WIP-Steve-Preston
Goodwill Industries International logo

When you think of Goodwill Industries, your first thought may be of the ubiquitous stores that sell gently-used clothes and household goods. While that is the very public-facing image of the company, it is not their primary mission.

In their own words, Goodwill works to enhance the dignity and quality of life of individuals and families by strengthening communities, eliminating barriers to opportunity, and helping people in need reach their full potential through learning and the power of work.

A few weeks ago, I had the chance to talk about Goodwill’s many work training programs with their CEO Steve Preston at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation’s national workforce conference Talent Forward 2019.

Preston explains that Goodwill gets involved with helping prepare people for work at many stages of their lives. “Sometimes people come to us in very difficult situations, and we work with them to make them workforce ready to get that first job,” says Preston. “And then we give them opportunities to move sort of through the progression through enhanced services.”

Goodwill CEO Steve Preston delivers keynote at Talent Forward 2019 (Photo: USCCF)

The results are impressive. “(In 2018), 38,000 people got credentials through us. In the first year-and-a-half of the launch of our new digital program, 70,000 people have gotten jobs. We’re overwhelmed by the numbers.”

To hear more about Goodwill training programs and their results, listen in on our conversation on this Work in Progress podcast, available wherever you get your podcasts.

To learn more about the Talent Forward 2019 national conference on workforce development, visit their website.

Episode 113: Steve Preston, CEO, Goodwill Industries Intl.
Host: Ramona Schindelheim, WorkingNation Editor-in-Chief
Producer: Larry Buhl
Executive Producers: Joan Lynch, Melissa Panzer, and Ramona Schindelheim
Music: Composed by Lee Rosevere and licensed under CC by 4.0.

You can check out all the other podcasts at this link: Work in Progress podcasts