps the wheels turning as it continues to find engaging ways to connect people with jobs, provide opportunities and training to Detroiters and so much more.
The Michigan Chronicle’s Digital Anchor Andre Ash recently sat down with Nicole Sherard-Freeman, the woman leading it all as the group executive of Jobs, Economy and Detroit At Work as they talked at length about the important work being accomplished.
“I am most looking forward to working with employers who want to locate in Detroit, developers who want to build in Detroit and civic and business leaders who want to step forward and have a greater impact in Detroit,” Sherard-Freeman told Ash. “I am looking forward to lining up all those possibilities into a future that Detroiters can’t even imagine.”
Those possibilities begin at the helm of Detroit At Work steering many things including support services that tackle everything from childcare and returning citizenship to marijuana use and resume writing to assist residents who are looking for a starting point to get their career back on track.
During the nearly hour-long interview, Ash honed in on how, with the many economic projects in the city coming down the pipeline, do “we get those projects on the line” amid COVID-19 and returning to work safely? He also asked how Detroiters are at the front of the line to ensure they play a role.
Sherard-Freeman said that Detroit At Work looks at the economic happenings worldwide, nationwide, regionally and then locally to bring about the most positive impact to residents through job growth and more.
“We watch those trends so that we are best positioned to … attract those big developments,” she said. “What we want to do is position ourselves to be attractive … we want Detroit to be an attractive place to site new industry and new businesses. All of that is critical ensuring Detroiters have opportunities.”
Sherard-Freeman added that big businesses in the city like Stellantis (formerly FCA) and Amazon are a major economic boost to Detroit. She also said that these businesses are interested in setting their roots in the city because it makes sense financially.
“We position ourselves as a good place to do business and living costs are lower than other parts of the country where industrial land might be readily available,” she said.
When tackling job growth during COVID-19, Sherard-Freeman said that Detroit At Work is more than ready to “position ourselves for growth” in the long term by thinking about jobs available now and 20 years from now.
“The important thing to know here is as the economy is recovering a few trends we are seeing nationally [are] landing on the ground of Detroit,” she said adding that while economic resurgence is chugging along, she wants to ensure residents are hopping aboard for the ride.
“Before COVID, 44 percent of families were struggling — those families more than likely headed by women and people of color and those who are struggling the most [are] without a high school diploma,” Sherard-Freeman said of those statistics. “In Detroit, a couple of technologies impacted the recovery and types of work that are available, and quite frankly it is going to drive not just the work that gets done but who gets to do the work.”
Sherard-Freeman listed technologies that include automation and artificial intelligence.
She added what that means for residents is that economists project that 58 percent of workers who go back to work will be “going back to a different job.”
“Not a brand-new job, but the way their work gets done will be different,” she said adding that the roughly 17 million U.S. workers furloughed will need to make a “significant transition” to their job, which has “real-time implications for the way that we teach our kids and the way we get adults ready for opportunities.”
Another set of nationwide statistics from economists reveal that only 58 percent of workers will return to their pre-pandemic jobs. Over the next several years, roughly 30 percent of workers will need to make a significant career transition, she added.
“Finding a quality job will require navigating new uncertainties and a highly disrupted labor market,” she said.
The city is motivated to stay ahead of the labor curve by watching the global trends and national trends and “really getting into deep conversations” with employers about how they are expecting work to change, how work is changing right now and how do they expect work to change going forward Sherard-Freeman said.
“We’re seeing some trends. We’re starting to get folks ready for higher levels of socioemotional intelligence, stronger problem-solving skills, the ability to communicate differently.”
She added that these skills are needed “because when you are working alongside a bank of robotics that do the assembly work” the way one communicates with their team members to solve problems makes all the difference in operating a successful, self-directed team.
“All those are skills employers are looking for right out of the gate … that has nothing to do with digital literacy or the other hard skills that you are going to need,” she said. “You just have to have a different way of showing up to be successful in an automated or artificial intelligence environment.”
She added that for the residents of Detroit who might be having bigger problems beyond a job search, they can look into the Community Health Corps [CHC] program which helps most at-risk Detroit residents find the resources they need. Launched last November, the program helps residents that need assistance with food insecurities, or financial resources to keep their homes. Mayor Mike Duggan announced the program last August.
Sherard-Freeman also said that some Detroiters might be “deeply disconnected” from what Detroit At Work is doing because of their very real concerns.
“We ask what immediate crisis can we help you solve on the path to figuring out a broader set of solutions then getting you on the path to Detroit At Work,” she said. “But what difference does a resource make if you can’t connect to it, and that is where we have to do a better job.”
For more information call 313-962-WORK for an appointment or log on to www.detroitatwork.com.
For more information about receiving help beyond jobs, visit https://detroitmi.gov/news and search “Community Health Corps vulnerable residents.”
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