FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: SkillSmart Announces New Contract to Launch Cybersecurity Pilot
New Workforce Development Contract is with the Chesapeake Regional Tech Council to Support Regional Tech and Cybersecurity Staffing
Germantown, MD – September 21, 2016 – SkillSmart announced announced today that it has been retained by the Chesapeake Regional Tech Council to connect regional tech and cyber employers with qualified, local talent. The hiring and skills-matching company, working with the Chesapeake Regional Tech Council (CTRC) and its 300 corporate members, will develop an online jobs portal called MDCyberJobs.com.
In September, SkillSmart and CRTC will host a Back to School event to launch the jobs platform as well as four focus groups with CRTC members to better understand hiring needs and to identify job-specific skills. SkillSmart will use this data to develop a detailed job profile for each opportunity, and job seekers will build unique profiles to determine compatibility with open positions. By focusing on the skills required and those job seekers have, both candidates and employers can see if the two are well-matched.
“There are 18,000 unfilled cybersecurity jobs in the DC metro region and we have consistently heard that identifying and hiring the right talent is one of the biggest challenges employers face,” said Michael Knapp, CEO and co-founder of SkillSmart. “We are looking forward to this partnership with CRTC and local cybersecurity employers to drive the local pipeline of talent into this growing industry.”
To further develop the cybersecurity talent pipeline in the region, SkillSmart and CRTC are partnering with Anne Arundel Community College and the University of Maryland, Baltimore County to identify education pathways to cyber jobs. Together, SkillSmart, CRTC and these local educational partners will create a talent pool trained with the skills necessary to be hired in the local workforce.
The MDCyberJobs.com job portal will go live in mid-October.
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