The consortia gathering is a highlight of each annual Summit as it offers the ultimate in solutioning across state lines. This year’s meeting will again unite State Energy Workforce Consortia for information sharing, and it will also include a facilitated dialogue about how state groups may consider strengthening their engagement with state workforce policy agendas.

Consortia representatives are invited to network with peers from around the country around topics of importance in strengthening statewide workforce development strategies. RSVPs will be collected in October. (This dinner is non-hosted.)

Embedding into Workforce Planning the Impact of Energy Trends on Workforce Development. Workforce planning can no longer be managed in the industry as it always has been. Strategic workforce planning must become a company wide priority in order for contractors and utilities to ensure they are prepared for the ever-changing needs in people planning. This session will use best-in-class practices to demonstrate how energy businesses should be planning for their workforce needs to ensure their teams are properly considering retirements, trends that are here to stay with attrition, community demographics, low unemployment rates, etc. in preparation for a decarbonizing industry. Participants will learn how industry leaders have made workforce planning cultures as important as safety cultures within their businesses so they can systemically and innovatively plan for the future.

This session is for those who are new to workforce development responsibilities, those who want to better understand the broad structure of workforce development, and those who may need a refresher in this often complex space. By definition, workforce development focuses on closing the skills gap by preparing and placing individuals in high-demand jobs in industries of priority. The energy sector is a key player in this important work, and accordingly, it is critical companies understand how to engage with workforce development boards, how to capitalize on sector partnerships, and connect most meaningfully with educators, particularly those within technical schools and career and technical education systems. Most especially, energy companies need to understand how to follow federal workforce development funding into their communities to find support for training, upskilling, and people placement.

Last year’s inaugural Learning Labs were so popular, we are bringing them back again! The Learning Labs will kickstart the Summit experience for attendees by offering an array of educational stations focused on a variety of workforce development topics. They really are learning and networking at their best.

Our opening general session will set the stage for the Summit experience and the industry’s workforce development priorities by looking at the State of the Energy Workforce. We will begin with a thorough understanding of our current workforce, based on data from CEWD’s Energy Workforce Report, presented by ScottMadden. We will look at the composition of the workforce, expected retirements and attrition, and a host of other datapoints that set the table for where we stand today. We will then hear from DOE’s Director of Energy Jobs to explore what the industry should be preparing for to ensure readiness for the industry’s future career paths and finally, we will look at the economics of the industry’s employment needs – how many jobs will we really need to hire for and what skill sets will these individuals really need.

Companies continue to look for the secret sauce – the mystery ingredient to attract the best talent to make their workforce more competitive. This session, led by Jane Oates, President of Working Nation – and highly sought after spokesperson on how the industry can solve its workforce challenges – will provide fodder for the industry’s “to do” list – that is, what we must do to revolutionize attracting and retaining essential talent to fulfill the sector’s talent needs. WorkingNation, recognizes a working nation is a healthy nation, and they are helping America rethink what it means to be people-ready by telling stories and promoting conversations about solutions that can lead to a thriving middle class.

Generative AI promises to reshape dramatically the labor force. The scope of its impact will exceed that of any technological innovation of the last century. It will affect virtually every position in every industry, with particularly profound impact for white collar workers. In this session, Harvard Business School Professor Joe Fuller will discuss the implications of generative AI for companies and how utilities should prepare for an AI-powered economy.

This session will transport conference attendees into C-suites across the country as we engage in conversations with CHROs about how and why workforce development has taken more of a center stage in their organizations. We will ask them about the big conversations that are taking place. For instance, what are they talking about regarding using AI in workforce development; exploring untapped talent, preparing people for roles in a decarbonizing workforce; partnerships between utilities and contractors to support and sustain talent needs; seizing grant funding to support training and other priorities…and the list goes on. In short, we will find out how they are “doing workforce development differently” than they did a year ago, or even a few months ago.

Pack your hair spray! Summit attendees will gather for a night of 80’s-filled fun at the POSE Lounge, with disco balls, arcade games, neon lights, and glow-in-the-dark accessories, we’ll travel back in time together for a can’t-miss night.

The dine-around dinners offer Summit attendees the chance to check out some of the area’s unique dining spots. They are perfect for those traveling alone eager to expand their network as well as people interested in continuing the day’s conversations in fun, relaxed environments. Individuals will be responsible for their own meal costs.

