Talent Development Program

The Talent Development Program (TDP) is business-driven funding assistance for qualifying Minnesota businesses to provide skills training to full-time permanent employees.

The Talent Development Program is designed to cover the cost of training aimed at advancing the skills of your workforce, enhancing business processes, and boosting overall competitiveness. The primary objective of the TDP is to assist employers in upskilling employees, enabling growth and development, and reducing the risk of layoffs. The training may not be used to: recertify a previous obtained credential or be a required training for all employees.

Eligible Training Providers:

• Public or private educational institutions
• Trade associations or industry-specific training organizations
• Community-based organizations
• Economic development agencies
• Government agencies
• Unions

Eligible Types of Training:

• Industry or business-specific skills
• Technical or computer skills
• “Soft skills” such as leadership or management training
• Training programs accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)
• Training for improved process efficiency as identified by industry professionals and eligible training providers
• Training from a national, regional, or state trade association that offers an independently certified training curriculum and testing
• Training provided in conjunction with the purchase of a new piece of equipment
• Seminars/workshops/webinars are eligible  (However, they must have an assessment or test tied to the training to be eligible for funding)

Training activities NOT eligible for TDP:

• Training costs associated with professional fields in which continuous education is necessary to retain professional certification (CPAs, attorneys, insurance providers, etc.)
• Training that leads to a professional license (doctors, lawyers, RN/LPN, etc.)
• Provide skills for seasonal or temporary jobs
• Provide skills for independent contractors
• Personal development courses
• Onboarding or new-hire trainings
• Non-skill related assessments
• English as a second language courses
• Basic skills or remedial education
• Directly or indirectly assisting, promoting, or deterring union organizing, or,
• Mandated safety trainings (including Federal, State, union or employer mandated safety trainings).

Training funds cannot be used for any of the following:

• Administrative costs
• Employee wages
• Purchases of capital equipment or capital improvements
• Purchases of items or services that will be used primarily outside of the incumbent worker training
• Travel expenses for trainers or incumbent workers
• Assessments, testing or certification fees, and,
• Advertisement or recruitment

EMPLOYER/EMPLOYEE ELIGIBILITY

Eligible Employers:

• Business must be located in Minnesota and in continuous operations for 12 months prior to application and registered with the MN Secretary of State’s office as an association, corporation, LLC, partnership, nonprofit, government entity (including school districts), or sole proprietor.
• Must not be in the process of layoff (if layoff occurs while company has an open TDP grant, workers will be able to complete training)
• Not currently be in bankruptcy or experienced bankruptcy in the past year and be current on all their local, State, and Federal tax obligations.
• Not appear on any Federal suspensions or debarment lists.
• Groups of employers are encouraged to collaborate on training for workers across organizations.

Eligible Employees:

• Must be a U.S. citizen or have U.S. work authorization
• Must be employed and have Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) Employer-Employee Relationship with the employer
• Meet Selective Service registration requirements (if applicable, see DEED’s Selective Service Registration policy)
• Must be at least 18 years of age, employed part-time or full time for at least 6 months with the applicant employer and be committed to attending all trainings
• Must earn an hourly wage above the state minimum wage and agree to cooperate with data collection requirements.

Employer and Employer-Employee Relationship Clarification:

Employment must be with the employer as an employee and not as an independent contractor, seasonal worker, or temporary worker (Temp jobs, etc.). Employment may include full-time or part-time employees. There is no minimum number of hours that a part-time employee must work to qualify.

Employer Responsibilities:

• Business must contribute a portion of the training costs through direct cost contribution or in-kind contributions based on employer size

Examples of in-kind contributions include:

• Expenses associated with the use of on-site space and equipment during the training
• Trainee wages, including benefits
• Required travel/lodging and direct training costs

Level of contribution required dependent on size of business:

• 50 or fewer employees = 10% of cost
• 51 to 100 employees = 25% of cost
• More than 100 employees = 50% of cost

GENERAL GUIDELINES

• Only one application per business will be accepted per program year (July 1 – June 30)
• One application may include multiple sets of employees and multiple training courses.
• Businesses administering a current Minnesota Job Skills Partnership (MJSP) award are not eligible for TDP funds.
• The maximum award per employer each JET program year (July 1 – June 30) is $10,000 (may be adjusted based upon funding availability each program year). Training duration may not exceed twelve months. Funds will be awarded on a first-come first-served basis. Received applications will be reviewed the first week of every month by JET TDP team. Those submissions meeting the intent of programming and with sufficient JET funds to support will receive a provisional approval. Those not fundable or meeting TDP intent will be informed of denial.
• JET Talent Development funds are intended to serve a broad cross section of our business communities including small, medium and large sized businesses equitably.

TDP STEPS AT A GLANCE

• Employer submits proposal
• JET reviews proposal(s) within 30 days of submission
• JET TDP informs employer of provisional approval or denial
• JET TDP representative will coordinate with a business representative to ensure completion of individual TDP employee enrollment forms and supporting documentation i.e.: DD-214, I-9, Wage Share and Use of Data no later than two weeks before start of training. Incomplete applications are ineligible. 
• JET staff will review business application and associated employee enrollment forms to verify and approve attendees for training. No modification to trainee list may be made without prior JET TDP staff approval. 
• Employer & trainer conduct training, JET TDP representative may visit training site to verify
• Employer sends invoice with training issued credential or certificate for each individual training participant to JET TDP Representative
• JET pays training or business when all credentials and invoice have been received
• JET conducts post-TDP quarterly follow-ups for 12 months after training completion about service delivery, wage gains, success stories, new hiring, or for additional business services.