IT-oLogy Showcases Technology Careers
Imagine a stereotypical information technology (IT) “nerd,” plugging away in a dark little cubicle in the basement level of his company, the movement of binary code on the computer screen lighting up his face. IT-oLogy, a non-profit consortium of large and small companies, higher education institutions and other organizations, is out to break that stereotype in the minds of young students across the Southeast. It’s hard to find a job today that doesn’t touch the technology field in some way, and IT-oLogy is telling everyone that there are jobs, jobs, jobs for those who choose any one of a multitude of IT positions available in the Midlands and across the Southeast.
Formed in late 2008 by BlueCross BlueShield of SC, IBM, and The University of South Carolina as a way to create an IT talent pipeline, the companies, colleges, and universities that contribute to the consortium have one goal in mind: to get as many people as possible excited about working in the technology field. To this end, IT-oLogy’s partners focus on three key areas for increasing interest in IT:
• K-12 Students
Along with organizations such as the Midlands Education and Business Alliance (MEBA), IT-oLogy educates students about interesting technology job opportunities through career fairs, gaming laboratories, computer camps, and by sending speakers into the classroom.
• Higher Education
IT-oLogy has established a paid internship program that connects college students with partner businesses. The students gain real world experience, and local companies gain insight into new talent coming out of schools.
• Professional Workforce
IT-oLogy offers classes, labs, and conferences for the professional development of those currently working in technology jobs and those who think they may be interested in switching careers.
The organization accomplishes all this with a plethora of volunteers and only seven paid staff members who are “loaners” from partner companies in the area. IT-oLogy Executive Director Lonnie Emard, for example, is an executive with BlueCross BlueShield of SC, on loan to IT-oLogy for five years. He came to lead IT-oLogy three years ago when his company, who is one of the organization’s founding partners, decided to work together with others in the area to lure more technology savvy workers to their companies. Although it sounds unusual that companies competing for IT workers would band together, it seems to be working well for IT-oLogy.
“The shortage of technology workers is not just a BlueCross BlueShield problem or a Columbia problem or even a South Carolina problem,” says Emard. “There is a supply and demand problem of epidemic proportion. There are examples in our country of companies solving this type of problem individually, but then one company wins and neighboring companies whose IT workers are siphoned off, lose,” Emard continues. “By forming a consortium, we collectively can accomplish what one can’t do. There may be job shortages in other disciplines, but there are many IT jobs available right now.”
CONNECTING EDUCATION AND BUSINESS
IT-oLogy works as a connector between students at universities and technical colleges and local companies. By increasing interaction with students at the middle school to college level, IT-oLogy is better able to bust the stereotypes of IT jobs and showcase all the exciting kinds of technology careers available in our own backyard. When a company becomes a partner in IT-oLogy, it enjoys representation by professionals already on the ground at local campuses, recruiting students at on-site school career fairs.
Kendra Entzminger, who is enrolled in an engineering program at WJ Keenan High School, has participated in a one-on-one session at IT-oLogy where she learned about different types of software. “I am thinking about a career in technology,” she says, “and the class was even better than I expected.” Students also have the opportunity to participate in virtual job shadowing and internships through IT-oLogy.
Emard stresses IT-oLogy is not a building but a template that can be replicated elsewhere. Technology executives aim to spread IT-oLogy’s model to other areas. “We see an ‘IT-oLogy Innovista’ and an ‘IT-oLogy Research Triangle Park,’” says Emard. “We need 500,000 IT workers in the next five to 10 years in the Southeast, and this is the roadmap to get us there,” he says.
“Today, there are about 900,000 IT jobs available nationwide and only 400,000 trained people,” says IT-oLogy Communications Manager Powers Strickland. “With the ongoing retirement of Baby Boomers and the constant creation of new technology jobs, that number will continue to soar higher.”
The 65 corporate partners of IT-oLogy are working to ensure the demand is met with a large supply of highly qualified technology workers. They give both in-kind manpower and financial contributions to help ensure IT-oLogy’s goal of creating a stronger and more plentiful IT workforce is met.
David Dunn, CEO of VC3, is an IT-oLogy partner, giving both service and financial assistance to the organization. His company manages IT-oLogy’s data center. “It’s too early to see IT-oLogy’s results at the school district level, but I have seen the organization act as the catalyst for cohesion in the technology community,” Dunn says.
All the partners want to bust IT stereotypes and encourage students to look at technology as a lucrative and exciting career choice. “We need passionate problem-solvers in IT,” says Emard. “Students are already gaming and texting. They need to understand that these kinds of jobs are part of IT, too. Cultivating that understanding is the way we will excite them about choosing a technology career path.”