Leveling UP Soft Skills in Apache County
October 2021 Update
The Foundation for Little Colorado Revitalization completed its UP pilot cohort on Sept 25, 2021. Five students from varying backgrounds, including high school students, education professionals, and local employees, participated in the first cohort. The students were responsible for completing online modules independently, followed by weekly in-person interactive group sessions.
The online modules covered topics ranging from retail-specific roles and procedures to general professional development. Students were introduced to transferable skills like professional communication, problem-solving, and workplace safety. The modules demonstrated how students could utilize these skills in their careers, inside and outside of the retail sector. Videos walked students through real-world examples of customer service scenarios, including greeting customers and helping customers find products around a store. The modules included questions and activities throughout to keep students engaged with the material.
In-person lessons included instruction from local retail business owners, which gave the students hands-on learning opportunities from customer service professionals. In one activity, students were tasked with visiting a retail store or restaurant and interacting with staff, then asked to complete an Observation Survey based on the customer service experience that they had. The survey included questions like “Did the cashier thank you at the end of your transaction?” and “Were the associates you encountered upbeat and friendly?”.
Other learning objectives included professional dress, retail operations and careers, and resume building. The course gave students the tools to confidently enter the local workforce or improve their performance in their current roles. The skills gained through UP are transferable skills and will be utilized throughout students’ entire careers - no matter the industry.
The Foundation for Little Colorado Revitalization will be convening a second cohort in spring of 2022. Soft skills are essential to the success of the workforce in rural Arizona communities. If you’d like to launch a soft skills training program in your community, email us at laura@localfirstaz.com or lexie@localfirstaz.com.
Where It All Began
In the Fall of 2020, Local First Arizona completed an Economic Leakage Study in Apache County. Findings from this study revealed that businesses within the retail/hospitality industry in Apache County recognized a lack of preparation and proliferation of soft skills in their local talent pool. Local First Arizona convened local employers utilizing the TPM model for workforce development and identified a need for a locally-based training program that would interactively train soft skills to job seekers that could be applied across any industry.
In partnership with The Center for the Future of Arizona RetailWorks team, Local First Arizona approached The Little Colorado Foundation with an opportunity to become a National Retail Fundamentals Retail Certification training provider for their community. The Little Colorado Foundation embraced the opportunity to bring a program to Apache County that addressed customer service and workforce development needs.
“Every 10% shifted annually toward local spending is another $1.6MM spent locally, which can create new jobs and opportunities locally.”
In Fall 2021, The Little Colorado Foundation rolled out a new soft skills training program that was offered to those seeking to start or enhance their career in any industry in Apache County. The program - called “UP (Unleash Your Potential)” - utilized the National Retail Industry Fundamentals curriculum, providing students with an understanding of the retail industry, job readiness skills, and building basic customer service skills. UP was launched as a 5-week hybrid training program with self-guided, online training and onsite community engagement activities to enhance customer service and soft skills in the Apache County workforce.
UP utilized business partnerships in the community to give students hands-on learning opportunities in a retail setting. This would allow students to practice the lessons taught in the Retail Industry Fundamentals curriculum and also to be introduced to potential employers they could approach when training was completed. For The Little Colorado Foundation, the investment in this program served as a way to provide support to local businesses that rely on a strong local workforce to attract and retain a steady customer base.
