The Montgomery County Department of Transportation (MCDOT) has announced that two Ride On bus stops will temporarily close during Purple Line construction.
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Montgomery County Police have released surveillance images of a suspect wanted in connection to an assault and theft that occurred in March.
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 Board of Education and Interim Superintendent Dr. Monique T. Felder honored 658 retirees at the MCPS annual retirement recognition and reception on June 6 at Richard Montgomery High School.
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Montgomery History will host “In Search of the Ballfields of Montgomery’s Black Communities,” a free online presentation beginning June 17.
When I moved back to Northern Virginia after several years in New York, most of my old friends had moved away. I found myself rebuilding a social circle from scratch.
I had plenty of people I could connect with online, but that wasn’t translating into anyone to grab a beer with after work, play trivia with, or text when I wanted to get out of the house. Making new friends as an adult required far more deliberate effort than I remembered.
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BETHESDA, YOUR SATURDAY MORNING PLANS JUST GOT MORE CREATIVE.
Join Craft Cart at Coffee Republic on Saturday, September 26, from 11:00 AM–1:00 PM for a beginner-friendly faux stained glass experience filled with creativity, coffee and connection.
The Wheaton Urban District will hold a community conversation on “Supporting Youth in Crisis” on Tuesday, June 18 at the Wheaton Community Recreation Center (11701 Georgia Avenue.) (more…)
Holiday events and operating hours for Wednesday, June 19, 2024
Montgomery Parks is inviting the whole family to celebrate Juneteenth with a series of special events on Wednesday, June 19, 2024.
We were able to enjoy low humidity and below normal temperatures through Wednesday, but near-record heat returns Thursday and Friday and all of next week, according to the National Weather Service (NWS).
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Following the Montgomery County Board of Education’s approval of the Fiscal Year 2025 Operating Budget on June 11, class size guidelines will increase by one student in many classrooms for the next school year. MCPS sent a community message on Wednesday providing an explanation for the increase. It can be seen below:
“This decision, while not ideal, was necessary due to an approximately $30 million reduction from the requested funding. It is highly unlikely that any teacher currently employed will lose their position in MCPS this upcoming school year due to the teacher vacancies from retirements and resignations.
Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) responded to the 10900blk of Roundtable Ct in Rockville on Wednesday, June 12, for the report of a house fire. (more…)
With the Fourth of July approaching, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Services (MCFRS) is reminding residents that all fireworks are illegal in Montgomery County, MD.
Montgomery County Police have announced that Jennifer Esmeralda Orellana Ventura, who was last seen on Monday, February, 19, has been located safe and unharmed.