00;00;01;05 - 00;00;29;29
Joe Carr
Welcome to the Providence College Podcast. I'm Joe Carr and our producer today is Chris Judge. Today's guest is Lauren Jones, the class of 2005 PC graduate who currently serves as Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development and Massachusetts Governor Maura Haley's cabinet. Her appointment in January of this year is the latest step in the exceptional career involving leadership roles in both the Commonwealth and in the city of Boston, along with non-profits working to align workforce opportunities and business needs.

00;00;30;01 - 00;00;49;18
Joe Carr
Called by Governor Healey, the experienced collaborative leader, we need to lead the Office of Labor and Workforce Development. Secretary Jones comes to her new role at a time of urgent need to address workforce related challenges, especially as related to worker shortages. From her PC experiences to the changing landscape of work, we have a lot of ground to cover.

00;00;49;20 - 00;00;52;29
Joe Carr
So welcome to the Providence College Podcast, Secretary Jones.

00;00;53;01 - 00;00;55;18
Lauren Jones
Thank you so much, Joe. I appreciate you having me.

00;00;55;20 - 00;01;02;26
Joe Carr
With our alumni, I guess we like to start most times with the origin stories. So what is it that brought you to Providence College in the first place?

00;01;02;29 - 00;01;31;20
Lauren Jones
Wow. I have to dust off my memory book for this one, but I recall I had gone to a private Catholic school pretty much all my life. And so when it came time to think about the best fit for college, I applied to a number of schools that had a similar profiled like PJ. But when I visited both for that initial tour and was able to do a longer visit as well, I just felt that immediate sense of community.

00;01;31;22 - 00;01;39;20
Lauren Jones
And then certainly when I became a student, I immediately also sensed that and I enjoyed that throughout my four years.

00;01;39;23 - 00;01;58;08
Joe Carr
You chose your major wisely. Political science. I made the same choice 20, 25 years before you did, and we had several of the same professors. I understand that perhaps the when you worked most closely with was the the late Jim Carlson admired by generations. But what was it like being his research assistant and how did he influence you?

00;01;58;10 - 00;02;31;07
Lauren Jones
I really appreciate it. But Jim, my freshman year, you know, identified me as what he saw as his next research assistant. But also, you know, he served as a mentor of mine and one who I will always be indebted to for my experience throughout my four years. I don't know why he saw something in me at the time, but I really appreciated that not only to have the chance to work with him as his research assistant, but I really got a sense to better appreciate a study of political science.

00;02;31;07 - 00;02;56;10
Lauren Jones
He was really trying to encourage me to continue on into our track, but I was very candid with him throughout my tenure and knew that was not in my cards. But I enjoyed doing a lot of empirical analysis with him. We had a chance to coauthor a report which I would never have had that exposure, but for the opportunity to work with him.

00;02;56;10 - 00;03;18;01
Lauren Jones
And I think he also pushed me. I often found myself in college wanting to go in that comfort zone, and I definitely recall times when he would encourage me and push me to step outside of that. And I think that was super helpful at the time as a young person, and I think that kind of encouragement was also helpful.

00;03;18;03 - 00;03;34;19
Lauren Jones
Once I began as a professional and over the years I had the pleasure of staying in touch with him and we certainly the PC community, I think, certainly was sad to hear of his loss, but I know that he touched many, many students over his tenure.

00;03;34;21 - 00;03;51;07
Joe Carr
When I think of him, I think of the combination of attributes. Brilliant, obviously pushed. He was mentally pushing. He pushed all students. He was you know, he had high expectations, but a very nice person to really all about mentoring and and helping to develop the students. What are what a great legacy.

00;03;51;09 - 00;03;53;02
Lauren Jones
Yes, absolutely.

00;03;53;04 - 00;04;07;25
Joe Carr
Let's talk a little more about the transition from your PC experience to your career. So when you think about the experiences during your days as a college student, how did that those affect your career path, the choices you made, particularly as you moved into a career now in government?

00;04;07;27 - 00;04;32;12
Lauren Jones
Well, whenever I talk to a student now who's at PC and they're interested in going into government, I always encourage them to get active on a campaign as a chance for you to roll up your sleeves, learn what happens on the ground, to really help an elected get elected, and then an inevitably gain a network that helps if you're trying to pursue a career.

