Yes. My time is almost out so this is a short answer.
The key is to focus on the forgotten demographics and play to their strengths rather than chase after the shiny baubles of importing "rock star" engineers
Forgotten demographics:
Women who took time off to have families and want to come back to work. Take it from me there is no one more disciplined, motivated or organized than a mom who wants to get back to work but also has pragmatic understanding of the tradeoffs involved.
"Tech Lifers" who are laid off in the new economy. These are folks who have been in one company all their lives but not necessarily in software - they understand the priorities and process but just need the skills. They are amazingly focused when it comes to learning.
"Residents" of the location. These are folks who have a vested interest in staying at the current location (have homes, kids in school etc.) and are less of a job-change risk. They may be working in industries that are on the decline, may be under-employed, or they may not be working at all - investing in them makes sense because the biggest issue for many smaller regions (non urban/metro) is retaining workforces long enough to attract more investment.
Ideas:
Invest in tech meetups and things like Study Camps (yes, I am biased) where groups of people can work together on learning.
Provide pathways for certification. Most workforce retraining programs that get govt. funds need clear "official" certifications to validate the investment. Explore ways to work with local universities and other certification organizations to partner on this for success.
Provide role models. Have successful graduates of these programs come back and share their insights/narratives frequently. Too often the biggest thing we fail to provide is the emotional support to keep people going and not give up. They need hope, they need encouragement (when things look tough) and they need the sense of belonging => communities help.
More to say but another day
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Yes. My time is almost out so this is a short answer.
The key is to focus on the forgotten demographics and play to their strengths rather than chase after the shiny baubles of importing "rock star" engineers
Forgotten demographics:
Women who took time off to have families and want to come back to work. Take it from me there is no one more disciplined, motivated or organized than a mom who wants to get back to work but also has pragmatic understanding of the tradeoffs involved.
"Tech Lifers" who are laid off in the new economy. These are folks who have been in one company all their lives but not necessarily in software - they understand the priorities and process but just need the skills. They are amazingly focused when it comes to learning.
"Residents" of the location. These are folks who have a vested interest in staying at the current location (have homes, kids in school etc.) and are less of a job-change risk. They may be working in industries that are on the decline, may be under-employed, or they may not be working at all - investing in them makes sense because the biggest issue for many smaller regions (non urban/metro) is retaining workforces long enough to attract more investment.
Ideas:
More to say but another day