Community colleges are becoming key partners in developing and improving present and future work forces. The number of business-community college partnerships is growing. Most community colleges are developing very results-oriented programs and partnerships that provide local businesses with workers trained in the skills that those businesses need most. These programs vary in content and structure, as do the levels of business involvement and college commitment to their development. Community colleges present an excellent resource for businesses to train and upgrade workers' skills quickly. Because community colleges can provide training at much less cost to most business partners than if the program were developed in-house, they offer businesses a cost-effective training option. When deciding to partner with community colleges, businesses consider several key criteria apart from cost. These criteria include existing curricula and faculty experienced in a specific training area, the college's willingness to develop new curricula or modify existing programs to meet the company's needs, the ability to provide training on and off campus, flexibility in scheduling training around working hours, and access to additional outside funding. Partnerships between community colleges and businesses will likely continue to grow and expand as the demand for trained workers continues to escalate. (MN)