President's Forum guest: Future workforce requires responsive partnerships

For Kristen Fox, CEO of Business-Higher Education Forum, the intersection of business and higher education is at a critical juncture. 

GVSU President Philomena V. Mantella chatted with Fox on March 25 at the DeVos Center on the Pew Grand Rapids Campus as part of her President’s Forum discussion series. Their conversation focused on the partnerships between business and higher education in forging a workforce that is adaptable to the nation’s evolving economic needs.

“We are at a really important moment for higher education,” Fox said during her presentation. “My view, and it’s shared by the business and higher education partners that I work with every day, is that higher education is a critical engine of economic growth, mobility and the strength of our democracy.”

Fox outlined four elements that her business partners find paramount for the future of higher education and the U.S. workforce: power skills, experiential learning, network or social activation and lifetime-learning pathways.

Mantella asked Fox for her advice on how Grand Valley can position itself as a leader in this space.

“As an organization, I’d put our agility high,” Mantella said. “This institution has been through a lot of changes over its 65 years and most of those changes have yielded good results.”

Fox concurred that agility is important, but that regional public institutions like Grand Valley also field distinct advantages. 

“That is a superpower, that combination of strong regional business partners, philanthropy and a strong sense of community as well as a vibrant and diverse set of industry sectors,” Fox said. 

“It’s about continuing to lean into the partnerships you have and ensure that you are a talent partner and a leader of choice, pushing what roles are needed for the future and offering another key part, interdisciplinary skills.” 

Fox highlighted two data points to underscore the urgency of this issue: 60% of the current U.S. workforce will need to reskill their abilities and talents within the next three years, and 89% of businesses consider partnerships with higher education a priority.

“The takeaway is that business leaders have a variety of reasons that they want to work with higher education partners,” Fox said. “We need to tailor to those and be thoughtful of those.”