Jean Case*, chairman of the National Geographic Society and CEO of the Case Impact Network and Case Foundation, recently wrote a column for Forbes entitled We Can Do It! Capitalism And The Future Of Work. In she, she outlines the current disconnect between a healthy economy and a shortage of skilled technology workers.
She provides several methods for closing this skills gap, including market-based solutions from entrepreneurs. One of the businesses she highlights is Catalyte.
You also see this innovation in Baltimore, home of Catalyte, a startup that delivers engineering talent from “unexpected places.” The company, which my husband’s firm Revolution has invested in, uses AI to test individuals for their aptitude to become a software developer, replacing the typical resume or other traditional means. To date, individuals from all walks—truck drivers, high school students, and hourly workers—many who would have been counted out based on traditional assessments, have gone through the program and onto high paying jobs as software engineers. In a recent poll Catalyte graduates reported their earnings increased nearly 4x, erasing the gap between those with a college degree and those without…
I’m excited to see much of this innovation coming from places like Flint and Baltimore, and other unlikely places across the nation, once again demonstrating that great ideas and talent that we need to move our country forward often come from communities other than Silicon Valley.
*Editorial note: Jean Case’s husband is Steve Case, who is chairman and CEO of Revolution, an investor in Catalyte through its Rise of the Rest Fund. Catalyte had no knowledge of or editorial contribution to Jean Case’s column.
