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Post-Secondary Workforce Development Profile Through Year 2005 in' Rowan and Cabarrus Counties Executive Summary This study was designed to provide workforce projections.for technical and skilled occupations in Rowan and Cabarrus Counties through the year 2005. This i'eport details how RCCC was able to utilize existing .data,. combined with the best thinking of expert focus groups, in order to achieve that purpose. The study's projections .focus on job openings*in the region which require less than a four year degree-for employment. The shortage of skilled and technical workers in the region is most acute, and these are jobs which are usually filled from the region's existing labor force. Thus the supply of these workers must be trained and cultivated' within the two counties. It is most important to workforce development program planners to have information regarding market demand for these occupations. In conducting this study, information was gathered and processed from a number of agencies, commissions and chambers of commerce; however, the main. resource was the expertise and advice provided' by members o[ twelve focus groups convened to review and update employment projections. These focus groups, involving over 100 local business and industry representatives, most of whom were employers, provided invaluable contributions to. the success of the study. Section I of the report provides analysis of NC Office of State Planning projections of population and workforce statistics for Rowan and Cabarrus Counties between the years 2000-2005. The projections show a continued labor shortage in a region experiencing accelerated growth. This shortage, combined with the continued challenge of attracting qualified workers to technical occupations, makes the employment situation in these occupations critical. At the same time, the workforce will become increasingly diverse, with Hispanic representation growing. The literacy level of workers is a continuing problem in many of these occupations as well. The combination'of these factors makes it vital ~for planners in the region to have knowledge of future occupational trends in the skilled and technical occupations so that support can be provided for educational and training programs." Section II of the report presents the projections of job openings for Rowan and Cabarrus Counties in six occupational clusters through the year 2005. The focus groups were given, as an aid to their work, projections that had been localized from statewide Employment Secudty Commission estimates. Because the ESC data on which the projections were based w~s 1994 data, it was likely that the localized projections were underestimated, given the high growth rates in the two counties over recent years. The decision was made to delay the completion of the study to allow for the incorporation of mor~ re'cent ESC figures, available in advance draft in November 1999, thus ensuring a higher degree of accuracy for. the study's results. This updated data, through the use of weighted means, was incorporated with the twelve focus' groups' best estimates of job openings in their occupational areas. A Iow to high range of vadance for the employment projections was then constructed for each