00;04;32;14 - 00;05;16;15
Lauren Jones
For me, when I was in college, the internship experience that I had actually were not on the campaign side. So lessons learned. I actually found my opportunities both in summer jobs and internships, really more in the policy and public relations public affairs realm. And then when it came time to actually decide whether I was going to go to grad school for public relations or pursue that first real world experience in a professional career or professional job, I decided to make some money first, and when I did, I had no connections within the political realm and decided just to go into private sector in a role within insurance.

00;05;16;15 - 00;05;43;20
Lauren Jones
And I was like, Oh, I can use my analytical skills from political science. And that's how I apply my major. I worked for a couple of years at an insurance company, and when I was getting settled in Massachusetts, I realized like this could be a way to now get plugged in to the campaign experience and found myself volunteering on a campaign for a candidate named Deval Patrick, who is not well known back in 2005.

00;05;43;22 - 00;05;57;04
Lauren Jones
But certainly began to get known in 2006 and was fortunate to then land an opportunity in his administration. Six months into his administration in 2007.

00;05;57;07 - 00;06;17;08
Joe Carr
In preparation for our conversation, I asked for some help today and our professor Bill Hudson, who recently retired, suggested that I ask you about the ways in which your political science department experiences may have brought you into contact with other students who had similar interests and whether you're still in contact with any of them.

00;06;17;11 - 00;06;50;09
Lauren Jones
Oh, I love that question. There's many ties in for Providence College alum in the Boston area or connected somehow to Massachusetts, an even greater cohort of us that I think have been in or around political world campaigns policy. So there's many of us in Boston or with ties to Boston. I just saw just earlier this week, I'm often in touch with I feel like I'll get in trouble if I start name dropping.

00;06;50;09 - 00;06;52;05
Joe Carr
That's that is dangerous. Sure.

00;06;52;08 - 00;07;13;19
Lauren Jones
But yes, long story short, there's many of us that I appreciate. The fire ties run deep and I feel like wherever I go around Beacon Hill in Massachusetts, there is some connection to it. And I'm not shy and sharing my affinity to prior town. When I connect with someone.

00;07;13;21 - 00;07;30;16
Joe Carr
Between Governor Patrick, whom you mentioned a moment ago, mayor and then U.S. Labor Secretary Marty Walsh, and now Governor Healey, you've worked closely with some of the most influential leaders in Massachusetts Democratic politics over the past 15 years or so. What have you learned about leadership from being around these people?

00;07;30;18 - 00;07;58;11
Lauren Jones
And that's a I mean, I'm still in I mean, I just heard you describe that experience. I've been so blessed and honored to have had the opportunity to work for amazing leaders and certainly with Governor Patrick, Mayor then Secretary Walsh and now Governor Healey. Then a common trait that they each have is, you know, governing with empathy and recognizing that the work that we do impacts people.

00;07;58;13 - 00;08;30;19
Lauren Jones
And I remember Governor Patrick when he would think about the state budget, he was always recognizing that behind every line item as a person. And I think Secretary Walsh and Governor Kelly have that same approach and have that same approach in how they how they led. And that was something that I observed. Yeah, I was kind of growing up in the state House when I worked in the Patrick administration, and I was able to observe that early on and carry that with me when I worked for Mayor Walsh, we worked in the city of Boston.

00;08;30;20 - 00;08;54;14
Lauren Jones
You're really closest to the people. You really have to think about the actions and the initiatives that you're doing and how that will impact communities. But at the end of the day, people, families and I've taken I take I carried that experience with me and the opportunity now have in front of me as Auggie and Governor Healey's cabinet and I have observed since day one of how she carries herself.

00;08;54;17 - 00;09;08;01
Lauren Jones
And that's a leadership trait that I admire and I think makes us better leaders. And in delivering on the mission that I think we're all going are elected or set out to pursue.

00;09;08;03 - 00;09;16;09
Joe Carr
I'd like to hear more about your current role in Governor Healey's cabinet and tell us a little bit about what the day to day experience is like.

00;09;16;11 - 00;09;47;13
Lauren Jones
Absolutely. So there's no playbook or rulebook on how to be a secretary. So I over the last four year, four months, rather, I've I've learned a lot and it's been an extremely rewarding experience. And I think Governor Healey, Lieutenant Governor Driscoll, have really built a strong team and I really appreciate the collaboration that I've been able to lean on with my colleagues in the Governor's Cabinet As Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development.

