The Challenge
Colorado’s workforce faced rapid change as industries evolved, skill requirements shifted, and new policies reshaped how people worked. Workers needed clearer pathways to upskilling, reskilling, and next skilling that felt attainable and relevant to real jobs. At the same time, employers were navigating talent shortages, new workforce platforms, and major policy rollouts such as paid family and medical leave.
Across both audiences, workforce systems were often complex and difficult to navigate. Workers struggled to see how training connected to employment. Employers needed practical, timely information that supported compliance, recruitment, and retention without adding unnecessary burden.
The challenge was to make workforce systems understandable, human, and actionable for both workers and employers.
Our Approach
Across campaigns including Ready to Rise, Connecting Colorado, community college workforce initiatives, TalentFound, and the FAMLI rollout, SE2 developed a dual-audience communications approach that addressed workers and employers as interconnected parts of the same system.
Worker-focused campaigns emphasized clarity, confidence, and possibility. Messaging translated complex systems into plain language and showed how new skills connected directly to better jobs, higher wages, and long-term stability. Campaigns normalized career transitions and were designed to reach people who did not always see themselves reflected in traditional workforce or education messaging.
Employer-focused campaigns centered on trust and practicality. SE2 framed new programs and platforms around what employers needed to know, how changes affected their workforce, and what actions to take next. Messaging positioned workforce systems and policies as tools to support business needs, strengthen retention, and build a more resilient workforce.
Across all efforts, SE2 used targeted digital outreach, storytelling, and community-based channels to reach audiences where decisions about work, training, and policy were already top of mind, with a strong focus on equity and access for rural communities, workers facing economic barriers, and small and mid-sized employers.
The Impact
SE2’s workforce campaigns increased understanding of workforce systems and strengthened engagement across both worker and employer audiences.
Worker-facing efforts helped individuals better understand training pathways, feel more confident pursuing new skills, and take steps toward meaningful employment. Employer-facing campaigns supported smoother adoption of new programs, reduced confusion during policy rollouts, and improved awareness of tools designed to support hiring, retention, and workforce stability.
Together, this work demonstrated SE2’s ability to translate complex workforce policy and systems into clear, human communications that connected people to opportunity and supported a more adaptable, equitable workforce.
