Attendees crunched case studies during a working lunch at the Tulsa Regional Chamber’s first HR Forum of the year March 13 in the Saint Francis Health System Room.

A group of about 30 human resources professionals also learned about Chamber workforce programs and heard updates about legislation that would affect businesses. 

Led by Rue Ramsey, vice president of workforce and talent strategies at the Chamber, the meeting focused on talent recruitment, acquisition and retention. She took case studies adapted over the years from regional employers and asked six groups of attendees to produce solutions. 

The challenges ranged from tackling drops in employee productivity to developing an employer’s first internship program.

Attendee Wade Dunn Jr., senior talent acquisition consultant at Williams, praised the forum’s content in comments he later posted on LinkedIn. 

“Tulsa Regional Chamber did an amazing job with the HR Forum today,” Dunn posted. “It was great conversation and great new connections!” 

Also at the meeting, Ramsey gave a status report on the Chamber’s Talent Pool Expansion, which seeks to recruit college students for Tulsa internships. Last year, the workforce team traveled to nine universities within a six-hour drive of Tulsa, meeting with 21 college executives and career service representatives to raise awareness about those opportunities.

The first such recruiting trip this year is scheduled for April 8-10. 

“We want to provide a concierge service where we can build relationships with these schools and that they know who Tulsa is,” Ramsey said. “…The research shows that if a student interns in a city, they are more likely to take the job if it comes. The goal is to work with companies that already have internship programs and expand their talent pool to include these students from these universities that we’re building relationships with.” 

In addition, Ramsey updated Tulsa’s NextGEN Talent (TNT), a Chamber program she described as a “a job shadow on steroids.” 

The initiative, which takes place over three weeks, places Black juniors and seniors from regional public schools in Tulsa-area companies for career exploration and experiential learning. The TNT cohort spends five days with the Chamber for professional development and eight days with employer sponsors.

Makala Barton, vice president of government affairs for the Chamber, talked about legislative issues. Among those her team is tracking are State Question 832 and House Bill 4147.

SQ 832, which could reach the ballot in November, would gradually raise Oklahoma’s minimum raise from $7.25 to $15 an hour by 2029. HB 4147, which has passed the House, would establish a tax credit for employers who assist employees with childcare expenses. It also would establish a tax credit to childcare workers. 

The Tulsa Women’s Commission is looking at childcare gaps in the city and is expected to present its findings to Mayor G.T. Bynum in May, Barton said.