The updated Your Talent Your Future: A Look at Georgia’s Entry-Level Talent Supply vs. Employer Demand report has finally been unveiled. This morning we hosted an event to walk employers and educators through the data and the opportunities the data reveals.
The updated Your Talent Your Future: A Look at Georgia’s Entry-Level Talent Supply vs. Employer Demand (YTYF) report has finally been unveiled. This morning we hosted an event to walk employers and educators through the data and the opportunities the data reveal.
Kicking off the event was a welcome from Katie Kirkpatrick, Chief Policy Officer at the Metro Atlanta Chamber. She highlighted the importance of education and workforce development to the business community.
Robert Friess, Managing Director at Accenture, set the stage by discussing how the landscape has changed since the first version of the report. In 2016, when the first YTYF report was released, job postings in Georgia had increased 154% over the previous five years and unemployment was 5.1%. Today, the job postings in Georgia have increased 28% and unemployment is down to 3.4%, yet we still have gaps for specific degrees and certifications.
Since the release of the first report, some great strides have been made toward reducing the gap. Legislation has been passed, such as HB 218, the HOPE Extension bill extending HOPE eligibility from 7 to 10 years, and SB 108 creating computer science education standards in K-12 plus support for professional development for computer science educators. Other progress has included programs like the University System of Georgia’s new Nexus degree for which experiential learning is co-designed with industry to fill high-demand occupations.
Amy Lancaster-King, Director of Workforce Development, spoke next to dig into the substance of the report. The data is broken down into four categories: Demand Overview, Supply Overview, Talent Gaps, and Closing the Gap.
A few highlights below:
