Building a better future for the channel: Tech Channel Ambassadors officially goes live to tackle growing skills gap
The new not-for-profit company aims to fill 100,000 IT jobs
It was six months ago that CRN first spoke to founder Ian Kilpatrick (pictured) about his ambitious initiative to raise awareness of the career opportunities in the IT channel through a new Community Interest Company (CIC) called Tech Channel Ambassadors (TCA).
Fast forward to today, which is the official ‘go live' day for the initiative. It follows months of hard work by Kilpatrick and his all-star leadership committee which includes Crayon's Hayley Mooney, Distology's Hayley Roberts, Westcoast's Alex Tatham, Rubrik's Lisa Roberts and Softcat's Rebecca Monk, plus many more.
"We have been working hard getting partnerships and agreements in place and setting up training videos - there has been a lot of interest and we have some great people on board already," said Kilpatrick.
"The whole team has been brilliant from the start, and their enthusiasm and energy around this initiative has helped create a real buzz.
"There is no reason at all why every company in the channel at every level should not get involved. As a channel we haven't had a strategic approach to education at all, and we don't have a big enough talent funnel to support our industry for the years to come. We have had a talent shortage for decades and we need to do something about it."
"We have been pretty good at taking our message out to sixth forms and to universities, but as a collective we haven't engaged with the younger years - those aged 13-16, and these are the very people we want to encourage to build a career in our industry," he added.
"Sadly at the moment, these are the very people who are self-selecting themselves out. They may be from deprived backgrounds, neurodivergent or economically disadvantaged or just feel the industry is not for them. They need to know that the channel is inclusive, full of opportunities, and supportive of everyone. And this is where our Ambassadors come in.
"We need to reach out to these people and tell them about the huge range of career opportunities in the IT channel - it is not just about maths and science. It is a fun and diverse industry to work in, and one that is constantly evolving. There are so many roles from sales to marketing, PR and media, plus so much more. And the career development opportunities in the channel are endless."
Kilpatrick said TCA were keen to engage with as many wannabe ambassadors as possible, particularly from a younger demographic, who would appeal to younger generations of students.
"It is all very well someone like me - a white, middle-aged male - standing up in front of these students and telling them how great our industry is, but when they hear from people closer to their own age, about their experiences and the career opportunities they have ahead of them, it will really make a difference. We are a multi-billion pound industry and by bringing more people on board through this initiative, we can grow even further," added Kilpatrick.
He said those getting involved would have full metrics provided and access to training and support material to make sure their organisations can track and measure progress.
To find out more and get involved with the TCA, click here.