00;09;47;13 - 00;10;30;12
Lauren Jones
I oversee a secretariat with just over 1100 employees spread across a number of different departments, really with the mission around ensuring worker safety and worker rights combined with closing that skills gap that we know is so desperately needed as we pay more meaningful careers and opportunities for jobseekers and individuals looking to pursue careers. Here in Massachusetts, a number of departments include our Department of Economic Research, Department of Industrial Accidents, Department of Family and Medical Leave, Labor Relations, labor standards.

00;10;30;12 - 00;11;09;20
Lauren Jones
That's more on the labor side of our our secretariat. On the workforce side, we have a division of apprentice standards overseas registered apprenticeship in the Commonwealth. We also have a wide network underneath our Department of Career Services with 29 career centers across the state known as our mass hire system and then also our Department of Unemployment Assistance, ensuring those that are impacted by job loss are able to receive unemployment benefits and working in tandem with our mass hire system to get reemployment opportunities as well.

00;11;09;23 - 00;11;32;00
Joe Carr
It's a massive portfolio that keeps me busy, I'm sure. I'm sure when we think about the specific responsibilities, maybe challenges in the area of labor and workforce development, the first issue that seems to surface is workforce shortages. Can you sharpen that for us a little bit? And tell us about workforce categories where the shortages are most problematical?

00;11;32;03 - 00;11;59;19
Lauren Jones
And absolutely, the role I was in prior, I knew that this was going to be the issue top of mind. I was not removed from it. In my previous role, I served as executive vice president with the Massachusetts Business Roundtable hearing every day from employers in Massachusetts on the challenges that they were facing and the immediate needs, but also thinking about the long term investment in our future talent.

00;11;59;22 - 00;12;40;03
Lauren Jones
So the opportunity to serve as secretary, I felt like, was a once in a lifetime opportunity to really try to tackle an issue that is impacting companies large and small in every region of the Commonwealth, where really ensuring this is a top priority. I know that in any meeting I go into, workforce development is top of mind in any meeting that our Secretary of Economic Development, education, transportation of any of our secretaries, they feel it too, and and I then also recognize that we're trying to grow our workforce and intersect squarely with transportation, housing, economic and regional growth, education, which is why I think having that team approach is so helpful.

00;12;40;03 - 00;13;14;24
Lauren Jones
And early in the governor's administration, I continued with the workforce skills cabinet bringing to the table our secretaries of labor, workforce development, myself serving as chair, but working alongside education, economic development, and we actually bringing in the Secretary of Health and Human Services, realizing this is a huge challenge that can't be done in a silo. And so how can we work collaboratively thinking about academia and our training providers, thinking about our employers and the needs that industry is asking for?

00;13;14;26 - 00;14;06;04
Lauren Jones
Looking at an industry like health care, as well as a population of vulnerable populations that health and human Services supports? How can we think about lifting up more career pathways, accelerate the training and credentials, credentialing and working with our vocational technical schools to the immediate needs that employers are looking for? Tapping the population of so many students that graduate from Massachusetts every year and really harnessing the opportunity to lift up the talent that we have, the promising talent that we can train, and diversifying that talent pool and making sure that especially employers are connected to these opportunities and in identifying the talent that they can hire here in Massachusetts rather than perhaps considering outside of

00;14;06;04 - 00;14;08;11
Lauren Jones
Massachusetts.

00;14;08;13 - 00;14;19;20
Joe Carr
You've touched clearly on education and training there. To what extent you also think about and plan for initiatives that relate to retention. This is part of a formula that you are developing.

00;14;19;23 - 00;14;40;11
Lauren Jones
It has to be, I think, you know, when you think about retention, I immediately think of the opportunity to upskill or reskill a worker. And so as companies are trying to grow and thrive here in Massachusetts, a part of that formula is attracting new talent. They also want to make sure their existing talent is successful. I think about the tools in my toolbox.

