EW NORTH, December 3, 2020 – Rebecca Deschane, a recognized leader in workforce development within Wisconsin, will join New North Inc. as Vice President of Talent Development, President and CEO Barb LaMue announced. The appointment becomes effective on Jan. 11, 2021.

Deschane will assume many of the current responsibilities of Connie Loden, New North’s Vice President of Strategic Initiatives since February 2015. Loden will be retiring from a full-time role at the end of the month, but will continue in an advisory role through June 2021 to ensure a smooth transition.

As Vice President of Talent Development, Deschane will enhance strong collaborations with local and regional partners while coordinating and managing initiatives, projects and programming focused around talent development. Included in these responsibilities are the implementation and enhancement of the New North Talent Hub; military-veteran attraction efforts in conjunction with Mission Wisconsin; coordination of college-alumni recruitment with area institutions of higher learning; oversight of New North’s Inspire deployment and of the new IntelTracker tool of New North, which identifies key regional indicators; support of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion task force; identification of career pathways for key regional industries; and retraining initiatives such as the Microsoft/gener8tor Upskilling program.

Deschane has spent the past decade with the Wisconsin Economic Development Corporation (WEDC), the state’s lead economic-development organization. Since 2017 she has served as its Talent Initiatives Director, a joint liaison position with the University of Wisconsin System, working on talent retention, development and attraction efforts. In this role, she has been responsible for developing and implementing statewide talent strategies, along with coordinating with internal stakeholders and external partners to address current and future workforce needs.

Other talent-related initiatives that Deschane had a primary role in include attraction of military veterans to the state, expanding prison education opportunities through the UW System, and Inclusivity, Diversity and Equity outreach. She also helped to launch the statewide expansion of YPWeek, a NEWaukee initiative in support of a better connected young professional network in Wisconsin.

“As a key strategic partner with WEDC, we align our strategies with the state. Because of Rebecca’s prior responsibilities as statewide Talent Initiatives Director for WEDC, she is a natural to lead our regional efforts,” says LaMue. “Rebecca’s ability to develop and execute strategies in a collaborative spirit will align perfectly with New North’s mission. We look forward to welcoming her back to the region and joining our team.”

Deschane received a bachelor’s degree in political science from Marquette University in 1997. She is a native of Crivitz, Wis.

“Connie has been a key, strategic member of New North for the past six years,” says LaMue. “She has led the creation of the Business Intelligence Task Force, the Supply Chain Marketplace design, our Inspire deployment and many other initiatives. We are happy that she will continue to assist us through the transition. We are incredibly grateful to Connie for her many years of dedication, creative thought and sincere engagement within the New North organization and with our local partners.”

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