About TalentEd

Mission

To increase the Detroit Region’s population educated beyond high school to 60% and cut the racial education equity gap in half by 2030 in order to provide a premier workforce employers need to compete and thrive for decades to come.

Vision

A prosperous Southeast Michigan can only be realized with a robust and inclusive talent pipeline that supports the highly skilled, innovative workforce that enables the Detroit Region to successfully compete and lead in the high-tech, knowledge economy.

What Sets Us Apart

Top Business Leadership Guides Our Strategy

The Chamber is the education and talent advocate who sees opportunities now. It brings employers from across Southeast Michigan together to serve as the top business voice in education and talent discourse. The Chamber’s education and talent strategy is shaped by a CEO Talent Council comprised of more than 20 business leaders from a variety of industries and led by Kelly’s Peter Quigley.

Proven, Scalable Programs Backed by One of Michigan’s Largest Business Organizations

The Detroit Regional Chamber is the largest business organization in the state with a proven record in education. It operates the most comprehensive portfolio of education and talent programs in the Detroit Region. It is positioned to identify, develop, and scale programs that are needed to develop tomorrow’s talent now. Many of the Chamber’s signature education and talent initiatives – achieving 60% post-high school education educational attainment by 2030, the Detroit Promise Scholarship and Detroit Reconnect – all served as precursors to similar statewide initiatives and programs.

Premier Data and Actionable Research That Sets Foundation for Action

As the premier and trusted source of regional business data, the Chamber annually publishes the State of Education and Talent Report which tracks key measures to achieving our 60% by 2030 educational attainment and cutting racial equity gap in half goals. It provides the foundation for data-driven collective action to identify and scale successful talent development programs while measuring the success of Chamber initiatives and programs.

Chamber's Greg Handel speaking at the 2024 Mackinac Policy Conference

Advocacy, Policy, and Influence at All Levels of Government

With one of the most effective and well-respected advocacy teams in Michigan, the Detroit Regional Chamber advocates for policies that improve educational outcomes and workforce development. It aggregates and pursues the business community’s priorities at all levels of government, from Detroit to D.C., while bringing education issues to some of Michigan’s most visible stages, including the Detroit and Mackinac Policy Conferences.

Collective Impact and Bringing Change to Education Systems

The Chamber is uniquely positioned to drive collective impact through its network of business, philanthropy, higher education, community groups, and talent. It brings the region’s leadership together to achieve common goals and integrate their actions to bring positive change to the complex educational system so that it delivers new and improved outcomes.

FAQs

How does the 60% by 2030 educational attainment benefit my business?: All businesses rely on talent. Every employer benefits from having a vast pool of talent as they recruit the employees needed to drive innovation and thrive. Having 60% or more of working-age adults with a college degree or post-high school credential ensures the region will have a steady flow of highly skilled talent that can help businesses across every industry secure talent today and into the future. Failing to achieve 60% will exacerbate our existing talent shortage, hurting the businesses and the region as a whole. More degrees means more highly skilled talent which leads to more businesses and economic growth.

How does this benefit the Detroit Region?

Educational attainment increases prosperity. For each one percentage point increase in adult educational attainment (four-year degree), there is a $1,500 increase in metro Detroit’s per capita income. Reaching the 60% post-high school educational attainment goal by 2030 will deliver an estimated return on investment of $42 billion for the Detroit Region.

Companies with the best paying jobs are going to the most educated places. PERIOD. To attract those companies, we need to show we have both the talent pool needed today, but a pipeline of highly skilled graduates to meet future needs. Increasing educational attainment and cutting the racial equity in half will also create a more equitable region where all can thrive.

Why is a business organization like the Detroit Regional Chamber engaged in talent and education work?

Amid the war for talent and the emergence of the knowledge-based, AI-driven economy, business can no longer afford to be passive in terms of talent development. Regions that don’t have top talent will struggle to compete economically. Employers cannot simply wait at the end of the talent pipeline and fight for highly skilled graduates.

The Detroit Regional Chamber is galvanizing the business community to take a proactive approach and empowering its members to support the talent pipeline to expand the talent pool. This is best achieved at the regional level by an organization that brings together business, education, government, and talent to increase post-high school educational attainment through a long-term strategy.

My company already has our own talent recruitment strategies in place, why should I get involved?

Education is about opportunity and social mobility. It’s about equity and the chance for our friends, neighbors, and family members to achieve their dreams and build the best possible lives and strongest communities where all can thrive. Your current and future employees have spouses, children, and grandchildren; creating a vibrant business climate leads to stronger communities where they can invest and reside in for decades to come.

Investing and participating in TalentEd creates a more resilient, prosperous and equitable region. We all want the Detroit Region to thrive. We want students in Michigan to have every opportunity to stay here after graduation.

The Detroit Regional Chamber offers the ability for you to create that bright prosperous future for Southeast Michigan. The education community cannot do this alone, it needs the support of an engaged and proactive business community. Our students and communities are counting on us to act.

Sources

*Georgetown University Center on Education and workforce, 2023 After Everything Report
**Don Grimes, Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S.
***2024 State of Education and Talent Report