00;14;40;11 - 00;15;04;13
Lauren Jones
So as Secretary of Labor and Workforce Development, I have funds at my disposal that I want to make sure employers, training partners, other stakeholders have access to to provide those meaningful career paths for people to pursue jobs. But we also have a tool in our toolbox called the Workforce Training Fund that actually helps to retrain an existing worker and companies actually pay into this fund.

00;15;04;13 - 00;15;40;24
Lauren Jones
In Massachusetts. So companies are investing in their own talent and they can upskill individuals. As we think about the new innovations that, you know, manufacturing CS or even thinking about looking at tools like language learning. So a company could hire someone where English may not be their primary language. They can use a workforce training fund to help train that worker workers who to gain proficiency in English and then continue to excel within their career.

00;15;40;26 - 00;16;13;05
Lauren Jones
I've also seen where we bring in new talent and especially diverse talent. And supervisors may not have the training to be as thoughtful as a supervisor of a more diverse workforce. And so the Workforce Training Fund has training programs that can help supervisors gain D-I training so that they can not only grow in their skill set, but also provide that welcoming and that sense of belonging for a new talent coming in.

00;16;13;05 - 00;16;26;19
Lauren Jones
So it's very much top of mind for me and I think I want to make sure that employers know of this resource so that as they're thinking about their their workforce here, they know that they can also invest in their existing workers as well.

00;16;26;21 - 00;16;42;00
Joe Carr
I'd like to ask you to expand on that a little bit beyond that, that training for supervisors, How what other kinds of things do you do to work to keep in the foreground and considerations of equity and access to ensure that qualified people are included in that they have access to opportunity?

00;16;42;02 - 00;17;32;28
Lauren Jones
Yeah, you know, equity is a top priority for the governor, Governor Healey and certainly something for me as well in the role that I'm in. And I think equity needs to be woven in as we think about all facets of workforce development. And it really starts at creating greater opportunity and access at an early age, thinking about someone's access to early childhood education through K through 12 and beyond, and making sure that we're starting with more equitable access to affordable and accessible childcare to provide greater supports from the beginning, but then also ensuring equity where we may need a catch up in thinking about the different demographics, communities that have been left behind and making

00;17;32;28 - 00;18;10;29
Lauren Jones
sure that we're investing in resources so that our gateway cities typically are lower income urban cities across the Commonwealth residents, job seekers, workers in those communities are able to gain the job training to close the skills gap. And we know that in those populations it's often people of color. We know that our veterans are individual disabilities. Women were dramatically impacted by the pandemic and we want to provide more access and and pave the way for them to be part of our workforce.

00;18;11;01 - 00;18;50;29
Lauren Jones
And so as we think about the strategies, the tools and toolbox, making sure that we're working with partners that also believe in equity will then help us create greater impact. And Governor Healey recently signed an executive order to really ensure that across her cabinet, all secretaries are really thinking about an equity audit. So any programs that we are doing and delivering on that, we're looking at what we in government currently do, where there may be gaps and how we can improve on those so that we're not just using it as a buzzword but certainly delivering it and showing the impact and any of our service delivery and programs that we're investing in.

00;18;51;01 - 00;19;04;27
Joe Carr
As you think about the future, to some extent, you need to be able to see around corners. It seems to a bit anyway. To what extent in your planning do you take into account issues like climate now that might change work in the future, maybe artificial intelligence, things like.

00;19;04;27 - 00;19;27;12
Lauren Jones
That. So I'm fortunate when I came into my role as secretary, the governor had already pointed out the first in the nation climate chief. And so she well, we have our secretary of energy environment is part of the governor's cabinet. We now have someone as part of the cabinet dedicated every day thinking about climate readiness, resiliency and innovation.

00;19;27;12 - 00;20;01;03
Lauren Jones
And I'm able to work with her as we think about our climate goals in Massachusetts and what that means for the workforce that we need today, but also what we're going to need over the next ten years to make sure that we have a workforce that is skilled and ready for increase in roles like electricians or plumbers. H Back technicians when we're trying to reach greater electrification and clean energy across all regions, all communities and and in Massachusetts.

00;20;01;03 - 00;20;21;15
Lauren Jones
And so it's been a great first four months and trying to think about that and what can only imagine the more that what's ahead and then the kind of diving into the deep end in greater ways to actually see the results of how this will come together. I think similarly when you think about whether it's clean energy or AI, you have to really think about that transition.

