AUBURN — Central Maine Community College is one of three Maine community colleges opening its doors on Thursday, Nov. 6, to introduce local businesses to the customized services it provides.

The event is intended for business owners, managers, human resource officers and others looking to upgrade the skills of their employees. Attendees can learn about affordable, customized training services and online training courses offered through the colleges’ business and industry divisions.

The Maine Community Colleges’ business and industry divisions have worked with hundreds of Maine businesses, healthcare facilities and nonprofit agencies across the state to help them build the workforce they need.

Services include consultation, course development, continuing education courses and workshops and targeted training for industry-standard certifications. Through grants from the Maine Quality Centers, some training is available free to employers and their workers.

Attendees will be able to register for a free training class in Microsoft Excel, Word or PowerPoint. The online course is free and includes a Microsoft certification exam voucher. Registration must be completed in person on the day of the event.

The event will also include the grand opening of CMCC’s new Center for Testing & Assessment. The state-of-the-art computer testing room provides academic and industry certification testing to help students and professionals accomplish their career goals. The center offers numerous exams, including Microsoft, CompTIA, Cisco, ASE Automotive, Maine Real Estate and CLEP exams.

The informal training day open house will be held in Kirk Hall from 7 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Thursday. Light refreshments will be served.

For more information on Maine’s Community Colleges, go to www.mccs.me.edu. For more information specific to training at Central Maine Community College, go to http://www.cmcc.edu/ccs/Training, call 755-5280 or 1-800-891-2002, option 7, or email [email protected].