90. Transition to Tech with SkillStorm

Show Notes | November 12, 2020 | Episode 90



IT services and staffing company SkillStorm is on a mission to help transitioning service members learn a new skill and find sustainable income after exiting the military.



Who better to spread that news than military spouses? SkillStorm recognizes this symbiotic relationship and is offering two amazing job opportunities to the VirtForce community.  



SkillStorm’s Entry-Level Software Developer training program teaches transitioning service members the skills they need in 16 weeks or less and places them as a W-2 employee with a Fortune 500 company.



SkillStorm is also hiring military spouses as Program Coordinators to help educate the military community about this amazing training program.



SkillStorm’s Sr. Technical Recruiter Richard Perez recently filled the VirtForce community in on this two-for-one opportunity alert during a live discussion with VirtForce founder and CEO Kimber Hill.



A few years ago, SkillStorm noticed a gap in the market. As companies invested in new, emerging technologies, there was a shortage of new talent who could operate it. There were only established professionals who came with heavy salaries.



SkillStorm created a space for entry-level people to come in and show the market newbies could do the work thanks to automated processes.  



SkillStorm is very focused on the military community because of the skills they already have that can seamlessly transfer to coding such as great organizational skills and time management.  



Originally, SkillStorm’s paid developer training was for emerging talent and just-out-of-college grads, but after the company received approval to be a training partner in the Department of Defense SkillBridge Program, they went full throttle on hiring veterans.



As a SkillBridge-approved company, transitioning service members can be granted up to 180 days of permissive duty to focus solely on training with SkillStorm while still receiving their military compensation and benefits.



SkillStorm has two training programs:



A 12-week, paid-training opportunity for veterans, which requires participants to have some IT knowledge. SkillStorm offers online training to get them up to speed.A 16-week unpaid fellowship for those who are exiting the military. The first four weeks are fundamental training where participants learn the basics of coding. This program is ideal for someone who could use the Department of Defense SkillBridge Program.  



Those who are trained in either program will learn infrastructure, cloud architecture, cloud security, automated solutions and coding, among other skills. These IT skills are essential, especially as companies work remotely during COVID-19.



With COVID-19 all training is currently virtual, remote until at least mid-2021. The training is CONUS and OCONUS-friendly. Participants must be US citizens or green card holders, but considered case-by-case, so inquire.



The mission of these programs is to recruit, train, certify and then deploy employees to the client, so participants must be open to being relocated to a Fortune 500 company.



SkillStorm has a goal to hire 300-plus service members by the end of 2021.



To help spread the word, SkillStorm plans to hire at least three military spouses at every base to serve as program coordinators who will get the word out about why service members would want a career in IT, and advocate and support them as they transition out of the military.



As a 1099 position, coordinators set their own hours and work at their own pace. It is also location-flexible, so the job can move from duty station to duty station.  



The spouse position is commission based up to $650 per person who is recruited to the program. SkillStorm has seen an average of about 30 recruits a year, so spouses have the potential to earn an average of $19,500 a year for conversations they likely are already having with service members.