StrengthBank Inc. is connecting the three for a simply ingenious solution:

"Juxtapose the three contemporary measurement issues and the solution emerges. The antidote to unacceptable or nonexistent numbers in all 3 cases is to reconnect the dots to soft skills workouts or what we call talk groups," says Sandra Shelton, CEO, StrengthBank Inc. "A greater communication and people connection for business to the community; community to the schools, and schools to tomorrow's workplace reminds me of 'Dry Bones' an old spiritual stating the obvious physical connection of the parts of the human body: "...The foot bone connected to the leg bone, The leg bone connected to the knee bone, The knee bone connected to the thigh bone..."

Communication or people (relational) connection is not quite so straightforward. To strengthen the bonds of seeming relational disconnects, i.e., boardrooms and company policies, consumers' control of company performance, educators delivering career-ready graduates requires a unique, unparalleled pursuit. That pursuit is called StrengthBank(R) Talk Groups - business volunteers are certified in the StrengthBank(R) curriculum to mentor high school advisory periods two times a month. These one-of-a-kind talk groups are achieving unprecedented engagement. The connection looks like this: business people mentor high school youth in advisory periods connected to consumer involvement connected to high school youth connected to relationship skills connected to safer, engaged communities. People who can relate create great businesses, communities, and high schools. All three challenges are being met simultaneously using StrengthBank(R) Talk Groups - a low cost/high involvement community initiative.

The source for reconnection to better numbers

CEO Clue! Every profitable organization knows somewhere deep down that the only sustained success can come from its people who are engaged in the business, more than that the community where the business takes place. Further, its people can serve as a consistent, energized workforce to accomplish continued profitability. In a June 2007 article "Corporate Philanthropy" Mark Lester of Booz Allen Hamilton says: "Being a good corporate citizen is not only the right thing to do, but it's proving to be an essential business tool in the competitive market. Those companies that embrace corporate philanthropy [identified here as business people mentoring high schools on company time] find that they are not only creating social change in the communities where they live and work, but also are reaping the unintended benefits of strong return on investment (ROI) to their business in multiple areas." Mentoring youth during advisory groups accomplishes the essentials for today's and tomorrow's workforce: self-perpetuating encouragement, mutual respect, security, and positive relationship skills. Mentors find that they relearn, refine, and retool their own positions while teens discover a more focused engagement in school that leads to bright, socially connected futures. "Relationship skills power academic skills; it is exciting to watch the kids 'get it'," adds Tamara Payne, CEO, Impact Promotions Plus, Burleson, Texas, a StrengthBank(R) mentor and lead recruiter.

"From large to small companies, human resources executives struggle to improve employee morale because of its consistent link to higher levels of customer satisfaction. And, not all effective approaches involve spending corporate dollars," according to "Organizational Strategies for Raising Employee Morale," study conducted by Best Practices, LLC to determine the most effective corporate-wide strategies and tactics for measuring and improving employee commitment via engagement and morale"¦ Learning about employees' families and personal lives is very effective"¦"

Benefits of StrengthBank(R) mentoring for connection solidarity

"Here's what happens when a community takes on StrengthBank(R) mentoring," Shelton explains. "Community involvement becomes a metaphor for excellence in the delightful pursuit of happiness. We've seen these benefits manifest themselves: For the mentee - improved self-confidence, solid self esteem, increased motivation, broadened horizons, greater respect for the group process, raised achievements, and continual inspiration; For the mentor - satisfaction from helping another person grow, development of healthy relationship skills to include parenting skills, and increased awareness of individual contribution; For organizations (including the high school) - development of workplace people skills, positive emotions and publicity, and mutually beneficial learning."

How CEO's can lead the way.

CEO's would be best served to come to the connections work out party and lead the charge to bring others in. Best first steps include: