MHTA — Minneapolis was announced as one of the initial 21 communities participating in TechHire, a new White House initiative aimed at creating pathways to better, high-paying tech jobs and meeting urgent employer demand across the US. MHTA is a key partner in this initiative.

TechHire is a multi-sector initiative to help Americans gain the skills they need, through universities and community colleges but also nontraditional approaches like “coding boot camps,” and high-quality online courses that can rapidly train workers for a well-paying job, often in just a few months. Employers across the United States are in critical need of talent with these skills. Many of these roles do not require a four-year computer science degree. Successful partnerships include:

  • Expanded regional employer hiring and paid internships for IT jobs (e.g., coding, web development, project management, cybersecurity) sourced from accelerated training programs based on demonstrated competencies instead of only selecting candidate using standard HR ‘markers’
  • Expand slots, upgrade quality, and diversify participants in accelerated training pipeline – expand local programs like coding boot camps, the best of which have 90 percent job placement rates – to enable more Americans to master the skills required to fill technology jobs and create a strong pipeline of technology talent that local employers demand and will hire that can be ready in months not years
  • Support from locally intermediaries – municipal leadership, workforce development programs and other local resources – that help connect people to jobs based on their skills and job readiness and help employers engage local talent trained in both alternative and traditional programs.

The Minneapolis region will expand upon three accelerated tech training programs operating in the region – Prime Digital Academy, IT-Ready, and Concordia University – that will be training a combined 300 individuals this year for entry level software positions. The region’s work also includes commitments from over sixty employers including 3M, Target, Thompson Reuters, Best Buy and Wells Fargo and apprenticeship partners representing thousands of software development, networking, and technical support jobs. They will train and place workers without traditional IT backgrounds in software engineering and support roles.

Through partnerships with the City of Minneapolis, the State of Minnesota, the Creating IT Futures Foundation, the local non-profit Jewish Family and Children’s Services, and the Minnesota High Tech Association, the local alliance will increase the accessibility of the programs by making funding available for qualified students who would otherwise be unable to afford to attend.

Select Key Partners

  • Prime Digital Academy
  • Creating IT Futures Foundatoin/IT-Ready
  • Concordia University
  • City of Minneapolis
  • Minnesota High Tech Association
  • Jewish Family and Children’s Services

Find more information on the TechHire initiative.