Business, education leaders workshop how to improve Connecticut’s workforce

NORTH HAVEN, Conn. (WTNH) — Business and education leaders spent Thursday in North Haven, talking about how they can work together to improve Connecticut's workforce.

It was during a summit hosted by Quinnipiac University.

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The summit is all about partnerships because Connecticut businesses are in need.

"They're looking for engineers. looking for technical programmers," explained Chris DiPentima, president and CEO of the Connecticut Business and Industry Association. "They're looking for fintech and insurtech analysts, data analysts, and they're really trying to get people interested at a young age."

So business is partnering with educators to improve what they call the tech talent ecosystem.

"We need stronger business engagement, having businesses tell us what they need for curriculum, when they need students," the state's Chief Workforce Officer Dr. Kelli-Marie Vallieres said.

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Connecticut has around 93,000 job openings right now. Not all, but many, are in technology.

Quinnipiac graduate student Benito Kwadade is already working in the tech field, thanks to what he's learned.

"In the industry, they will tell you you need four years, five years of experience to be able to handle such work programs, but I am able to handle it at the moment and I am grateful," Kwadade said.

Industry leaders want students to have not just skills like coding, but to have skills like collaboration, and a lifelong desire to keep learning, keeping up to date on the latest technology.

Plus there is the wild card these days: Artificial Intelligence.

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State leaders say A.I. will change how Hartford's insurance companies measure risk, and it will revolutionize New Haven's bioscience industry.

"A.I. will to be able to accelerate development of new drugs and testing of new drugs," Gov. Ned Lamont (D-Connecticut) said in the summit's opening remarks.

Manufacturers also need skills students are learning in technical high schools, and they know they need to do more to encourage those students.

"So, if a student goes through a program, then they'll get an internship, and if they perform the internship, they'll get the job," the vice president of Stanley Black & Decker Marty Guay said. "Right now, the connectivity is not as tight as it will be."

Which is why these partnerships are so important.