For the past nine years, the U.S. Chamber Foundation has sought to tackle the all-too-common challenge of successfully preparing talent for the work of today and tomorrow and ensure their skills align to employers’ needs. To achieve the type of behavior and systems change needed, we believed the approach had to be a significant departure from traditional workforce development efforts.

Sasha Saputo, Associate Manager for Early Childhood Education at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sits down with Brittany Walsh, Associate Director for Early Childhood Initiative at the Bipartisan Policy Center to discuss lessons learned from The Early Childhood and Business Advisory Council meeting in Huntsville, Alabama.

I realize that it can be difficult for companies based in big cities to understand the realities of everyday life in small-town America. But the stark truth is that compared with their suburban and urban counterparts, the 1.1 million rural families with young children face a multitude of challenges that impact their childcare outlook.

Right now, maybe more than any other time in modern history, working parents are devoting significant amounts of time, energy, and resources into balancing their roles at home and in the workplace.  Parents must consider various factors in determining the level and type of childcare solutions that best meet their needs.