Sector Partnerships

About Sector Partnerships

Sector partnerships are partnerships of business leaders, from the same industry and in a shared labor market region, who work with education, workforce development, economic development, and community organizations to address the workforce and other competitiveness needs of their industry. View the Sector Partnership Overview. 

In fall of 2021, the CWDC Sector Steering Committee requested an external evaluation of Colorado’s sector strategy and sector partnerships to ensure effectiveness as Colorado works proactively towards economic recovery. The evaluation was completed in fall of 2022.

• View the Final Evaluation Report for comprehensive findings and recommendations.
• Learn more about the CWDC's sector partnership refresh plan in response to the evaluation.
• Access resources about launching and sustaining sector partnerships.

Colorado has been launching and growing sector partnerships since 2005 through a framework that fosters industry-driven alignment across economic development, workforce development, and education.

The state has invested in regional, public-private partnerships targeting key industries that are vital to our regional economies. There are currently active sector partnerships in 5 regions and in diverse industries such as retail, healthcare, tech, and more. Connect with a sector partnership in your region or industry using the directory below. 

Sector Partnership Directory 

View current Sector Partnerships by region below (updated April 2023).
 

Region 1

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 2

Northern Colorado Manufacturing Sector Partnership

• Website: https://nocomfg.com/
• Industry Focus: Manufacturing
• Contact Name: Jill Foster
• Contact email: jill@psc.biz       
• Contact phone number: for all partnership listings please use 970-231-0316
• Convener name: Jill Foster
• Business Chairs: Andy Newcomb and Marcie Willard

Northern Colorado Health Sector Partnership  

• Website: https://nocohealthsector.org/
• Industry Focus: Healthcare
• Contact Name: Nikki Lucas
• Contact email: nikki@psc.biz
• Contact phone number: for all partnership listings please use 970-231-0316
• Convener name: Nikki Lucas
• Business Chairs: JoAnn Herkenhoff and Evan Hyatt

Northern Colorado Hospitality Sector Partnership

• Website: coming Spring 2023
• Industry Focus: Hospitality – hotel, restaurant, beverage, and retail
• Contact Name: Amanda Miller
• Contact email: amanda@psc.biz
• Contact phone number: for all partnership listings please use 970-231-0316
• Convener name: Amanda Miller
• Business Chairs: in the process of building the leadership team and identifying industry champions

Northern Colorado Construction Sector Partnership

• Website: https://www.nococsp.com/
• Industry Focus: Construction
• Contact Name: Rochelle Reynolds
• Contact email: rochelle@psc.biz                   
• Contact phone number: for all partnership listings please use 970-231-0316
• Convener name: Rochelle Reynolds
• Business Chairs: Ten Johnson and Amy Powell

Nonprofit Sector Partnership

Region 3

Boulder County Healthcare Sector Group

• Website: N/A
• Industry Focus: Health & Wellness
• Contact Name: Corine Waldau
• Contact Email: corine.waldau@boulderchamber.com
• Contact phone number: (303) 938-2081
• Industry Focus: Health & Wellness
• Business Chair(s): Julia Nelson, Boulder Medical Center, Sid Springer, HomeCare of the Rockies
• Convener(s): Corine, Waldau, Econ. Dev., Erin Jones, Workforce Boulder, Lynn Vosler, Front Range Community College

Tech Talent Boulder/Broomfield 

• Website: TechTalentBoulder.cosectors.com
• Industry Focus: IT
• Contact Name: Corine Waldau
• Contact email: corine.waldau@boulderchamber.com
• Contact phone number: (303) 938-2081
• Business Chair(s): Lisa Husby, Zayo Group, Chris Magyar, Techtonic
• Convener(s): Corine Waldau, Boulder Chamber, Erin Jones, Workforce Boulder, Nora Saenz, Workforce Boulder, Chris Dewhurst, Broomfield Workforce, Brad Revare, Careerwise, Jeff Sidders, CDLE-DV

Tech Talent Denver

Aerospace Sector Partnership

• Website: N/A
• Industry Focus: Aerospace
• Contact Name: Jamie Fisher
• Contact email: jfisher@arapahoegov.com
• Contact phone number: 303-636-1619
• Convener name: Jamie Fisher
• Business Chairs: Sarah Turner, Lockheed Martin. Krystal Scordo, Astroscale. Zach Pfeffer, Centennial Software Solutions.

Freight Industry Sector Partnership (F.I.S.P.)

• Website: N/A
• Industry Focus: Transportation/Freight/Warehouse/Logistics
• Contact Name: Joel Parriott
• Contact email: jparriott@adcogov.org
• Contact phone number: 720-523-2462
• Convener name: Adams County Workforce and Business Center
• Business Chairs: Erica Denney (Denney Transport) & Jennyce Houg (Houg Co.)

Metro Denver Construction Sector Partnership

• Website: N/A
• Industry Focus: Construction/Trades 
• Economic Region: Denver Metro
• Contact Name: Emily Berger
• Contact email: Emily.berger@denvergov.org
• Contact phone number: 720.913.1923
• Convener name: Denver Workforce Services - DEDO
• Business Chairs: Sarah VandeLaar, Joel Pennick

Metro Denver Retail Sector Partnership (MDRP)

• Website: N/A
• Industry Focus: Retail/Hospitality
• Economic Region: Denver Metro
• Contact Name: Daniel Houser
• Contact email: daniel.houser@denvergov.org
• Contact phone number: 720.913.1922
• Convener name: Denver Workforce Services | DEDO
• Business Co-Chairs: Tina Castro/Kim Tranter

Colorado Media Journalism

• Website: Formerly cma.media, now moving to Colorado Press Association
• Industry Focus: Colorado Media & Journalism
• Contact Name: Rachel Pickarski 
• Contact email: rachel@colopress.net
• Contact phone number: 
• Convener name: Rachel Pickarski  
• Business Chairs: Laura Frank: CoLab, Sam Moody: Co Media Project, Tony Shawcross: Open Media

Colorado Tree Care Sector Partnership

• Website: www.coloradotreecare.cosectors.com
• Industry Focus:  tree care
• Contact Name: Nikki Lucas
• Contact email:  nikki@psc.biz
• Contact phone number: for all partnership listings please use 970-231-0316
• Convener name: Nikki Lucas
• Business Chairs: Josh Morin

Boulder Area Manufacturing Sector Partnership

West Metro Advanced Manufacturing Sector Partnership

Region 4

Colorado Springs Retail and Hospitality Partnership

Region 5

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 6

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 7

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 8

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 9

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 10

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 11

Mesa Manufacturing

Region 12

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.

Region 13

Upper Arkansas Health and Wellness Sector Partnership

• Website: Under construction
• Industry Focus: Healthcare and Wellness Sectors
• Contact Name: Diana Armstrong
• Contact email: armstrong@fedc.co
• Contact phone number: 719-275-8601
• Convener name: Diana Armstrong
• Business Chairs: Margaret “Peggy” Heil, LCSW and Becky Romano, LPC, NCC, New Beginnings Counseling

South Central Tech Sector Partnership

• Website: southcentraltech.com
• Industry Focus: Technology Sector
• Contact Name: Diana Armstrong
• Contact email: armstrong@fedc.co
• Contact phone number: 719-275-8601
• Convener name: Diana Armstrong
• Business Chairs: Brad Rowland, Emergent Campus, FEDC TechSTART
   

Region 14

No active partnerships at this time. If you are interested in exploring launching one in this region, contact the CWDC at cwdc@state.co.us.