Please Note..

This webinar and the engagement tools will be recorded.

An archive will be available on the event website. 
NICE Webinar: 

Community-Based Partnerships 

for Cybersecurity

June 21, 2023
Proposed Updates to the NICE Framework

• NICE Framework Work Role Categories 

and Work Roles

Comments due by June 23, 2023

• NICE Framework Competency Areas 

Comments due by August 5, 2023

www.nist.gov/nice/framework
RAMPS Communities

• Regional Alliances and Multistakeholder Partnerships to Stimulate (RAMPS) 

cybersecurity education and workforce development

• Communities bring together one or more:

o institutions of higher education or nonprofit training organizations, and

o local employers or owners or operators of critical infrastructure

Funding for 5 

Pilot RAMPS 

Communities

May 2016

Application 

Deadline for 

RAMPS Funding

Aug 7, 2023

RAMPS 

Roadmap (NISTIR 

8287)

Feb. 2020

New Funding 

for RAMPS 

Communities

Jun. 2023

New RAMPS 

Communities 

Announced

Expected Dec. 2023
NICE Webinar: 

Community-Based Partnerships 

for Cybersecurity

June 21, 2023
Presented By:

Francie Genz

Co-Principal and Co-Founder

Institute for Networked Communities (INC) 

Erik Cherkaski

Senior Manager

Jobs for the Future (JFF)
Agenda

• Setting the Stage & 

Definitions: What are 

Community-Based 

Partnerships?

• Strategies to Develop, 

Implement and Sustain 

Partnerships
Setting the Stage & 

Definitions:

What are 

Community-Based 

Partnerships?
What Are We Talking About?

The “Extended Family” of Community-Based Partnerships

Sectoral 

Training 

Partnerships

Career 

Pathway 

Partnerships

Next Gen Sector 

Partnerships

Economic 

Cluster 

Partnerships

Public-Private 

Civic Alliances

Common Elements

● Bring together employers and 

community partners to address 

shared regional workforce and 

economic development challenges

Distinguishing Characteristics

● Focus of agenda (training programs 

vs. broader competitiveness needs)

● Role of employers (advisors vs 

drivers)

● Duration and scope (time-limited 

initiatives vs long-term, sustainable 

partnership)
Definitions

• Today’s conversation focuses on best 

practices as understood through the 

lens of sector partnerships. 

• Next Gen Sector Partnership Definition: 

Regional partnerships of business 

leaders within one industry, who work 

together with public partners from 

economic development, workforce 

development, education and training, 

and other community organizations, to 

address the shared workforce and 

broader competitiveness needs of their 

industry.
Companies & Jobs are not the same thing --

How to Organize across Verticals & Horizontals

Green Jobs - Knowledge and Know-how

STEM Foundations

Creative Skills and Attributes

Technology Occupations - Knowledge, Skills, Abilities 

The Horizontals: 

How jobs are 

organized. 

Question to answer: 

What are the 

The Verticals: How 

companies are 

organized. 

Question to answer: 

What’s needed by 

individual industry 

sectors to stabilize 

and stay strong?

Advanced Manufacturing

Construction/Eng

Transportation/Logistics

Technology (companies)

Healthcare

These 

warrant 

focused 

and 

shared 

sector 

partner

ships

These should be cross-system talent initiatives

that draw info from and support needs of the Verticals, 

but not sector partnerships.

foundational & cross-cutting skills sets across industries ?
Answer in the chat

In a few words, describe what you see 

as the primary goal of a communitybased partnership in fulfilling 

cybersecurity workforce needs?
Strategies to 

Develop, Implement, 

and Sustain 

Partnerships

Employer 

Outreach

Governance 

Structure

SUCCESS Staffing

Meeting 

Design & 

Launch

Facilitating 

Conversations 

Sustainability

KEY STRATEGIES
Employer Engagement

• Bring in champions to legitimize 

partnership for industry/business.

• Tap networks of other partners 

organizations to recruit the right 

business leaders.

• Value Add: What’s the buy in? Why 

should employer/business commit 

time to this partnership?
Governance 

Structure

• Don’t necessarily have to focus on 

this first.

• Structure should be “organic”: focus 

on developing effective meetings 

and meaningful engagement for 

members first, then look at more 

formal governance structure to 

solidify membership (MOUs, ect).

• Next Gen: Don’t look at introducing 

governance structure at least a year 

from launch (focus on building 

partnerships and commitments 

before considering governance 

structure).
Staffing

Relationship 

Broker

Programs 

Navigator

Facilitator

Manager

Do-er
Facilitating 

Conversations

• Balance conversations and competing interests. 

Speak on where they need to improve job 

quality and ensure strategies are inclusive and 

equitable

• Spend time pushing employers in front of the 

room; champion group should be clear and be 

at the center

• Sticking to goals/objectives and clearly signaling 

progress made after each meeting

• Make sure data is the driver and can connect to 

more anecdotal points from employers and 

other stakeholders.
Meeting Design

Quarterly meetings – Use these to build buzz, 

momentum and hold action teams accountable for 

results

Action Teams – organize work groups according 

to specific priorities. Employers define and 

achieve specific wins and deliverables, pulling in 

support selectively. Keep industry in driver’s seat

First Meeting – Focus on building relationships 

among business leaders, give them the floor to 

define and champion agenda, partners in listenonly mode 
Sustainability

● Sustainability = long-term 

relevance, not just funding

● Funding Opportunities

○ Grants

○ Leveraging existing 

funding (ex: WIOA sector 

strategies)

○ Sponsorships

● Activities to Consider:

○ Job Fairs

○ Industry Events 

○ Site tours
Resources

•Next Generation Sector Partnerships: https://www.nextgensectorpartnerships.com/

•Jobs for the Future (JFF): https://www.jff.org/

•JFF Quality Jobs Framework: https://archive.jff.org/points-of-view/introducing-quality-jobsframework/

•Department of Commerce Workforce Development Best Practices and 

Principles: https://www.commerce.gov/issues/workforce-development

•Good Jobs Principles: https://www.dol.gov/general/good-jobs/principles

•Career Pathways Systems: https://cte.ed.gov/initiatives/career-pathways-systems

•RAMPS: https://www.nist.gov/itl/applied-cybersecurity/nice/regional-alliances-andmultistakeholder-partnerships-stimulate-ramps
Q&A
RAMPS Communities

• Regional Alliances and Multistakeholder Partnerships to Stimulate (RAMPS) 

cybersecurity education and workforce development

• Communities bring together one or more:

o institutions of higher education or nonprofit training organizations, and

o local employers or owners or operators of critical infrastructure

Funding for 5 

Pilot RAMPS 

Communities

May 2016

Application 

Deadline for 

RAMPS Funding

Aug 7, 2023

RAMPS 

Roadmap (NISTIR 

8287)

Feb. 2020

New Funding 

for RAMPS 

Communities

Jun. 2023

New RAMPS 

Communities 

Announced

Expected Dec. 2023
Submit an event survey!

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/June2023NICEWebinar
NICE Webinar Series

Securing Space: The Next Frontier 

for Cybersecurity Education and 

Workforce Development

July 19, 2023, 2-3PM ET

nist.gov/nice/webinars