About This Resource

This session was part of the 2025 Enhancing Workforce Success: Strategies for Lasting and Inclusive Employment CE Week series

Series Overview

This Continuing Education Week is designed to equip employment social enterprises and workforce development leaders with practical strategies to drive participant employees’ success. 

Throughout the series we cover key topics related to this success journey, from skills development to long-term economic mobility. Each session will focus on both program development and operational implementation. And, along the way, we will provide tools to strengthen workforce programs and support employee growth. 

Topics include:

• Defining employee success for focus populations and applying human-centered design principles to the participant employee experience
• Equipping participant employees with skills, credentials, and support to attain high-quality employment
• Creating strategies for a supportive and engaging workplace that fosters participant employee growth and retention
• Establishing a strong workforce foundation by identifying core strengths and then key partnerships for strategic collaboration

This series is designed for employment social enterprise leaders, and more specifically, workforce development professionals, program managers, and HR teams seeking to enhance outcomes for their participant employees.

Session Description

This interactive session explores strategies for increasing employee competitiveness in the job market and equipping ESEs with tools to improve long-term workforce outcomes, including economic power. You will engage with a structured framework for enhancing employee readiness and learn how to articulate the case for prioritizing competitive skill-building. Through reflection and peer discussions, you will identify opportunities within your organization to strengthen workforce development efforts and better position employees for future job success.

Facilitator:
This session is facilitated by REDF Sr. Principal, Galiana Fajardo, a leader in workforce development and employee success strategies. Galiana brings deep expertise in supporting ESEs to create impactful programs that drive meaningful career pathways.

Session Goals & Key Takeaways:
By the end of the session, you will have:

• Reflected on how your ESE is improving long-term employment outcomes for its workers
• Identified an opportunity to enhance employee competitiveness within your program  model
• Learned from peers about effective strategies for preparing employees for future job opportunities.

 This session is ideal for:

• ESE staff and workforce development professionals focused on improving employee career readiness
• ESE managers and leadership teams seeking strategies to strengthen long-term workforce and economic power outcomes
• ESEs interested in exploring how increasing employee competitiveness leads to greater economic power, mobility, and long-term financial stability for workers

Below is the session recording and accompanying materials