Chamber of Commerce aims to expand talent pool

By Catherine Engstom-Hadley
Staff Writer

If you looked at Raffaele Mautone, former CIO and VP of Ann Arbor’s DUO security, you probably wouldn’t think he started out in bartending. During his speech at the first annual Workforce Pipeline Summit, he explained how the computer company Dell recruited from a different talent pool and how he landed a job with them.

“They couldn’t find local talent; they decided as a management team to go out and find talent. They focused on retail and restaurants, and they knew they were looking for three things: good problem solving, good communication skills and the ability to fit into their culture,” said Mautone. “My hiring class had 120 people; everyone was from the Gap and restaurants.”

Mautone would go on to join DUO in Ann Arbor and use similar recruitment policies to tap into a hidden market.

“We need to start looking at hiring through a difference lens,” he said. “Look for the people who want to be here and help enable it.”

Richard Chang, CEO of NewFoundry and the chair of the board for the Ann Arbor Chamber of Commerce, organized the Workforce Pipeline Summit. He discussed a desperate need for companies to tap the “hidden workforce,” as he called it.

“The fact that we have people that are willing to work, seats that are open for people to work, but they can’t somehow get in those seats, that I think is a failure, in part by our community, because we are not helping these people rise up,” said Chang.

The chamber’s goals for the Workforce Pipeline Summit were to raise awareness of the workforce challenges occurring in the communities and make an actionable plan for the community.

The subject of education came up during the summit, as well. Dr. Scott Menzel, the Washtenaw Intermediate School District superintendent spoke of the concept of a single, county-wide school district, instead of the current model: school of choice, where the money follows the child to whatever school they go to.

“On the surface, our county looks great when we look at the reading levels, but when we dig deeper, we see that’s only true for certain parts of our county,” said Menzel.

“I’ve been in this community since ‘94 and I’m tired of the current status quo. I’m glad that AAPS is great, but we need to share that wealth,” said Chang. “We need to share that love, and make sure that we’re getting equality.”

The summit featured talks on a wide range of topics, from continued education to affordable housing, and tapping into the hidden talent pool.

Melvin Parson, executive director of We The People Growers Association, discussed the struggles for ex-convicts in our community.

“If I were to go into McDonalds and apply for a job, I would be turned down for having a criminal record that is over 25 years old. Or, if I tried to live in certain housing developments owned by McKinley property, I would be denied the ability to be there,” said Parsons. “Either you have a seat at one of these tables, or it’s your ass that’s on the menu.”

To get involved, email info@workforcepipeline.org for more information.

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