As the key driver of the Championing New Careers and Employees in Technology (“CHANCE in TECH”) Act, CompTIA recently convened a webinar to discuss this and other workforce issues important to the technology industry. Joining CompTIA’s Randi Parker and Geoff Lane, who serve as CompTIA’s policy experts on workforce issues, was Otto Katt, a key congressional staff member to Representative Phil Roe (R-TN). The group gave a brief overview of the Washington landscape under the new administration and GOP-controlled Congress, then pivoted to hear from Otto on the importance of the Department of Labor’s registered apprenticeship program. From there, participants heard from Geoff, who gave an in-depth update on the status of CompTIA’s CHANCE in TECH Act, as well as the great news that a Perkins reauthorization looks to be underway in the House of Representatives. Randi capped things off by updating the group on the state of high-skilled immigration, and announced that CompTIA will be unveiling a white paper on the issue this summer.
CompTIA’s membership spans the technology continuum; large and small companies are all part of the CompTIA community for a variety of reasons, but a consistent throughline connecting the entire community is the need for a highly skilled workforce. Companies, no matter their size or expertise, all depend on bright minds that can think critically and solve problems. It’s with that in mind, that CompTIA’s workforce committee will be convening more of these meetings in the future, to provide critical updates on the issues Washington is working on, and just as important, seek feedback and know-how from our members who understand all too well what it means to be hamstrung by a skills gap.
We will continue to keep our membership updated, but in the meantime, don’t hesitate to contact Randi Parker or Geoff Lane with any workforce questions you may have.
Geoff Lane is CompTIA’s senior policy manager of government affairs.
