The future of Missouri’s workforce starts with giving young people opportunities to explore careers firsthand. Macon Electric Cooperative was proud to be part of Build My Future Macon, held September 16 in Macon, where area students had the opportunity to discover a variety of skilled trades and career paths available close to home.
Build My Future is more than a traditional career fair. Instead of simply hearing about different occupations, students have the opportunity to interact with professionals, ask questions and experience aspects of different careers through hands-on demonstrations. The event connects students with local employers and organizations while showcasing career opportunities that may not always be found in a traditional classroom setting.
For Macon Electric Cooperative, the event provided an opportunity to introduce students to careers within the electric cooperative industry and give them a better understanding of what it takes to provide safe and reliable electricity to our communities.
More Than a Job
Working for an electric cooperative requires a unique combination of technical knowledge, teamwork, problem-solving and a strong commitment to safety. While lineworkers are often the most visible employees of an electric cooperative, especially during outages and severe weather, it takes employees with many different skills to keep a cooperative operating successfully.
From operations and engineering to member services, accounting, communications and technology, electric cooperatives offer a wide range of career opportunities. Each position plays an important role in fulfilling the cooperative's mission and serving its members.
Events like Build My Future allow students to begin making those connections between their interests and potential careers.
For students interested in becoming lineworkers, the opportunity to interact with electric utility professionals can be especially valuable. Linework is a highly skilled profession that requires extensive training and an unwavering commitment to safe work practices. Lineworkers must also be prepared to work in challenging conditions, including extreme temperatures, storms and after-hours outages.
Those responsibilities come with something equally important like the opportunity to serve neighbors and communities.
Investing in the Next Generation
As a locally owned electric cooperative, Macon Electric understands the importance of developing a strong workforce in rural Missouri. Encouraging young people to explore skilled trades and other local career opportunities can help strengthen our communities for generations to come.
Workforce development is also an important part of preparing for the future of the electric utility industry. Technology continues to change the way cooperatives operate, but the need for skilled, dependable employees remains constant. Introducing students to these careers early can help them understand the education, training and skills they will need to pursue them after high school.
Build My Future creates an environment where students can ask questions, try something new and perhaps discover a career they had never considered before.
Macon Electric Cooperative is grateful for the opportunity to participate alongside other area businesses, organizations and skilled professionals who invested their time in local students. Bringing employers and students together helps demonstrate that meaningful and rewarding career opportunities can be found right here in our region.
Whether one of the students who attended this year's event someday becomes a lineworker, electrician, equipment operator, technician, engineer or chooses another career entirely, giving young people the chance to explore their options is an investment in the future of our communities.
At Macon Electric Cooperative, we're proud to help power that future.