INDIANAPOLIS — The Be Nimble Foundation, which focuses on creating a diverse and inclusive tech ecosystem, is entering a new partnership with Eli Lilly and Company to help recruit and train candidates.
Skills First @ Lilly provides candidates without four-year college degrees greater access to roles at the company that they may not have had through traditional recruiting methods.
The program is focused on providing opportunities and empowering Black and Latinx people.
WRTV first introduced you to Be Nimble last month.
"We get to directly work with and talk to our people — Black and brown people, usually between the age of about 16 to 35, that are looking to do a career transition, mostly in the tech sector," co-founder Kelly Jones told WRTV's Nicole Griffin.
The partnership will allow cohort members to complete Microsoft and Google certifications in a completely remote environment. Available certifications include UX/UI design and development, tech sales and customer success.
"We spent a lot of time developing that talent, preparing them for the career change, helping them with their confidence, building a ton of other power skills along the way, but to be able to then directly hand them right into an opportunity to change their career and ultimately, in a lot of our audience, the trajectory of their lives — it's really exciting," Mark Harsley, BeNimble Upskilling Program Director, said.
Harsley says you don't need an undergraduate degree or a ton of prerequisites to join.
"it is very beginner friendly. It's also happening virtually and self paced, so there's a lot of flexibility to be enjoyed by people," Harsley said. "You don't need to be a mathematician, or have a bunch of other prerequisite technical skills, you will gain that through our community. But then we will also teach you more of the career readiness, things that really are important to being able to have a successful career regardless of what field you're in."
After the 2-3 month cohort, Lilly representatives will interview candidates and identify those who are fit for extended apprenticeship opportunities.
"When we were exposed to Be Nimble recently, we saw an opportunity for a win win, an opportunity to to help increase the capability of Be Nimble and to provide more potential possibilities for access to jobs at Eli Lilly and Company and beyond," Terry Morris, Associate Vice President for Racial Justice at Eli Lilly and Company, said. "We've been fascinated by the talent capabilities that we see in their pre apprenticeship capabilities."
In its first year, Be Nimble and Lilly share a goal of recruiting at least 50 professionals and assisting them in building their skill sets, and providing streamlined access to high-paying, two-year apprenticeships within Lilly. These apprentices are gateway opportunities to full-time career positions at Lilly.
"We're excited about the possibilities here. We know we have the opportunity to grow from this point and look forward to to doing that with Be Nimble and others," Morris said.
Applications are now open. To learn more and apply, click here.
