Growing Leadership in the Workforce in Central MN

People are either born leaders or learn to be leaders.  Gail Cruikshank, Talent Director from the Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation joined me on WJON for our monthly "Get a Job" segment.  She identified how young people can become leaders.  Cruikshank says 65% of youth involved with Big Brothers and Big Sisters agreed their Big helped them reach a higher level of education than they thought possible.  52% reported their Big kept them from dropping out of school.  51.9% of high school students attending EPIC reported learning from someone in the field that was most effective for their career exploration.  These numbers indicate some sort of mentorship can be beneficial for young people.

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Experience, confidence and feeling valued are keys to those in the workforce becoming leaders.  Cruikshank says 89% of those who were mentored will go onto becoming a mentor themselves.  She explains that 76% of people think mentors are important but only 37% of people have them.  Cruikshank indicates 54% of young talent left their jobs because they felt undervalued.  97% of those with a mentor find the experience to be valuable.  Cruikshank says the pandemic caused a 30% increase in mentorship initiatives at organizations.

Cruikshank was a part of a community to strengthen youth leadership workshop.  She says takeaways include listening to youth and getting their input can be valuable.  Cruikshank says youth can teach older workers as well with a different perspective.  She says youth want to be involved in decisions that are made at work and they often times want to be involved in local community activities.

If you'd like to learn about job openings in the St. Cloud area visit stcloudshines.com.  For employer tips and information about the Greater St. Cloud Development Corporation.  My conversation with Gail Cruikshank is available below.