00;20;21;15 - 00;20;44;22
Lauren Jones
So going back to your existing workforce, what ways can we be investing in workers so that they are not left behind as we innovate, as we work towards certain goals? And so I think that's why that question around retention is very key because we want to make sure that we certainly want to be competitive and innovative and forward thinking.

00;20;44;22 - 00;20;50;29
Lauren Jones
We're also going to make sure that our workers here have the skills to be part of that strategy as well.

00;20;51;02 - 00;20;58;16
Joe Carr
What's been the impact in Massachusetts and maybe particularly in Boston, what we've learned over the past few years about remote work.

00;20;58;18 - 00;21;30;14
Lauren Jones
And remote work? I think whether you're in Boston, Massachusetts, or really anywhere around the world, workers are just so much more mobile. And I think for Massachusetts, we can't ignore that. I think we have to recognize that the future of work is here and that folds into the future benefits and how a worker or even a rising talent may think about where they work, how they work, what they're expecting of their employers.

00;21;30;16 - 00;21;53;26
Lauren Jones
And we know that talent that was who may have been working here in Massachusetts pre-pandemic may have left. We also want to make sure that people come back. We also want to make sure that people are thinking about where to work in the future, that they know that Massachusetts is a place that regardless of where their employer may be, that they can live, work and enjoy life here in Massachusetts.

00;21;53;26 - 00;22;18;11
Lauren Jones
And so that sense of a more mobile workforce is something that we think about all the time. And as we think about our economic competitive ness, we want to make sure that we also remain a hub for for talent and our employers, our communities, our region, all economies are and do well if our talent is here and also flourishing.

00;22;18;14 - 00;22;28;22
Joe Carr
Certainly plenty of challenges. But you've identified some opportunities to what are your fondest hopes for what you might be able to accomplish in this role that you're in now?

00;22;28;24 - 00;23;03;16
Lauren Jones
When I think about the challenge that's ahead, we're in such a tight labor market, and it reminds me that whether we continue to be out of a tight labor market or we have a greater supply, we really can't leave people behind. And I'm really excited to be able to work with partners and thinking about individuals that may have been left on the sidelines, may not have had access to certain resources, and ensuring that the state's public workforce system, you know, we have state dollars that go into our workforce programs.

00;23;03;16 - 00;23;23;03
Lauren Jones
How can we and government partner with so many stakeholders to make sure that we are providing more resources and thinking intentionally about and connecting those individuals to our promising livelihood here in Massachusetts.

00;23;23;05 - 00;23;42;05
Joe Carr
You've been very generous with your time on a busy day and obviously in the middle of a very demanding job that you're in there in the Massachusetts state government. But I'd like to ask one final question, and that is, what kind of advice would you offer for students, college students, a PC or anywhere else you are thinking about careers in public service.

00;23;42;08 - 00;24;08;05
Lauren Jones
I encourage anyone to give a couple of years, at least in public service. It will be a rewarding experience. The opportunity to work in public service, I think, shapes you as a professional. I think it provides really unique experiences and a chance for you to hone your skills while also giving back. And as you think about that career path or any career path, recognize the value of networking.

00;24;08;08 - 00;24;29;12
Lauren Jones
Whomever you may meet today, who knows if you're going to work with them in the future. Who knows how they can help you as you think about your future plans? I know I definitely appreciate that in my career, and I certainly value the power of networking and hopefully it can open more doors for students as well.

00;24;29;14 - 00;24;43;22
Joe Carr
Secretary Jones, thank you so much for your time today and for sharing these insights about your important work. We hope that you'll be able to make your way back to to PC before very long for for some purpose, maybe a basketball game or something good like that.

00;24;43;22 - 00;24;45;12
Lauren Jones
Absolutely.

00;24;45;14 - 00;24;50;07
Joe Carr
It would be great to see you here. But in the meantime, best wishes. And thank you so much again for your time.

00;24;50;09 - 00;24;51;18
Lauren Jones
Thanks so much, Joe.

00;24;51;20 - 00;25;04;23
Joe Carr
And thank you for joining us for the Providence College Podcast. Episodes are available on the college's YouTube channel on all podcast apps for producer Chris Judge. By the way, Secretary Jones as classmate. I'm Joe Carr. Thanks for joining us. Until next time.