Creating access to employment opportunities is at the heart of workforce development. For too many individuals, particularly those from communities with limited access to resources and those historically excluded from traditional systems communities, pathways to sustainable careers remain unclear, inaccessible, or out of reach. So, how do we expand opportunities in a way that is inclusive, scalable, and sustainable?
To meet this moment, we must embrace a holistic approach—one that supports self-discovery, recognizes a broad range of backgrounds and experiences, and uses technology as a bridge rather than a challenge. Expanding access isn't simply about filling open positions; it's about equipping people with the tools, knowledge, and confidence to chart their own path toward economic mobility.
Self-Discovery as a Starting Point
Expanding opportunity begins by helping individuals understand their own potential. Many people navigating unemployment, career changes, or systemic challenges may not have had the chance to reflect on their interests, strengths, or values in a structured way. Without that self-knowledge, it’s easy to feel stuck—or to pursue roles that ultimately lead to short-term retention and burnout.
When we guide individuals through self-discovery, whether through structured assessments, reflective exercises, or coaching tailored for each person, we help them see possibilities they may never have imagined. This process gives people language to describe what motivates them and how they best contribute. It also lays the groundwork for career exploration that feels relevant, empowering, and rooted in who they are.
For workforce programs, integrating self-discovery into intake or orientation can transform how individuals engage with services. It shifts the focus from placement to purpose.
Navigating the New Norms of Engagement
The rise of hybrid and remote work has reshaped what access looks like in the labor market. For some, it has opened new doors—especially for those with transportation, caregiving, or health-related challenges. For others, it has deepened the sense of isolation and disconnectedness from career growth opportunities.
To bridge this gap, self-awareness tools and communication style assessments can be powerful resources. When individuals understand how they can work remotely, how they communicate, manage time, and stay motivated—they can advocate for what they need. Employers benefit as well, building more cohesive and collaborative virtual teams.
Personalizing Onboarding with AI-Powered Tools
The first days on the job are often make-or-break for new employees, particularly those entering unfamiliar industries or returning to work after a gap. AI-powered guides and self-paced onboarding platforms offer an opportunity to personalize this experience, helping individuals feel seen, supported, and ready.
When onboarding includes tools for self-discovery—such as identifying learning preferences, workplace motivators, or long-term aspirations—it sends a message: you are supported here, and we want you to grow. This kind of digital support is especially critical in high-volume or remote hiring settings, where face-to-face coaching may be limited.
Workforce development systems can partner with employers to co-design onboarding solutions that are welcoming by design by default—not just accessible to a few.
Bridging Differences to Build Adaptability
A welcoming by design workforce is an intergenerational, cross-cultural, with varied learning and thinking styles. For that vision to succeed, we must help individuals and employers understand the impact of generational perspectives and personality differences on collaboration and productivity.
When teams are trained to value different communication styles, feedback preferences, and work rhythms, they become more resilient and innovative. For job seekers, being aware of how they engage with others builds confidence and adaptability—traits that are vital across every sector.
Making Tools Accessible Through Community Partners
Community-based organizations are often the first point of contact for individuals seeking support. Free, self-guided tools—such as career quizzes, interest inventories, and personality assessments—can serve as powerful gateways to deeper engagement.
These tools work best when paired with supportive facilitation. A local workforce program might host a workshop where participants explore their quiz results together, sparking conversations about strengths, fears, and dreams. A reentry program could use the results to map individuals to industries where their talents are valued.
By removing cost and complexity, self-guided tools democratize career exploration and empower individuals to take their next steps with confidence.
Designing Scalable Systems
Technology has the potential to revolutionize career navigation—but only if it is intentionally designed to serve those with the least access. Digital platforms that combine assessments, labor market data, and personalized pathways can dramatically increase reach.
That means ensuring mobile access for individuals without laptops. It means including content that reflects the lived experience of users—from formerly incarcerated adults to youth disconnected from school and work.
Rebuilding Confidence for Individuals Facing Challenges
For individuals impacted by incarceration, housing instability, or immigration status, workforce reentry often begins with healing. They may have internalized messages of unworthiness or lack of potential. Workforce development must first be human development.
Coaching and peer mentorship that is sensitive to life experiences, using tools that help individuals reframe their stories are essential. Career assessments and storytelling exercises help individuals recognize the strengths they've cultivated through life experience—adaptability, leadership, and problem-solving—and begin to envision where those strengths belong in the labor market.
Creating space for dignity, reflection, and renewal is a critical part of expanding access.
Looking Beyond Resumes to See the Whole Person
Traditional hiring systems often filter out talented individuals simply because they don’t have linear career histories or formal credentials. To build a truly welcoming by design talent pipeline, employers—and the workforce systems that support them—must learn to look beyond the resume.
By understanding someone’s interests, values, learning styles, and goals, workforce professionals can build holistic talent profiles that show employers a fuller picture of a candidate’s potential. These insights also support better job matching and internal career mobility.
Helping employers adopt these practices expands access to roles that might otherwise remain out of reach for nontraditional candidates.
Investing in Career and Personal Development
The most successful workforce strategies recognize that career success is intertwined with personal growth. When people are supported in building not just job-specific skills, but self-awareness, emotional adaptability, and confidence, they are more likely to remain engaged and upwardly mobile.
Programs that integrate coaching, well-being, and opportunities for personal development create a foundation for sustained success. Employers that offer similar supports on the job see higher retention and stronger employee engagement.
This dual investment—career and personal—makes workforce access sustainable.
Building Mindsets for the Future of Work
Today’s economy requires workers who can adapt, learn continuously, and face change with confidence. Developing a growth mindset, emotional intelligence, and adaptability is just as important as acquiring technical skills.
Workforce development programs can nurture these mindsets by creating environments that normalize learning curves, celebrate progress, and encourage reflection. When individuals believe in their ability to grow and adapt, they approach opportunities with optimism and persistence.
Preparing people for the future of work means preparing their mindsets, not just their resumes.
Takeaways
Expanding access and opportunity in the workforce requires more than programmatic tweaks—it requires change, collaboration, designing services that center human potential, leveraging technology to scale impact, and fostering partnerships across employers, community organizations, and policymakers.
By committing to strategies that meet individuals where they are, we can unlock talent that has too often been overlooked. We can build pathways that don’t just open doors—but support people as they walk through them.
The future of work belongs to everyone. It’s up to all of us to ensure that opportunity does too.
ABOUT THIS AUTHOR
Eric Sheperd, leader of the Foundation for Talent Transformation, helps individuals develop self-awareness, resilience, and life skills through expert guidance, free assessments, and AI-enabled assistants.
