SkillStorm Partners with CGI to Expand Talent Pipelines to the U.S. Tech Workforce Through Registered Apprenticeship

SkillStorm and CGI join forces to provide earn-and-learn opportunities to underrepresented pools of talent—including veterans and military spouses—and address critical IT and software development skills shortages in the -U.S. workforce.

JACKSONVILLE, Fla., Jan. 28, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- SkillStorm today announced a new partnership with global IT and business consulting services firm CGI to forge new pathways to the U.S. tech workforce for underrepresented populations. Through this partnership, SkillStorm will continue to provide CGI's apprentices with training that leads to today's most in-demand technology credentials and prepares them for careers in the U.S. workforce.

CGI's U.S. Department of Labor (USDOL) Registered Apprenticeship program—underpinned by Good Jobs Challenge Grant recipient and US, apprenticeship intermediary, Apprenti—connects aspiring technologists with SkillStorm's high-quality training in Java Full Stack Software Development. Apprentices sourced by Hiring Our Heroes then join CGI for an additional 12-months of paid on-the-job training before being deployed to commercial, federal, state and local government clients as certified Java Full Stack software development engineers, cybersecurity analysts, and data engineers, among others.

"Registered apprenticeships allow CGI to tap into diverse talent and develop the advanced technical skills needed in today's market and moving forward. By nurturing talent from the ground up, we ensure our workforce remains adaptable, innovative, and primed for success," said Brian Lane, Vice-President, CGI's U.S. Commercial and Government Operations.

The partnership comes as the commercial sector, and state and federal governments face a severe shortage of competent tech talent and in the federal sector have begun a push to remove degree requirements for technology roles across the federal sector. The Office of Personnel Management is already in the process of converting nearly 100,000 fedtech jobs in cyber, IT, and AI to skills-based hiring, making apprenticeship an attractive earn-and-learn pathway to technology for workers who are skilled through routes other than a four-year degree.

CGI's apprenticeship cohorts are designed to combat systemic unemployment, underemployment, and underrepresentation. Historically, CGI's apprentices are 41% people of color, 30% are women, and 41% begin training unemployed. Nearly half (47%) only have some college or high school diploma, and less than one in five (18%) have obtained an associate's degree. Additionally, 21% are veterans and 6% are military spouses.

"Talent is universal, but opportunity is not. Our partnership with CGI is changing that," said Joe Mitchell, COO of SkillStorm. "We're not just training technologists—we're leveraging apprenticeship to fuel the future of the federal workforce and creating new routes to civil service jobs that reflect the diversity of our nation."

For more information, visit SkillStorm's website.

About SkillStorm
SkillStorm is bringing together Fortune 500 employers, universities, and government agencies to build tomorrow's highly skilled tech workforce. Through partnerships with platforms like Salesforce, AWS, ServiceNow, CompTIA, and Microsoft, we help working learners and aspiring tech experts build in-demand skills and earn industry-recognized certifications to compete in an increasingly dynamic economy. Our work is rooted in the belief that closing skill gaps and boosting economic mobility are two sides of the same coin, and that new approaches to training can help to both expand the pool of skilled tech talent and create new pathways to opportunity.

Contact: 
Lauren Wicker 
[email protected]

SOURCE SkillStorm