8
MiMfg Magazine
September 2017
Key
Conversations
A
Q
&
Interview with AARP’s Paula Dean Cunningham
Q: What is AARP?
Q: Manufacturers are very focused on
attracting talent they can train. Why
should they broaden their search for
talent to include experienced
workers who may still retire in the
next 5-10 years?
Cunningham: We are a membership
organization of more than 1.4 million
members. We work to lead positive change
and deliver value to all people 50+.
Q: And what is the Experience
Cunningham: Many experienced
for Hire program?
workers have the expertise required and
will need little training. Those who do
need training offer many advantages to
employers ranging from reliability to
problem-solving abilities.
Cunningham: Experience for Hire is an
AARP Michigan program that helps
match Michigan businesses with workers
50 and older who are looking for full or
part-time work and have skill sets that
are in demand. Employers in Michigan
report about 100,000 job openings,
many requiring skills that older adults
can provide.
“
Experienced workers can
provide valuable mentoring
for younger employees and
are an important source
of life experience and
institutional knowledge.
”
Q: How is the Experience for Hire program
useful for the manufacturing industry?
Cunningham: MMA has identified a
shortage of talent as their number one
priority and as the greatest stumbling
block for economic growth. AARP’s
Experience for Hire program is a
unique way for employers to connect
with a screened pool of applicants who
bring value to employers, require little
job training, can work full or part time
and often are not seeking benefits
beyond income.
Q: How is a multigenerational workforce
Paula D. Cunningham, State
Director, AARP Michigan
1 1 Served as CEO of Capitol National Bank.
She was the only African American woman
in the country to be president of a majority-
owned bank.
1 1 Was the first woman to be president of
Lansing Community College and the main
building on campus was named the Paula
D. Cunningham Administration Building in
2006. This is the only building named after
a woman in downtown Lansing.
1 1 Serves on numerous boards including
Davenport University and McLaren Health
Systems – Lansing, and she was the first
African American female to Chair the Lansing
Regional Chamber of Commerce Board.
Experience for Hire helps connect
manufacturers with skilled labor that, in
many cases, has left the workforce but
would welcome the opportunity to return.
effective in a manufacturin