Executive Perspective: Bridging the gap between high school and the workforce 

By Brianna Mosier 

Recently, I was given the opportunity to take the helm at Flint & Genesee Education & Talent. As the new executive director of this division of the Flint & Genesee Group, I am excited to hit the ground running continuing the great work we’ve always been known for. I am also especially excited to bring new programs under the Flint & Genesee Education & Talent umbrella.  

Previously, I held the role of director of Organizational Development for the Flint & Genesee Group and with that, I coordinated a suite of programs for local professionals and college-aged students. I am happy to carry over business trainings, Leadership Flint & Genesee, Flinterns, and Make Your Move in Flint & Genesee.  

What’s great about bringing these programs under the umbrella of Education & Talent is how well they’ll marry with our already existing programs: TeenQuest, Summer Youth Initiative, and Flint Promise. All these programs have one major aspect in common, each program aims to strengthen the talent pipeline in Genesee County. 

What do we mean when we talk about the talent pipeline? The pool of individuals in our community who are skilled, ready, and able to work. By starting our work with high school aged students through TeenQuest, continuing that work into college with Flint Promise, then keeping in touch with professionals through Leadership Flint & Genesee and our business training series, we can help foster the strong workforce our area needs.  

Another aspect that I look forward to introducing to this division are talent attraction and retention efforts. Traditionally, Education & Talent’s programs mainly focused on talent development and have seen some retention as a result. However, with the new alignment of our programs, we are now better positioned to influence retention and actively attract new talent.  

Make Your Move in Flint & Genesee and Flinterns are two of our major efforts for talent retention and attraction. By keeping the talent we have already developed in the region and attracting new talent, we’re working toward the Flint & Genesee Group’s vision of becoming a top-five community in Michigan by 2040.  

And you can help us achieve this success in several different ways. If you are a parent or guardian of a young person in Flint & Genesee, I hope you can encourage them to prepare for their future with our TeenQuest pre-employment and training program. If you already have a TeenQuest graduate in your life, remind them about Summer Youth Initiative, our summer employment program. For those headed to or in college, you can share about Flint Promise or Flinterns. For you or other professionals in your life, share about our business trainings or Leadership Flint & Genesee. Our programs can benefit many different people in our community, so it is always helpful when others spread the word.  

For businesses and employers, there are ways you can get involved, too. First, you can become an employer partner for Summer Youth Initiative and help give students in the area their first job. Second, you can become a partner with Make Your Move or Flinterns and help attract and keep talent in our area. Third, you can help increase your employees’ professional training by sending them to our business trainings or Leadership Flint & Genesee.  

By working together, we can foster a strong talent pipeline in Flint & Genesee.