Tech Talent Ecosystem Summit Press Release – September 19, 2024

Expanding the Connecticut Tech Workforce

Government, Business, and Higher Education Collaborate on Tech Talent Ecosystem

North Haven, CT – College and university faculty, CEOs, hiring managers, and workforce strategists gathered today at the Tech Talent Ecosystem Summit to discuss strategies for ensuring that Connecticut has enough tech-ready workers for its tech economy.

The Connecticut Tech Talent Accelerator, an idea of the state’s Office of Workforce Strategy, was launched in 2022, to create pathways from the state’s public and independent higher education institutions into the desirable jobs of the present and future. Supported by two rounds of funding, this required collaboration between business leaders and college/university faculty to identify knowledge, skills, and abilities that everyone agreed were necessary for students to enter tech professions, to revise or create the curriculum to teach these skills, and document competency with credentials.

The Tech Talent Accelerator has:

  • Created 15 academic pathways
  • Engaged 13 higher education institutions
  • Engaged 34 industry partners
  • Logged 305 course enrollments to date
  • Capacity for 300 students per semester to participate statewide
  • Made progress on bringing more underrepresented students and workers into tech programs and positions. Notably, Black and African American students represent 15-24 percent of the total TTA program enrollment, and women represent about 30 percent.

“We are making historic investments in workforce development in Connecticut,” said Governor Ned Lamont. “The Tech Talent Accelerator recognizes the critical role that colleges and universities play in educating the workforce, strengthened by the insight and involvement of business leaders.”  Lamont spoke at the Tech Talent Ecosystem Summit today urging participants on to further innovation.

State Leadership

“Through the collaborative leadership of the Business-Higher Education Forum and the New England Board Higher Education these programs have worked with Connecticut higher education and industry partners to help provide training for students now and in the future” said Kelli-Marie Vallieres, PhD, Chief Workforce Officer. “Connecticut is fortunate to have industry leaders who are driving the conversation to identify unique and innovative ways to meet their workforce needs. Having BHEF and NEBHE supporting this work and helping to translate between academic and business creates meaningful and impactful programming. The Tech Talent Accelerator model is a best practice to engage key stakeholders to collaborate on building the talent pipeline for the future technology workforce.”

The Tech Talent Ecosystem event also focused the next frontier of businesses’ tech talent needs, in areas like AI and Quantum, and explored how the TTA model can be leveraged as technology continues to advance rapidly and Connecticut strives to be a leading force in the tech economy.

“There is a crucial link between Connecticut’s higher education institutions and our economic competitiveness in the tech field and others,” said Daniel O’Keefe, Commissioner, Connecticut Department of Economic and Community Development.  “Collaboration between these two sectors will strengthen economic growth and workforce development.”

The New England Board of Higher Education and the Business-Higher Education Forum built the program and helped make the matches between employers and higher education institutions with the goal of preparing the next generation of employees in the fields of cybersecurity, cloud computing, bioinformatics, game development and others. The industry-recognized credentials that students earn in the pathways include Amazon’s AWS Machine Learning, Google Cloud, and CompTIA Security+.

“Connecticut has one of the most highly skilled workforces in the world,” said CBIA president and CEO Chris DiPentima. “With emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and quantum computing, growing the tech talent ecosystem is critical for unlocking the state’s tremendous economic potential.”

Collaborative Partners

The two organizations that created the program with the Office of Workforce Strategy look to the future of this work:

“Across the country, businesses are seeking access to workers with modern, transferable tech skills and credentials aligned specifically to their needs, and Connecticut is no different,” says Kristen Fox, CEO of the Business-Higher Education Forum. “We are pleased to contribute BHEF’s approach to building a nimble, industry-informed tech talent pipelines to ensure the inclusive competitiveness of Connecticut’s economy and workforce.”

“Connecting postsecondary education with high-demand talent needs is essential strategic work, benefiting all sectors involved – higher education, government, and employers,” said Michael K. Thomas, president and CEO, New England Board of Higher Education. “The Tech Talent Accelerator has the capacity for sustained impact now that the pathways have been built and is a powerful model to inform future work.”

Key Players in the Tech Talent Ecosystem

The following higher education institutions and industry partners participate in the Tech Talent Accelerator:

Institution

Area Focus

Industry Champion

Albertus Magnus College​

Applied Data Science for Bioinformatics​

Greater New Haven Chamber of Commerce​

Charter Oak State College​

Cybersecurity​

Travelers​

Connecticut College​

 Information Technology​

Accenture​

CSCU

 Cross-Cutting Digital Skills

Stanley Black & Decker, Accenture, Pitney Bowes, IBM

Fairfield University​

 Cybersecurity​ Vancord
Mitchell College​ Professional Technology Skills​

INscrD​

Quinnipiac University​

 Cybersecurity for​ Healthcare ​

Clearwater Compliance, Cornell Weill Medical Center, Cornell-Scott Hill Medical, Fortify Security, Help at Home, IGT Gaming, ISC2CT Industry Group, Kyber Security, Vancord, Yale New Haven

Southern Connecticut State University​

 Cloud Computing​ Ancera​

University of Bridgeport​

 Cybersecurity for​ Finance & Tech​

CGD LLC​​, CYPROTECK Inc.
University of Connecticut – Stamford​ Cloud Computing​

Synchrony Financial

University of Hartford​

 Mobile App Development​ Infosys​

University of New Haven​

 Augmented/Virtual Reality Modeling​

Arsome Technology Group, Pleiadian Systems Corporation, SphereGen
University of Saint Joseph​ Data Analytics & Business Intelligence​

Consultants in Government and Industry (CGI​)

About Office of Workforce Strategy

The Governor’s Workforce Council, the state’s Workforce Development Board, was established in October 2019, under Executive Order No. 4, behind Governor Lamont’s drive to build a more coordinated and effective approach to workforce development. In 2020, Connecticut established the Office of Workforce Strategy as an independent agency to serve as the staff to the Governor’s Workforce Council and to provide strategic guidance on workforce initiatives and investments across the state.

About CBIA

CBIA is Connecticut’s largest business organization, with thousands of member companies, small and large, representing a diverse range of industries from every part of the state. CBIA organized the Tech Talent Ecosystem Summit in collaboration with the Office of Workforce Strategy, the New England Board of Higher Education, and the Business-Higher Education Forum.

About NEBHE

The New England Board of Higher Education advances equitable postsecondary outcomes through convening, research, and programs for students, institution leaders, and policymakers.

About BHEF

The Business-Higher Education Forum (BHEF) is a national network that connects pioneering corporate and higher education leaders to co-develop solutions that address talent gaps. BHEF empowers and catalyzes collaborations that deliver accelerated, inclusive, and effective solutions across education and work.