OKLAHOMA CITY (OBV) — The Oklahoma Workforce Commission is close to hiring a CEO who will coordinate workforce development strategies across the state.
The Workforce Commission met on Thursday at the Oklahoma Department of Commerce and quickly went into executive session to discuss the status of the two-month-long, nationwide search for a CEO who will lead Oklahoma’s workforce efforts.
Around 90 candidates were considered for the position. That pool was ultimately narrowed down to three top candidates, each of whom was interviewed in person.
“We’re on the verge of making an offer to our top candidate,” said Scott Briggs, a commissioner on the Workforce Commission.
Briggs, who is also the vice president of Human Resources for OG&E, said the Workforce Commission is searching for a candidate with deep and broad workforce development experience.
“That was a fundamental thing we were looking for,” Briggs said. “But we were also looking for somebody who’s going to come in with a really collaborative approach. Somebody who will come in and help all of our various stakeholders get aligned around a central, focused, strategic plan to go after those workforce development initiatives.”
Briggs said it’s also important that the CEO understands the importance of metrics to measure important outcomes, as well as data so to help the Commission compile different data sources that will be used to make important decisions.
He described stakeholders as various education organizations and institutions, including Oklahoma CareerTech and secondary and post-secondary schools, workforce boards across the state, employers and business leaders and current and future job seekers.
Workforce Commissioner Dirk O’Hara said he spoke with stakeholders during a Nov. 4 Zoom meeting, finding out what qualities they want the workforce CEO to have. He said they are looking for someone who is data-driven, strategic, visionary and is not afraid to unite them behind a strategic plan.
Senate Bill 621 established the Oklahoma Workforce Commission when it was signed into law in June 2023.
The Workforce Commission works to coordinate the state’s workforce efforts. Their objective is to streamline workforce processes into a more efficient and effective system that will grow the economy and produce greater numbers of skilled workers.
SB 621 was born from research which revealed a workforce deficiency in Oklahoma. A State Chamber and Business Roundtable joint survey found that 60 percent of Oklahoma’s business community said workforce shortages were the number one threat to business growth and expansion. Chad Warmington, president and CEO of The State Chamber of Oklahoma, and The State Chamber Research Foundation provided Gov. Kevin Stitt and legislators research data which showed that Oklahoma was 36,000 workers deficient in filling available jobs.
It was determined that a new, focused workforce management system was needed to grow the state’s workforce and fill the thousands upon thousands of available jobs.
The Commission is composed of nine members, each a representative from Oklahoma’s private business sector. It has been meeting since January, gathering information from state officials and leaders across the state’s industrial sectors. The Commission will rely on that information when creating workforce development strategies and administer and oversee funding allocated by the legislature for workforce development initiatives. The commission can contract with outside parties to achieve its goals.
