6.0 Recommendations based on Best Practices and Lessons Learned

The following section summarizes the recommendations and best practices of this pilot of Bridging the Gap from the perspective of all of the participants. They are derived from telephone and in–person interviews, emails, conversations, and focus groups.

These have not been vetted for "correctness"; rather, they reflect the perceptions of the individual participants and the groups. It is intended the next iteration of Bridging the Gap can review these from the perspective of the recommenders and decide whether they should be implemented or not.

The following is a summary of the recommendations and best practices made by the stakeholders and participants of Bridging the Gap over the course of this evaluation. The detailed comments are contained in the Appendix Volume.

6.1 The Employment Partner

• The company must have a firm grasp of their short term and long term plans and the BTG program must not hinder the Business's Natural Development.
• The company must have strong leadership, organizational, and management skills.
• The company must not be relying on Government Funding for financial stability or potential growth.
• Employment partners must be a private sector business.
• Before a Community Learning Network selects their employment partner, it is critical that an interview process be conducted, the business/company fully understand the Bridging the Gap concept and their contribution to the program, and a meeting with the employment partner is held.
• It is recommended to review the screening/selecting process for selecting the employment partners.
• Should be guaranteed jobs at the end of it – not just a maybe
• The employment partner has to be partnership oriented. They can't demand to have control over everything.

6.2 Administration at the Site

• The book–keeping system must be automated.
• The Sponsor Organizations should be consulted when preparing the Policy and Procedure Manuals for the Coordinator and Participants.
• All of the contract agreements should be signed before the start of the project and before the budget is complete.