Tech Collective graduates inaugural IT On Demand class

(Updated, Jan. 2, 8:30 a.m.)

PROVIDENCE – Tech Collective celebrated the graduation of its inaugural IT On Demand trainees at a Dec. 20 event held at the Crown Plaza Providence-Warwick.

All 16 participants successfully completed the program, Tech Collective said, and half of them already have been placed in full-time positions, all but one of them with the companies they interned with as a part of the training program.

Funded by the Governor’s Workforce Board, the IT On Demand program was designed to provide unemployed and underemployed mid-level IT practitioners with technical, business and experiential training, preparing them to re-enter the workforce.

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The 14-week pilot run of the program began Sept. 16 and included eight weeks of on-the-job training with a Rhode Island IT employer. New Horizons provided technical training for VMware data center virtualization, and Bryant University provided business skills training.

“In Rhode Island we are lucky to have businesses becoming creative in their talent search and finding untapped resources through programs like IT On Demand,” said Philip Terrien, an IT On Demand participant who completed his IT On Demand internship at Envision Technology Advisors. “In the last eight weeks I have earned three valuable certifications, but even more importantly, I have expanded my professional network exponentially. I have discovered that I have an ability to run effective team meetings and organize projects through my business management training at Bryant University. I didn’t know I could do that.”

In total, 10 Rhode Island IT employers hosted IT On Demand participants for internships, including Atrion Networking, Brave River Solutions, Carousel Industries, Envision Technology Advisors, Innovex subsidiary Netsense, PC Troubleshooters, R&B IT Solutions, the Rhode Island Foundation, Rite-Solutions and R.I. Joint Committee on Legislative Services.

“The success of the IT On Demand program was more than we could have expected,” said Tech Collective Executive Director Kathie Shields in a release. “We had companies actually bidding for candidates. It was exciting for us, but even more so for the participants, who were now infused with not only technical and professional skills, but also confidence in themselves and their abilities.”

A second IT On Demand session is scheduled for spring 2014, with the technical training to focus on software development. Interested employers or program candidates should contact Chris Selwyn, manager of training and career development for Tech Collective, at (401) 521-7805 x108 or at cselwyn@tech-collective.org.

For more information about Tech Collective’s IT On Demand program, visit www.tech-collective.org.

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