First of all, welcome to your new network!

 

As you know, this network is a collaboration of three entities -- you know CEOs for Cities, and the content in the Talent Dividend Network publication is the work of the Issue Media Group. I work for the third group: The Civic Commons. We're a new kind of civic social media environment, designed explicitly for advancing productive dialogue about the issues that matter most to communities across the nation. So, when it's time to engage in a conversation with your peers in the Talent Dividend Network, whether they're in Dayton or Denver, Portland or Philadelphia, or any city in between, you'll be able to do that at the TDN site on The Civic Commons.

 

Every month, we'll have new opportunities for engagement that grow right from the coverage in this newsletter. We know you're busy, so we're committed to making these opportunities as useful and relevant as possible. Starting Monday, July 30, at 10 am EST, economist and Talent Dividend metrics guru Joe Cortright is joining us for a two-week online forum to answer your questions and think with you about the best ways to measure the important work you're doing. 

 

We'd also love to hear your thoughts on how well reverse transfers are working in your community (and if they're not working, why?). And the other topic this month is workforce development -- specifically, in the realm of workforce development, what's working in your community, and what do you wish could work a bit better?

 

If you have ideas about other conversations you'd like to have with other members of the network, issues you've been stymied by, or ideas you want to bounce around, you can always start a conversation yourself, or, just email me and we'll work together on it. 

 

At the TDN site, we'll also be collecting some of the stories about what's working, building a library of evidence-based best practices, and providing a collection of the most useful resources for studying and understanding Talent Dividend work.

 

So, whenever you want to jump in to or start a conversation about your Talent Dividend work, just click on the ENGAGE link above or point your browser to theciviccommons.com/TDN. When you get there, you can log in with either a Facebook account or an email address, and then dive right into the conversation that interests you. 

 

And along the way, if you have any ideas about engagement opportunities you'd like to see, success stories you'd like to tell the network about or best practices you'd like to share, please just email me.

 

See you at The Civic Commons!

Emily Cole is Community Connector at The Civic Commons, engagement partner to CEOS for Cities and the Talent Dividend Network.