Cisco and Experis, the IT professional resourcing and project services firm have announced a new partnership to train, reskill and upskill workers from a broad range of sources with in-demand IT skills to help close the IT skills gap.
The collaboration is between Experis and the Cisco Networking Academy, the company’s IT education initiative. Currently live in the U.S. and Mexico, both companies plan to expand to additional markets in future phases and focus on in-demand jobs.
Those jobs roles include IT, cybersecurity, networking, programming and data, the companies say, adding that they aim to place more than 1,000 people in new IT roles within the first year. The companies hope the partnership helps create a sustainable talent ecosystem that welcomes a diverse population of individuals into the IT industry.
When learners complete at least one course, they can log into the Experis ManpowerGroup Integrated Talent Engine Matcher—an AI-powered job platform—to create a “skills fingerprint” that can be used to visualize fit for open roles while giving talent agents insight into what skills learners possess.
Laura Quintana, vice president and general manager of the Cisco Networking Academy, says talent is equally distributed, but opportunity is not.
“At Cisco Networking Academy, we provide a pathway to support underserved and underrepresented people so they can gain technical skills to earn meaningful work opportunities,” Quintana says, adding that diversity is a key part of the workforce solution.
“Our partnership with Experis amplifies our efforts and connects newly skilled learners to in-demand and well-paying jobs,” Quintana says.
The pandemic accelerated the IT skills gap as every company was forced to adopt new technologies, and there simply aren’t enough IT professionals to help them support that new technology, says ManpowerGroup Latin America President Mónica Flores Barragán.
“Together, with Cisco’s best-in-class Networking Academy, Experis will be able to expand on our mission to connect talent with re- and upskilling, jobs, and career pathways to support technology transformation and unleash their potential,” Barragán says. “We’re excited to give more people the opportunity to find meaningful, sustainable employment while equipping them with highly sought-after tech skills.”
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