The new Kansas 1st system provides workforce development assistance to Kansas businesses. This assistance may include direct or indirect funding assistance to train employees, financial incentives such as tax abatements and tax credits, helping to recruit qualified employees, and partnering with educational institutions to develop and provide customized training for Kansas businesses.
In addition to her other duties as Kansas 1st Operations Manager, Molzhon works with the three Commerce training assistance programs (Kansas Industrial Training [KIT], Kansas Industrial Retraining [KIR], and Investments in Major Products and Comprehensive Training [IMPACT]).
“This job is very rewarding, in that I am actually in a situation where I can provide real and measurable assistance to Kansas businesses,” Molzhon said. “Our organizational philosophy is to always look for a way to say ‘yes’ to the customer, within appropriate legal, moral and ethical boundaries.” The Kansas 1st initiative provides holistic workforce development assistance for Kansas businesses. This includes: acquiring direct or indirect funding assistance to train employees, giving financial incentives (such as tax abatements and tax credits) to businesses, helping to recruit qualified employees, and sharing training expertise from Kansas educational institutions.
“Because of our flexibility, our customers consistently rate our programs very high for customer satisfaction and providing measurable results,” Molzhon said.
Kansas 1st is the most comprehensive change to occur in the state’s workforce development system in over 30 years. Its launch on July 1, 2004, coincided with the merger of the Employment and Training Division (of the former Department of Human Resources) into the Business Development Division of the Department of Commerce. Ultimately, the Kansas 1st system will be capable of providing qualified employees for any employer, anywhere in Kansas.
For Molzhon, the joy of the job is in helping small businesses to grow and become more competitive.
“We have worked with businesses that started out with only a few employees. As they have grown and expanded their operations and added new jobs, we have continued to provide assistance for training their new employees, as well as retraining existing employees in new technology or new production lines. These employers will tell you that the ability to provide appropriate, timely training is one of the most important factors in operating at peak productivity.”
Molzhon moved to the area in 1996 from Montana, where she worked in adult training and economic development. She received a bachelor’s degree in business administration from Montana State University–Northern. After moving to Kansas, she worked for the Kansas Division of Personnel Services, before becoming the program manager for the KIT program. Now, she is dedicated full time to the Department of Commerce.
“My colleagues and co-workers are some of the most professional, hard-working, caring and fun people that I have ever worked around,” said Molzhon. “I love being in a work situation where I am constantly growing and learning so much from my colleagues and co-workers.”
Paula Peters is a freelance writer and the owner of Peters Writing Services Inc., which specializes in writing technical and marketing materials. She can be reached at (913) 485-4537 or .
