The North Central Massachusetts Chamber Foundation is pleased to announce that applications for its 2022 Scholarship program are now being accepted.  Each year, the Chamber Foundation distributes approximately 25 scholarships to local high-achieving high school students in North Central Massachusetts.  Since the establishment of its scholarship program, the North Central Massachusetts Chamber Foundation has awarded over a million dollars in scholarships.

Students interested in applying for a 2022 scholarship through the North Central Massachusetts Chamber Foundation should contact their high school guidance department to submit an application.  Deadline for applications is Tuesday, March 1, 2022.  A limited number of scholarship applicants are submitted by each school in the Chamber’s service area each year and then reviewed by a committee of Chamber members.

Many of these awards are made possible through contributions from members of the North Central Massachusetts Chamber of Commerce.  Scholarships endowed through the Chamber Foundation are often named in honor of prominent members of the North Central Massachusetts business community whose philanthropy and commitment to the community have helped shape North Central Massachusetts.

The Chamber’s Foundation is a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization focused on assisting in the betterment of the region through charitable activities.  Funds raised by the Foundation are utilized primarily for education/workforce development initiatives and charitable activities in North Central Massachusetts, including scholarships to eligible applicants pursuing education and grants to support economic and community development projects.

For more information on the North Central Massachusetts Chamber Foundation’s scholarship program or a list of the named scholarships, please visit northcentralmass.com or call 978.353.7600 ext. 222.

Walking down the street, it’s rare to spot a business that doesn’t have a “Help Wanted” sign in the window. The “Great Resignation,” and the number of people who abandoned their 9-to-5 jobs for a side hustle or entirely new career, has resulted in a talent shortage for almost every industry.

However, it may not be a dearth of viable candidates that have made it difficult for you to fill a position at your business, but rather your hiring software that’s rejecting decent job applicants before you get a chance to see them.

HR Software That’s Too Smart?

The days of the paper application are largely gone by. Now, many companies, even small businesses, use Human Resources software to automate the hiring process. Applicant Tracking Systems (ATS) and Recruiting Marketing Systems (RMS) manage the job application pipeline and streamline the recruiting process. Hiring managers can use ATS to sort through dozens of online applicants for entry-level positions, while the RMS allows recruiters to filter and rank potential applicants for middle-to-high skills positions.

While these automated hiring software systems can help employers quickly find a strong pool of candidates, the protocols in the programming may automatically reject otherwise qualified candidates, such as those with a gap in employment history or those whose experience from one industry could easily transfer to another industry that requires similar skills.

As a result, ATS and RMS systems automatically exclude viable job candidates from consideration. Hiring managers never see the resume and cover letter, the latter of which could address an employment gap or demonstrate how a candidate could apply cross-industry skills.

High Skills Candidates Being Vetted Out?

Some Chamber members note that qualified high-skills candidates may be automatically vetted out of the hiring process because they don’t match the exact criteria of the ATS or RMS algorithms. The numbers of middle-skilled workers vetted out are even higher.

However, the criteria used by the hiring software didn’t appear out of thin air. In fact, many qualified candidates are rejected because they don’t match the job description posted by the company. Oops. Some recruiters may use a stringently written job description to remove the marginally-qualified candidates and thus minimize the number of potential job applicants.

How Can Businesses Increase Their Hiring Pool?

One way to increase the number of available applicants is to re-write the job description, re-evaluating it to include more “soft skills” such as work ethic, engagement, and innovation. Firms open to seeking “hidden workers” — talent that was automatically or arbitrarily weeded out of the automated process, may discover an untapped asset. Instead of adding new skills and requirements to existing job descriptions, switch the filters on your hiring software from “negative,” which weeds out more applicants, to “positive,” which increases the hiring pool and includes candidates with a broader range of experience.

Hidden workers are those who, like the examples above, aren’t an exact match for the specifications of the job description but who may have plenty to offer employers, especially companies that are willing and able to provide extra training for applicants with drive and potential.

If you’re struggling to fill a position in your company, or if you’re suffering from a lack of available front-line workers, take a closer look at your hiring software. A few simple tweaks to the conditions set in the system and some revamped job descriptions may yield remarkable results.

As the new year begins, small businesses are celebrating with employees and families alike. Holiday preparations go beyond planning parties and gatherings though as the new year starts and brings new opportunities that can be capitalized upon. Working within our community has shown that creating a marketing plan is the foundation for successful campaigns and new businesses. We’ve put together some of the key pillars of marketing plans to help boost our region’s businesses to new heights.

It All Begins With a Proper Budget

Creating a budget may seem like a straightforward endeavor but many businesses can struggle determining what’s worth being added to the marketing plan. One of the most common mistakes we see is setting expectations far too high and investing a large portion of the budget into various expenses that don’t create a return. It’s important to focus on the primary market that truly drives the business.

Once a budget is established the next difficult step is staying within the limits of that budget. Going over budget can stop a marketing plan in its tracks and have a negative impact on the other areas of the business an owner has to manage. Pulling funds between different projects can be a useful tactic but not if that money is being used for a fruitless endeavor. Making a marketing plan helps keep it contained without spilling over into other responsibilities.

Review Business Goals and How They Can Be Achieved

The bones of a marketing plan are simple as they’re simply the milestones an owner wants to hit regarding sales, digital presence and product launches. While many sales endeavors can be carefully calculated using traditional tools, creating a strong presence online takes a unique touch that often requires outside assistance from a professional marketer or agency. Building upon existing networks can then add more eyes to every event, new product and sale that goes on.

