The Chamber of Commerce Hawaii is a proud partner of the Good Jobs Hawaii initiative, a workforce and skills-development program to help local residents attain high-quality entry level jobs in healthcare, technology, clean energy and creative industries.
The Chamber will also serve as the technology sector lead, working with employers to develop new training models and hiring practices, to fill entry-level technology jobs.
Ensuring that for every IT opening in Hawaii, there is a qualified, local candidate.
The IT sector partnership consists of more than 200 employers and education partners who are collaborating to build and strengthen Hawaii’s local IT talent pipeline.
Launched in April 2022, the IT sector partnership members have already identified three priority areas and have developed working groups around the following initiatives:
Career Awareness and Preparation
Increasing career awareness resources and providing valuable teacher professional development experiences.
Team Leads:
Ed Barnabas, Booz Allen Hamilton
Greg Hester, Ulu HI Tech
Training and Transitions to Employment
Working to increase internship opportunities, certifications, and employment awareness for IT careers in Hawaii.
Team Leads:
Kelly Ueoka, Paxca
Eddie Ontai, DataHouse Hawaii
Garret Yoshimi, University of Hawaii
Alignment Between Education and Industry
Focused on the creation of collaborative advisory boards and career, curriculum, and professional skills mapping.
Team Leads:
Jodi Ito, University of Hawaii
Leslie Wilkins, Maui Economic Development Board
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES OF SECTOR PARTNERSHIPS
✔ Improved skill set among local IT students
✔ Increased supply of local IT professionals
✔ Enhanced IT program infrastructure in pilot school complexes
✔ Increased student engagement in the IT pathway
✔ Increased alignment between secondary and post-secondary programs and careers
