Abstract for: Cross-sector partnerships for building systems thinking capacity for Workforce Development

Structural barriers for workforce development persist despite one of the strongest labor markets in recent US history. Workforce development represents a complex system of workers, employers, non-profit organizations, educators, and others all pursuing their own goals. An ongoing challenge for institutional actors such as the US Federal Reserve Bank system is how match the urgency for systems change on workforce issues with capabilities and methods to engage with complex dynamics of workforce systems. This practitioner presentation describes an ongoing effort to build a system dynamics practice within the Federal Reserve Bank system that provides value to regional constituencies. We report on a cross-sector teaching partnerships through applied student work to seed materials & capabilities in the Fed System. The collaboration has yielded preliminary learning simulation models, resources for a resource guide about the potential contribution of systems thinking and systems modeling tools for workforce development issues, and insights about the promise and challenges of leveraging cross-sector partnerships to build sustainable systems thinking capacity at the Fed.