Passing down details on the new goals and how resources will be allocated to reach them can keep all employees on the same page. Making sure they understand why certain team members are responsible for new tasks will create confidence in the new marketing plan. When employees can get behind the goals, it adds extra motivation and drive to achieve the goals set for the business as a whole.

Determine Processes and Marketing Avenues

It may seem tedious to outline processes for every aspect of a marketing plan but the value created goes beyond successful marketing. Processes help remove redundancies, improve productivity and save hours of unnecessary leg work that can be spent working on implementing the plan itself.

To create processes, an owner has to work with their team to decide on the channels being used to deliver ads and marketing material. Researching a target demographic can uncover how they primarily obtain their information. It could be a traditional source such as radio and local television or a digital delivery through social media platforms.

Keep in mind that every part of a marketing plan needs to be deliberate in planning and execution in order to maximize return on investment. When done right, a brand’s voice can shine through with every ad to create more meaningful connections. Following these basics to get started can give any business owner a strong start in the new year.

More Borrowing Expected To Keep Benefits Flowing

After months of hedging about the health of the state fund that pays jobless benefits, Baker administration officials have released a report showing three outstanding obligations on the $2.94 billion unemployment insurance trust fund leave it with a structural deficit.

The independent assessment of the fund, conducted for the state by KPMG, also found that a combination of early pandemic changes, including new programs, rapidly evolving guidance, and a new claims processing system and ad-hoc internal reporting, “ultimately fractured the connection between operational and financial functions” of the trust fund.

The fund is overseen by the state Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, and the KPMG report, released on New Year’s Eve, examines some of the fallout from a system overloaded with claims from March 2020 through May 2021. To highlight demands on the fund that stemmed from forced business closures, KPMG analysts estimated that total benefits paid in 2020 were nearly seven times more than all benefits paid in 2018 and 2019 combined.

The assessment, described by state officials as a “reconciliation project,” will inform ongoing deliberations about how much state government will need to borrow to keep the system solvent and benefits flowing. Gov. Charlie Baker in April 2021 signed a bill authorizing up to $7 billion in borrowing.

Labor and Workforce Development Secretary Rosalin Acosta last month said additional borrowing will be needed, with officials working to determine the extent of that bonding.

The report estimates the fund’s balance as of Nov. 30 at $2.94 billion, but highlights three issues – federal loan obligations, outstanding employer credits, and a reimbursement due to the federal government – that collectively push the fund into a $115 million structural deficit.

Outstanding federal loans loom as the largest outstanding obligation on the fund. KPMG estimates that Massachusetts owes $2.3 billion, due in November 2022, to the federal government to repay necessary borrowing during the pandemic.

The balance also includes $415 million in credits due to employers because of mid-2021 rate adjustments. The legislation providing employers with some relief from COVID-related charges was enacted in May 2021, after most employers had already paid their first quarter contributions. The credits will be applied to future employer assessments, reducing those contributions.

And independent analysts also identified the need for a one-time transfer of $300 million from funds currently held in the UI system to the federal government “to reconcile state and federal accounts now that emergency programs implemented under federal authority in 2020 and 2021 have come to a close.” State labor officials are awaiting guidance from the federal labor department “regarding administrative procedures to process this reconciliation.”

The assessment does not factor in $500 million in American Rescue Plan Act funding approved by the Legislature and Baker in December as a means of delivering some relief to employers who ultimately pay the assessments required to pay benefits and cover borrowing costs.

KPMG said testing will continue beyond the report’s issuance “to inform the corrective actions related to process and reporting.”

The Baker administration on Tuesday night announced its adoption of new federal guidance governing isolation and quarantine periods for people infected with COVID-19 or exposed to the virus.

“The Department of Public Health is adopting updated guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) regarding isolation and quarantine periods for the general population, effective immediately,” said Department of Public Health spokesperson Katheleen Conti. “For the general public, this updated guidance shortens the recommended time for isolation and quarantine from 10 days for people with COVID-19 to 5 days, if asymptomatic, followed by 5 days of wearing a mask when around others.”

The CDC issued its updated guidance on Monday, saying the change was “motivated by science” demonstrating that the majority of COVID-19 transmission “occurs early in the course of illness, generally in the 1-2 days prior to onset of symptoms and the 2-3 days after.”

“The Omicron variant is spreading quickly and has the potential to impact all facets of our society,” CDC Director Dr. Rochelle Walensky said on Monday. “CDC’s updated recommendations for isolation and quarantine balance what we know about the spread of the virus and the protection provided by vaccination and booster doses. These updates ensure people can safely continue their daily lives. Prevention is our best option: get vaccinated, get boosted, wear a mask in public indoor settings in areas of substantial and high community transmission, and take a test before you gather.”

State public health officials said they are reviewing updated CDC guidance regarding isolation and quarantine for health care workers and “will have more to share soon.”

The adoption of the updated guidance comes as the state’s testing infrastructure is overwhelmed, with people waiting in long lines, stores running out of rapid tests, and the cost of tests creating additional obstacles. Infections are soaring and the numbers largely do not reflect cases confirmed through rapid tests.

With K-12 students on holiday break, Elementary and Secondary Education Commissioner Jeff Riley has not announced yet whether he will extend the state’s school mask mandate, which is scheduled to end on Jan. 15.

“The medical community’s asked for some additional time so that we have better facts on the ground. They’re learning a lot very quickly about the omicron variant. We’ll wait and see, and see what the situation looks like in early January for a decision,” Riley said on Dec. 17.

Several schools have met state vaccination thresholds and dropped their mask mandates, but state public health officials have also issued a general advisory recommending that people wear masks in indoor public spaces.

– Michael P. Norton/SHNS