Detectives from the Montgomery County Department of Police – Cold Case Section are asking for the public’s assistance in locating Patrick Joseph Barrett, a missing 73-year-old.
The Montgomery County Police Department (MCPD) is investigating two commercial armed robberies that occurred on September 26, 2024, in the 11400 block of Georgia Avenue in Silver Spring. The same suspect, described as a young male, implied he had a handgun during both incidents at Genet Ethiopian Market and Rhuth’s African Kitchen (more…)
Talent is one of the most important factors influencing where companies choose to invest, expand, and grow. As competition for skilled workers intensifies, employers are embracing a broader talent strategy: one that leverages partnerships. Last week, almost 120 business leaders, elected officials, and members of Montgomery County’s business community attended the Montgomery County Economic Development Corporation’s (MCEDC) panel, “The Talent Advantage: A Growth Strategy for Companies in Montgomery County, Maryland,” to hear how local businesses are capitalizing on the County’s world-class academic institutions, innovation ecosystem, quality of life, and economic development resources to attract and retain top talent.
Moderated by Dr. Anne Khademian, Executive Director at The Universities at Shady Grove (USG), the panel included executives from businesses and institutions across industries, including Lockheed Martin, TrilliumBIO, Thales Defense & Security, Johns Hopkins, Montgomery College, and AstraZeneca, who discussed their companies’ strategies for developing their workforce.
Talent as a Business Strategy
For companies competing in highly specialized industries like the defense industry, access to talent directly influences where they choose to locate and grow. For Lockheed Martin, which employs nearly 1,000 people in Montgomery County, talent is one of the primary reasons the company chose to be headquartered here.
“Talent is in the top one or two reasons why we are in the County,” said Todd Cohen, Senior Lead of Strategic Workforce Development, Lockheed Martin.
According to Cohen, Lockheed Martin begins working with partners to develop their talent pipeline well before students enter the workforce, including partnering with Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) on programs such as coding challenges. Lockheed Martin also maintains close relationships with local higher education institutions, including the Universities at Shady Grove (USG).
That local talent pipeline is also an important factor for AstraZeneca, which employs more than 5,000 employees and contractors in Montgomery County. According to Tiffany Lukis, Director of STEM and Community Engagement at AstraZeneca, the company often taps into its alumni base from Montgomery College (ranked #26 nationally among community colleges) and USG (which offers nine different public universities onto one campus), and other local institutions to fill highly technical roles.
Local Companies Are Developing Talent and Not Just Finding It
According to the panelists, investing in existing employees is just as important as recruiting new ones.
At Suburban Hospital, workforce development is closely tied to talent retention. The hospital partners with local educational institutions to provide employees with opportunities to gain new skills and advance their careers. Programs include a Certified Nursing Assistant program through Montgomery College and English as a Second Language classes.
“A huge part of our talent strategy is to prioritize holding on to our top tier talent,” said Corey Lewson, MSW, Program Manager, Workforce Development, John Hopkins Medicine.
For smaller companies, developing talent internally can be especially valuable. Lane Edwards, Vice President of Operations, TrilliumBIO, a biomarker discovery company with fewer than 20 employees based in Rockville, described the challenge of balancing the need for highly specialized expertise with the realities of building a team at an early-stage company.
“When it comes to hiring, we have to be very strategic,” Lane said. “Do we have someone who has the expertise or someone that we can build on?”
The Rockville City Police Department (RCPD) has released additional surveillance photos of a suspect wanted in connection to two stabbings that occurred near the Twinbrook Metro station on Sunday, October […]
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Locally Crafted, located at 9 Grand Corner Ave. in Gaithersburg’s Rio Lakefront, has announced its expansion with the upcoming opening of Locally Crafted Workshop. The new space, set to occupy the former Torrid location at 35 Grand Corner Ave., will serve as a dedicated venue for classes, workshops, parties, and community events, while the original retail location will remain open.
We’ve Got the Ticket to Every Sunday Showdown! 🏈🔥
Catch every live out-of-market Sunday game with NFL Sunday Ticket this football season at Lucky Strike Rockville!
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Come enjoy the day at our annual Washington Grove Arts and Craft Festival in a beautiful outdoor setting. This festival highlights local artisans including wood creations, pottery, visual art, household products and so much more. We also have food trucks from El Parente Tacos, El Jeffe Wood-fired pizzas, Bruster’s Ice Cream and beverages from Saints Row Brewery. Bring the whole family because we have a kids activity area too. Pets on a leash are welcome too!
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Update: Hard Times remains closed as of Thursday, October 17. The restaurant will make an announcement soon whether or not it will be open Friday.
Hard Times Cafe at 1117 Nelson St in Rockville is temporarily closed due to construction being done in the Woodley Gardens shopping center parking lot. (more…)
On October 16, at approximately 12:11 am, Takoma Park Police responded to the 900 block of Merrimac Drive (7-11), for the report of a stolen vehicle. The victim’s 2018 black Ford Explorer was stolen moments after it was parked. During the investigation, the stolen vehicle was found fully engulfed in flames in Sligo Creek.
The personal-finance website WalletHub today released its report on Most & Least Politically Engaged States (2024), and Maryland came in as the #1 ranked politically engaged state in the country,
On Tuesday, Attorney General Anthony G. Brown announced a $27 million settlement with Precision Toxicology to resolve allegations of billing government health programs for unnecessary urine drug tests and offering kickbacks to physicians for referrals. The settlement includes oversight measures, with Maryland receiving $5.7 million and the whistleblower receiving $2.7 million. (more…)
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Montgomery County Public Libraries will host Rachel Renée Russell and Nikki Russell, the creators of the popular Dork Diaries series, for a free presentation and book signing at Gaithersburg Library (18330 Montgomery Village Ave) on Saturday, Nov. 2, from 1:30-6 p.m., with advance registration required. The event will include a discussion of their creative process, a Q&A session, and a book signing for copies purchased at the event.
A Maryland Lottery player recently purchased a $68,280-winning progressive jackpot ticket from a Wegmans in Columbia, MD. Full details below courtesy MD Lottery: (more…)