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What will it take to train 80,000 electricians and 80,000 clean energy technicians every year for the next decade? How will $9B in federal Home Energy Rebates supercharge the home energy improvement contractor market and put pressure on scarce talent?  How might educators partner with industry to create talent pipelines that will feed in-demand and surging job growth? Accenture’s Danielle Verna will unpack will provide a tour of clean energy trends, workforce development needs, in-demand climate tech roles, and recommendations for how to partner for scale to meet the moment. She’ll also discuss a major new national green jobs program launched by Accenture, Goodwill, and General Motors to meet the moment.

Military recruiters share the need to raise the visibility of energy careers to transitioning servicemen and women, Veterans, and military spouses. That objective is getting increasingly difficult as businesses across the country compete for talent in a tight labor market. Those involved in military recruiting are encouraged to join us for this informal networking session to share what’s working and what’s not.

There are two transitions underway for utilities sector employees.  The first is broadening the sources of talent and experience from which the sector hires as the utility workforce continues to grow.  The second transition is the increased training to allow employees to work with new technologies and business models as the focus on emissions reduction in the economy heightens.  In this session, a panel of Deloitte and industry leaders will discuss how to:

• Uncover differentiated skills and new sources of talent
• Develop creative training programs to upskill for career path opportunities
• Align decarbonization and workforce planning with the pace of technology and domestic supply chain development

There has been a rapid intersectionality between public policy and workforce development. Energy companies must ensure now, more than ever before, they are engaged in advocacy efforts that will allow them to take advantage of federal, state, and local policies that can support funding for training, tax credits for programming, sector partnerships, apprenticeship programs, and a myriad of other priorities to effectively compete against other industries vying for similar resources. This session will provide an overview of CEWD’s new workforce development focused policy priorities and explain why and how the sector should be increasingly engaged in using its pollical capital on a workforce development agenda. We will also hear from DC-insiders who will showcase examples of how other industries have united to effectively secure political “wins” for their people needs and give ideas of where and how we can be more effective advocates for our needs.

Enjoy the evening working on your swing and chatting with colleagues – no golfing experience or hand-eye coordination required! The indoor, luxury, high-tech golf game will encourage attendees to get out of the hotel, relax, and socialize with your colleagues. Separate registration is required, limited space available. 

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Start your morning with conversation focused around workforce development topics that interest you most. There will be more than a dozen topics from which to choose. The most difficult part of the day may be whether to stay at one table for in-depth conversation or take in several different discussions.

Global investment for DE&I-related efforts is projected to be $15.4 billion by 2026, more than double comparable investments made in 2020. Accordingly, greater clarity on what works—and what does not—can help leaders maximize the return on their effort and investments. McKinsey’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Lighthouses 2023 Report identified five success factors common across the DEI initiatives that yielded the most significant, scalable, quantifiable, and sustained impact for underrepresented groups. Join the session to learn more about these factors. The McKinsey team will also bring learnings from world-class organizations outside to energy sector to inspire thinking and facilitate interactive exercises to start architecting a plan to get started.

UnidosUS transforms the workforce ecosystem to ensure Latino workers have access to quality jobs and clear pathways to prosperity.  Situated at the intersection of learning and work, the Burning Glass Institute advances data-driven research and insights to enable effective interventions deployed through partners to support underserved communities and stakeholders across the nation. This session will share the power of strategic partnerships, key stakeholders needed, and actions that can be taken, to effectively deploy inclusive talent management systems – behaviors, policies and practices – that support workers, employers and communities throughout the energy sector. As part of this discussion, the speakers will share key insights and take-aways from the Burning Glass Institute’s American Opportunity Index and UnidosUS’ programmatic efforts.

This working session will bring practitioners together to advance actions on developing industry created Registered Apprenticeship Programs for new and emerging areas of energy technology, some to be addressed in collaboration with the IBEW. Beginning in the early fall, there will be facilitated calls to address benefits of collaborative efforts, prioritization of which RAPs should be considered first, and initial conversations about career pathways, defined competencies, and required knowledge, skills, and abilities, allowing the in-person meeting to advance identified action. 

This session is open to those interested in exploring the creation of curriculum that could be made available nationwide to help students earn an energy technician associate degree.