TechPoint is partnering with InnoPower and the Urban League to launch their Advancing Equity through Technology program. As part of the initiative, TechPoint is facilitating a unique program that partners adult apprentices with local companies. 

The adult apprentice program offers local organizations access to diverse prospects looking for a tech career. In addition to vetting apprenticeship candidates, TechPoint provides assistance and resources to local companies to guide their apprentices to success.   

Malik Laffoon, Program Coordinator for African-American Equity at TechPoint, says the program is not an internship because, unlike interns, the apprenticeship candidates have already committed to a career in tech. He says this benefits both the apprentice and the companies who hire them. He also says that studies show apprentices are more likely to stay at a company after their apprenticeship is over, with the average tenure of an apprentice being seven years. The average tenure for non-apprenticed employees is only two years.    

The one-year program starts with an interview conducted by TechPoint that vets the candidates. Potential apprentices then complete a profile that helps gauge their tech competencies. While waiting to be hired, apprentices are then given free training and workshops to help grow their skills.  

Laffoon says one of the program’s best parts is watching apprentices’ confidence grow over time. “They’re proving to themselves that they can do it.” With 80% of apprentices coming from underrepresented backgrounds in the tech industry, he says it’s important for companies to encourage and foster the skills of the apprentices they hire.    

Laffoon encourages companies that hire apprentices to build a team around them that can fully support the apprentices as they learn. Companies currently participating in the TechPoint adult apprentice program include Eli Lilly and Allegion. 

National Apprenticeship Week is November 13-19. The adult apprenticeship program is part of TechPoint’s mission to bring 41,000 Hoosiers into the tech workforce by 2030. You can learn more at https://techpoint.org/adult-apprenticeship. 

Sponsored by INNOPOWER & TechPoint