Watch CBS News

State Rolls Out New Web Site, Pure Michigan Talent Connect

LANSING (WWJ) - As part of Gov. Rick Snyder's rollout of new ideas for job creation, state officials Thursday introduced a new Web site, Pure Michigan Talent Connect, at www.mitalent.com.

State officials say the site is intended as the state's central hub for talent, employment and educators. At launch, the site featured more than 77,600 Michigan jobs and other career exploration tools.

The site features information and resources that give job creators the tools necessary to help identify and develop their talent base and job seekers the ability to create a personalized plan to help them find new jobs and effectively navigate career searches.

Officials said the site was still in its first phase, which includes streamlining existing career and job content from existing state, federal, educational and non-profit Web sites. and a "career matchmaker" tool which allows job seekers to make better informed decisions by determining the industries and regions where skills are in high-demand today and projected to be tomorrow and a Career Investment Calculator that helps job seekers determine the best financial return on investment for a chosen education or training program.

State officials said that despite great demand for jobs, thousands remain unfilled. A May Manpower survey found more than half of employers reporting difficulty filling openings crucial to organizations.

Snyder told the Associated Press that the effort was "really about creating a Web site, a Web environment, where people can go through and ... find out good information about connecting talent with jobs and careers, and giving people better tools to build their career on. We have tens of thousands of open positions in Michigan and ... we're not necessarily turning out people with the skill sets to match up with those."

Snyder unveiled his new talent development plan to about 100 people Thursday at Delta College, a community college near Saginaw.

Snyder said he wants the state's community colleges, universities and trade schools to stop "overproducing" graduates in areas where there aren't jobs. He didn't specify what those were, but emphasized more degrees are needed in computer programming, math, health care, engineering, and trades such as welding.

Mike Boulus, executive director of the President's Council that represents the 15 state universities, said he hopes the focus doesn't narrow down to just careers that are in demand at the moment, noting "the jobs of today may not be the jobs of tomorrow." And he said the state has made it more difficult for residents to get a college degree by repeatedly cutting funding for higher education, a move he wants to see reversed in future budgets.

TM and © Copyright 2011 CBS Radio Inc. and its relevant subsidiaries. CBS RADIO and EYE Logo TM and Copyright 2011 CBS Broadcasting Inc. Used under license. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.