Employer Talent Solutions

Building a Stronger Manufacturing Workforce: The Power of Collaboration

As manufacturers across West Michigan continue to navigate workforce shortages, a first-of-its-kind employer collaboration is proving that shared challenges are best solved together. Launched in...

Navigating the AI Era: How West Michigan Can Turn Disruption into Opportunity

By Kevin Stotts, President, TalentFirst When WOOD TV recently explored how “West Michigan industries mull how to navigate AI,” the conversation underscored a defining moment...

TalentFirst Industry Deep Dives: Where West Michigan’s Talent Strategy Gets Real

West Michigan’s talent market is shifting in ways that will set the trajectory for growth over the next decade. Retirement risk is accelerating. Hiring is...

Solving the Talent Constraint: Skills, Agility, and the CEO Imperative

West Michigan—and the nation—are at an inflection point. Retirements will outpace new entrants for the next two decades, creating a high demand for fresh talent...

AI and the Future of Work in West Michigan: A Catalyst, Not a Replacement

AI is no longer a distant concept — it’s here, reshaping industries and redefining how people work. From advanced manufacturing and healthcare to financial services...

Opening Doors with MiCareerCompass

By Kevin Stotts, President of TalentFirst At the Believe in Our City event in early September of 2025, I had the chance to share...

From Risk to Resilience: How West Michigan’s Leaders Are Future-Proofing Their Workforce

By Kevin Stotts, President of TalentFirst The numbers are clear, and the stakes are high. Nearly one in four workers in our region is...

Why We’re Giving All Employers Access to Our Childcare Solutions

Successful business leaders don’t tolerate broken components of their operations. When a department fails to deliver, when costs overrun revenue, when a system breaks down?...

Work-Based Learning: The Key to Next-Generation Talent

Before joining Mercantile Bank a decade ago, Misti Stanton worked in education for 25 years. Today, as Mercantile’s Vice President of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion,...

Taking a Team Approach To Foster Learning and Engagement

Most employers understand the benefits of breaking down the silos that isolate human resources from the rest of the organization. But few have managed to...