The St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce recently broadened an effort to attract more talent to the community. Uncommon Life is an initiative and marketing campaign that has two goals: attract new employees to fill important job gaps and welcome new residents and help them feel at home in St. Joseph.
“At any given moment, there are more than 600 jobs available at the Jobs Center, and that doesn’t account for all of the higher-skilled and white-collar jobs that also need to be filled,” said R. Patt Lilly, President and CEO of the St. Joseph Chamber of Commerce. “While we’re continuing to grow workforce development initiatives to get more students interested in technical jobs, we need to attract new residents to fill this need now.”
Uncommon Life’s website, uncommonlife.info, highlights testimonials of why others have decided to move to St. Joseph, a new job board that features open positions, an example of homes in the area, a community calendar and links to the Made With Uncommon Character site to find more information about schools, attractions and more.
A targeted marketing campaign has begun to attract machinists, engineers, welders and others involved in skilled manufacturing, as well as healthcare. Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube will be the main distribution channels for these ads that will run primarily in the Midwest, but also to a lesser degree in California.
“Making a decision to move isn’t easy, but research shows that if the job, salary and community are a good fit, people will relocate to a new community,” Lilly said. “It’s our job to make sure they’re aware about all of the opportunities St. Joseph has to offer. In a world where companies decide where to locate based heavily on the available workforce, St. Joseph has to be able to fill jobs in current companies, as well as with potential new employers.”
Uncommon Life has tools available to recruiters like community tours and welcome baskets to make it easier for a prospective new hire to choose St. Joseph. See more at uncommonlife.saintjoseph.com/hr
Besides attraction, another part of this initiative is welcoming and retaining new employees.
“It’s important that newcomers make connections and know where to get information about their city,” Lilly said.
A Facebook group (Uncommon Life, New St. Joseph, Mo., Residents) has been created for people to talk among themselves about St. Joseph happenings. Welcome ice breakers and other socials are also planned, one of which is happening next month.
The Get to Know St. Joseph Event, is a tailgate before the Northwest Missouri State University vs. Missouri Western State University game on Sept. 5. New residents are encouraged to attend to be able to talk to local experts on items they may want to know more about, like where to go for childcare, the dentist, sports leagues and more.
The event is from 5 to 7 p.m. Admission is free, but RSVP is required because a ticket to the football game is included. For more information, see saintjoseph.com and click on events.
Uncommon Life is presented by Altec Industries, Inc., and Mosaic Life Care.