What Worked in Workforce in 2025

What Worked in Workforce in 2025

NOV. 18, 2025

The experiences of WP Rawl and the South Carolina Department of Environmental Services (SCDES) demonstrate that prioritizing leadership development and accessible growth pathways is one of the most effective ways to strengthen recruitment, retention, and workforce resilience in a competitive labor market. The insights below were drawn from a panel featuring Laura Rubio of WP Rawl, Sean Riley of SCDES, and Jeremy Catoe of Midlands Technical College.

The Challenge: Competing for Talent in Demanding Environments

Both organizations operate in environments where traditional incentives—especially salary—are not enough to attract and retain the workforce they need.

WP Rawl faces high turnover due to cold, wet, and loud working conditions, along with shortages in critical technical roles such as diesel technicians. These positions are essential for maintaining operational uptime, making recruitment and retention a constant challenge.

Following a major restructuring, SCDES must align engineers, inspectors, and technical staff with new regulatory responsibilities. The agency also faces cultural integration challenges as teams adapt to new expectations and organizational structures.

The Core Solution: Investing in Leadership and Growth

Both organizations show that intentional employee development—especially leadership training—is one of the most effective ways to strengthen recruitment, retention, and long‑term organizational resilience.

Leadership is a Skillset, Not a Title.

WP Rawl and SCDES develop leaders at every level, recognizing that strong supervisory and interpersonal skills don’t automatically come from technical expertise. SCDES reinforces this by offering leadership programs for non‑supervisory staff, viewing leadership as foundational to a more capable, resilient culture.

Early Access Drives Retention.

To reduce turnover and compete with rising wages, both organizations removed barriers such as tenure requirements for training. SCDES fast‑tracks high‑performing new hires into training— a critical, low‑cost perk that demonstrates commitment to the employee’s future and supports retention. 

Intentional Development Pathways.

WP Rawl emphasized the importance of structured, clearly defined growth paths. As Laura Rubio explained:

“We’ve created learning paths and career positions that give our teams a mix of skills at every level. It’s helped us develop well‑rounded professionals and future leaders. We start with the technical skills and then layer in interpersonal and leadership training so we can truly grow our people.”

Her perspective reinforces the broader message: organizations that invest in their people build stronger, more adaptable teams.

Clear Outcomes. 

These efforts have strengthened communication, improved collaboration, and increased retention among high‑potential employees, creating cultures better equipped to navigate change.

Key Strategic Recommendations

1. Prioritize Leadership Development: Implement tiered, customized training programs that combine technical upskilling with essential interpersonal skills. Ensure programs address real organizational challenges and develop leadership capacity across all levels.

2. Ensure Flexibility and Accessibility: Use modular, time‑conscious training formats that accommodate remote staff, field workers, and varied shifts. SCDES’s “train‑themed” model illustrates this approach. As Sean Riley described:

“We designed the program to be time‑cognizant, built around short learning spurts so employees can jump on at any point, pause when needed, and rejoin later. Just like a real train ride, new people come on at different times, which creates natural collaboration across the organization.”

This structure not only supports flexibility but also encourages cross‑department interaction as new participants join at different times.

3. Use Growth as a Retention Incentive: Position early access to development as a core recruitment and retention strategy. Today’s workforce values continuous learning – offering it upfront strengthens competitiveness even when salary flexibility is limited.

Missed the webinar? You can watch the discussion here!