It’s a challenging time for people charged with developing the workforce of the future for Rhode Island.
Not only are state agencies and nonprofits nationwide grappling with the potential loss or reduction of federal funding under President Donald Trump’s administration, but Rhode Island has its own set of issues, such as aging workers and a labor force not well aligned with the needs of employers.
Agencies such as R.I. Commerce Corp. and the R.I. Department of Labor and Training are now trying to plan for a future that involves doing more with less, Nora Crowley, DLT deputy director, said at Providence Business News’ 2025 Workforce Development Summit on Feb. 13.
Crowley was one of the panelists at the event who addressed a number of issues, such as the potential of facing reductions in funding and the Trump administration’s effort to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs, as well as the shifting hybrid workplace and the state’s potential deficit.
Crowley suggested the state’s public, private and nonprofit ecosystem learn to cooperate and find synergies within Rhode Island, taking advantage of organizations such as the RI Small Business Hub, the Governor’s Workforce Board, Skills for Rhode Island’s Future, and the New England Medical Innovation Center, among others.
Some of these organizations “tend to be a little bit niche and industry specific,” she said. “But that’s the point. ... They are saying this is what our industry needs and are directing resources to that space.”
Even before the November 2024 election, employers and employees were already trying to navigate the proliferation of hybrid and virtual work arrangements, something that has also become a target of the Trump administration.
Ara Millette, director of talent acquisition at Brown University Health, said the nonprofit health system – which employs more than 17,000 people – is continuing its push to find a balance between modern workforce norms and the needs of patients, establishing a “new model” that includes filling staffing gaps with remote employees.
“We are thinking about how virtual care can be leveraged to support our existing workforce,” she said. “Thinking about the in-migration of talent. Are there deeply experienced clinical professionals that can be employed virtually to support the boots on the ground?”
But sectors such as health care cannot rely solely on recruiting talent remotely, she added.
“So, we are thinking critically about each position’s individual requirements and whether that is possible at the job level,” Millette said.
Indeed, Crowley said that today, the majority of DLT staff work a hybrid schedule. But she said the state needs more of an overarching framework to guide Rhode Island’s workforce economy.
“Relying on people to figure it out themselves is probably not going to work in most cases,” she said. “And there is a cost to training people on how to use remote tools.”
All the panelists seemed to agree that changes in Washington, D.C., should not deter supporters of DEI initiatives.
“The idea of rolling [DEI] back, personally, is just a devastating thing to watch,” said Crowley, noting that Rhode Island’s population grew by 4.5% between the last two censuses. And half of those new residents were foreign-born.
“Our talent pool is becoming more diverse,” she said. “To celebrate the lack of DEI in the workplace and to think that is good news for the Rhode Island economy, you are missing a major opportunity to tap into the talent pool that we have.”
Crowley’s defense of DEI was met with applause from the crowd.
“This must be at the forefront for every company and for the state,” she said. “We are going to have to figure out how to navigate the political rhetoric and the political activity. But we don’t have the choice but to build inclusive workplaces.”
Millette said equity goals will remain “at the core” of what the organization does, adding that Brown Health is working to “eliminate barriers to entry” to the workforce while using the patient “as our North Star.”
Over 78% of the organization’s recruitment programs identify as having diverse racial and cultural backgrounds, Millette said. And it has produced over 700 workers speaking more than 50 different languages.
“I have seen how important it is to the patient who is being served to see themselves and their community in their health care provider,” she said.
But Crowley acknowledged something akin to the controversial undertaking by the newly created federal Department of Government Efficiency may be needed locally, making sure the state is “attaching some fairly rigorous performance outcomes to every dollar we invest.
“With fewer dollars, there needs to be a bigger return,” she said. “It is going to require us to think differently about where we put investments. We just don’t have the dollars to go around.”
Still, Katharine Amaral, director of programs and community partnerships for the nonprofit Junior Achievement of Rhode Island Inc., said there are still immense opportunities to shore up the state’s workforce by using technologies available to business owners, which universally have an “imperative to provide our workforce with the technology-based skills to be competitive.
“We can replicate a whole host of workplace environments,” she said. “You don’t have to be physically on-site to be able to get the learning experience that can be valuable to you ... we are just at the cusp of what’s possible.”
Prioritizing investments in youth-oriented workforce development will be required, particularly for the construction, health care and manufacturing jobs of the future. New England Institute of Technology recently dropped its tuition rates for skilled trade degrees by 47%.
But Amy Grzybowski, New England Tech vice president of workforce development and community relations, said with the squeeze on external funding, organizations will need to find more-creative ways to make up the difference, such as offering internal apprenticeships, internships and mentorships to bring younger generations into the fold.
“Students need to have these experiences outside the four walls of their schools and their homes,” she said.
