The Rapid Response Practitioner’s Guide

Jeff Ryan

Today We Will Talk About

• Introductions

• Brief History of Rapid Response Workgroup

• The RRPG– About

– Submitting Your Content

– Accessing

– Updating Per WIOA

• What’s In the RRPG?

• Discussion/Questions

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The Rapid Response Workgroup(s)

• 1st Workgroup organized in 1998 to support Rapid Response practitioners in transition to WIA

• Planned TA resources including the (famous) Technical Assistance and Resource Guide (the TARG)

• Political transition impacted availability of resources created

• TARG was in limbo for quite some time

• 2011 workgroup iteration decided to revise and try to issue a new version

• And the RRPG was born

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THE RAPID RESPONSE PRACTITIONER’S GUIDE

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About the RRPG

• It is as it is called: a guide for Rapid Response practitioners

• It was written by practitioners, and for practitioners—this is not an official ETA document but a resource for you written by your peers (and some Feds too)

• It describes the broad vision and specific activities that make up the Rapid Response program

• It also includes a 7-phase approach to doing the job (and it’s even called “Doing the Job”)

• You may notice many similarities to things you have heard at this forum (or may have read in recent days)—this is no accident– The RRPG is designed to around the vision we all created together

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Submitting Your Content

• The RRPG is intended to be a “living document”

• However, to grow and improve the RRPG, it needs your knowledge, your expertise, and your experiences– In other words, we need you to build and refine this resource over time

to ensure it is comprehensive

• So if you want your content included for any portion of the RRPG, just let us know (once we figure out how to create that mechanism, of course)

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Accessing the RRPG

• Currently we have a PDF version only, available on the website for this conference

• We can also email it to you, if you like

• Soon there will be an online community, the Business Engagement Collaborative, where Rapid Response and business engagement resources will live—including the RRPG

• Launch date for this site is currently TBD, perhaps in May

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Updating Per WIOA

• As written, RRPG focuses on WIA rules, but still reflects an ideal model that makes sense under WIOA

• Once WIOA regulations are final we will update citations, etc in RRPG to reflect the current statute and rules—likely in 2016

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SO, WHAT’S IN THE RRPG?

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A Foundation for Rapid Response

• Rapid Response Self-Assessment: Helps to ensure quality and consistency of Rapid Response across the country, while still promoting customized solutions

• Lays out the 10 elements of that tool across three primary areas of focus– Planning & Preparation

– Providing Customized, Collaborative Solutions & Consistent, Quality Results

– Ensuring Recovery & Comprehensive Reemployment Solutions

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“Essential” Rapid Response

• Benefits of Rapid Response for businesses and workers

• Solutions for businesses in transition

• Convening, facilitating, and brokering connections/networks/ partners

• History of Rapid Response program & current (WIA) legislation and regulations

• Creating an effective & quality Rapid Response program– The Rapid Response Quality Principles (10 +1, or 11!)

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Managing Economic Transition: An Expansive Vision for Rapid Response

• Ultimate goal: To enable affected workers to return to work as quickly as possible following a layoff. or to avoid unemployment altogether

• Includes the Promise

• Solutions-based approach to managing transition in an evolving economy

• Ask questions vs push a package of services

• Rapid Response is a conversation, a relationship

• Proactive, and customized (but also consistent!)

• Layoff aversion philosophy

• Understanding the business lifecycle and your role across it

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Doing the Job (Surprise! There’s a lot here.)

• And don’t forget:– Tracking & evaluation

– Follow-thru & follow up

Ongoing Rapid Response Process

Research & Discovery

Activation

Employer Contact

&/or Layoff Notice

Meet with Company/ Employer

Determine

Intervention Required

Tailor Plan & Carry It Out

Determine & Facilitate

Additional Services

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Data Collection

• Think about data and information as tools

• Gather what you need to achieve your goals, serve your customers, and tell a great story

• Use what you gather

• If you don’t use it, don’t gather it

• This section features examples from IL, who wrote it

• But we’d LOVE to see how you do it!

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Layoff Aversion

• It’s critical to have the right mindset for layoff aversion– If you THINK it, you are more likely to DO it

• Focus on prevention rather than reaction

• The Intervention Timeline—what you can do depends in large measure on the amount of time you have

• And like everything else, partnerships are key– You can’t do it all, and others are doing lots of stuff, so join up!

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Telling Your Story

• How you use information and data can be critical to your success

• It can also be problematic—lots of ways to get information out, and it only takes one slip to lose credibility

• Social media is a powerful tool, but you should have a plan for using it (but you SHOULD use it)

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Disaster Response

• FYI—it is a REQUIRED activity

• Though it is still a murky area for what role Rapid Response should play, a few key points– Planning, planning, planning (and maybe even some practice!)

– Networks/partners are critical—every state has disaster response capacity, do you know the people/orgs involved? (Preferably PRIOR to any disaster.)

• Some examples from Sandy (New York version)

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Appendices and such

• We really want to include all sorts of examples—forms, plans, strategies, results, whatever

• Please please please share your great stuff!

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Let’s Chat—Any Questions or Comments?

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If you need/want to reach me

Jeff RyanUS DOL/ETA Office of Workforce InvestmentRyan.jeff@dol.gov202-693-3546@hubbardjr