Food for Thought as you continue to plan for sustainability
and scaling within your community college
WIOA Quick Start Action Planner
User Guide
What is the WIOA
Quick Start Action Planner?
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) presents
an extraordinary opportunity for the public workforce system to transform and
improve the quality of life for job seekers and workers through an integrated,
job-driven system that links diverse talent to our nation’s businesses.
The WIOA Quick Start Action Planner (QSAP) is an
interactive, self-paced assessment tool designed to help leaders at all levels
of the public workforce system plan for this transformation and prepare for the
implementation of WIOA. The WIOA QSAP helps workforce leaders identify areas of
strength and targets for improvement in their workforce system and connect to
targeted resources to prepare and plan effectively.
Who should use the
Quick Start Action Planner?
The QSAP is designed for leaders in the public workforce
system at the state and local levels. Completing the QSAP and holding a team
discussion on the results will help states and local areas develop a common
understanding of their readiness to implement WIOA – and jointly develop a plan
to address opportunities for action.
How does the Quick
Start Action Planner Work?
The WIOA QSAP is comprised of a series of assessments on
critical topics, such as partnerships, governance and leadership, One-Stop
service design, and youth strategies. State and local leaders are encouraged to
complete all of the relevant QSAPs in the series.
|
QSAP
|
Target Group
|
|
Partnerships
|
State and local leaders
|
|
State Governance and Leadership
|
State level leaders
|
|
Local Governance and Leadership
|
Local level leaders
|
|
One-Stop Center Service Design
|
State and local leaders
|
|
Youth Service Strategies
|
State and local leaders
|
|
Eligible Training Providers
|
State and local leaders
|
Each QSAP contains a
list of indicator statements related to the topic. Review each indicator
statement and rate how well your state or local area is prepared for WIOA
implementation in that area.
Starting the WIOA Quick Start Action Planner
Step 1 – Select a
QSAP
Start by selecting a topic on the WIOA QSAP page at
https://wioa.workforce3one.org/page/planner.
Step 2 – Complete the
QSAP
You will be asked to respond to a series of indicator
statements that assess where you believe your workforce system currently stands
related to WIOA implementation. Some indicator statements will be applicable to
both the state and local level, while others are for state or local level
leaders. The indicators will be clearly identified – respond to only those
indicator statements that are applicable to your level in the workforce system.
Step 3 – Get the
Results
Once you have responded to all the indicators and completed
the QSAP, you will receive a report of the results. This report will also
include direct links to technical assistance resources related to that topic
area that can help you to prepare and plan effectively for WIOA. You can choose
to download the results report or e-mail the report to yourself and others.
As you begin, please keep in mind…
·
Each QSAP will take approximately 20 minutes to
complete.
·
In order to ensure confidentially in completing
the assessment, your responses will not be saved.
·
You therefore must respond to all the indicator
statements in the individual QSAP – if you leave the website before completing
the assessment, your responses will be lost!
How to use the Quick Start Action Planner for Results
The WIOA QSAP can be used in multiple ways to prepare for
the implementation of WIOA and identify the changes needed to transform the
public workforce system. Regardless of the approach, you will get the most
benefit from using the QSAP if the results are discussed with a team, such as
the State or Local Board, a coalition of partner programs, or the designated
WIOA implementation workgroup. A team discussion will help develop a common
understanding of the level of readiness to implement WIOA, and help align
around targets for change and improvement in the workforce system.
·
When holding a team discussion, consider the
following questions:
·
What areas represent our strengths?
·
What areas represent opportunities for
improvement?
·
Do we have internal disagreements about our
self-assessment scoring? What can we learn from the different perspectives?
·
What are the priorities for change for our
workforce system?
The following are examples of ways you can use the WIOA QSAP
and get the most use out of the tool!
Individual Results
and Team Discussion
Multiple individuals in a group can take the QSAP separately
using the on-line assessment tools available at
https://wioa.workforce3one.org/page/planner. The results can be saved by
individuals and e-mailed to share with others in the group.
Once the group members have individually completed the
QSAPs, the team then comes together to discuss the results, develop a shared
understanding of areas of strength and improvement, and collectively identify
priorities for change.
Facilitated Group
Discussion
Each QSAP is also available as a PDF document at
https://wioa.workforce3one.org/page/planner. You can print the QSAPs to use as
a tool as part of a strategic planning meeting. A facilitator can lead your
team through a discussion of the indicators in the QSAP, and help resolve
disagreements and reach consensus about the current status of the workforce
system and where changes are needed.
Benchmarking Progress
The WIOA QSAP can also be a valuable tool to help assess
your efforts to implement WIOA and make changes to your workforce system over
time. Complete the QSAP now and save the results as your benchmark – then take
the QSAP in 6 months or a year to assess your progress.
Develop a WIOA Action Plan
After you have completed the QSAP and discussed the results
with your team, you can develop a WIOA Action Plan to address the areas of
opportunity identified during the group discussion.
An Action Plan template is available on the WIOA QSAP page
at https://wioa.workforce3one.org/page/planner .
Use the template to develop a plan of the actions needed to
prepare for and implement WIOA, and make the transformative changes envisioned
for the workforce system under the new law
The Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act
