INDIANAPOLIS — Even before Artificial Intelligence (AI) capability became the biggest buzzword and tech tool of the year, Indiana employers were struggling to find the technical talent they need to keep pace with technology. TechPoint, the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership branded initiative focused on supporting and growing Indiana’s digital innovation economy and overall tech ecosystem, today announced a new way to ease that struggle.

“We’ve begun to help our membership develop a tech talent strategy that meets their needs that is coupled with an execution partner to put that strategy into place,” said TechPoint Senior Vice President, Talent, Strategy and Partnerships Dennis Trinkle. “It’s a service that grew out of our focus on inclusively adding 41,000 tech workers to the state’s workforce and lots of conversations around the state about how best to do that.”

One of the companies acting as execution partners is a relative newcomer to the Indiana tech ecosystem: IonThree, which offers a distinctive approach to filling tech roles by creating “pods” of three to four, entry-level high-tech workers who are hired, overseen, trained and mentored by IonThree but work for the companies that need the staff. A senior level high-tech leader oversees each pod, appropriate in training to the companies’ needs.

“Our ‘podsters’ come in to do the high-volume, low-complexity technical work that runs the business, which gives senior managers and leaders the time to focus on innovation, strategy and moving the business forward,” said IonThree CEO and Founder Manash Sahoo. “We take care of knowing what the business needs and then insert the pods as regular team members.”

As the podsters gain experience and work with a company, many are hired on full-time. IonThree would then backfill the positions and keep the team running. Trinkle equates the podsters to apprentices, which is another strategy TechPoint is employing to help fill shortage in tech talent.

Whereas IonThree focuses on high tech positions like data analytics, software development and engineering, other execution partners focus on other high-demand roles, he said. Academic partners at Ball State, Indiana-Wesleyan and Purdue universities, the University of Indianapolis and Ivy Tech Community College focus on cyber security and/or data analytics. Butler University assists with Information Technology workers who need to complete an undergraduate degree in IT in order to be promoted. Hope Training Academy focuses on cybersecurity and general IT. New Apprenticeship offers several IT roles.

“We'll work with our members companies to strategically determine what roles they most need and then pair them with the execution partner that’s best for them,” Trinkle said.

Companies interested in learning more about the service should contact Trinkle at dennis@techpoint.org.

The new service is part of TechPoint’s Mission41K effort, which seeks to inclusively add 41,000 new tech workers to the state by 2030 by expanding traditional and developing new pathways for Hoosiers to enter the tech sector. It prioritizes skills-based hiring, provides more inclusive pathways into tech roles for significantly more people, and puts a focus on apprenticeships as a viable path to a successful and lucrative career in tech.

Tech jobs offer high salaries, stability and strong advancement pathways. Despite recent efforts to increase diversity throughout the industry, tech in Indiana and throughout the U.S. remains predominantly white and male. For example, research shows Black workers comprise just seven percent of the Indiana tech workforce, while making up 10 percent of the overall Indiana workforce. Only five percent of the software developers in Central Indiana are Black.

More than 184,000 Hoosiers now work in tech and tech-enabled roles, filling one out of every 10 jobs in Indiana. For every 10,000 new tech workers added to the Indiana workforce, $698 million in new annual wages are generated and $56.9 million in state and local tax revenues are gained, per TechPoint’s 2023 Workforce Report.

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About TechPoint: TechPoint, is the Central Indiana Corporate Partnership’s industry-led growth initiative for Indiana’s digital innovation economy and overall tech ecosystem. The team is focused on working with public, private and industry partners to expand tech talent pipeline, enhance resource connectivity for enterprise organizations and startups alike, and elevate the industry by activating the community and amplifying stories of success. For more information, please visit www.techpoint.org.  Media contact: Cheryl Reed: cheryl@techpoint.org

About IonThree: IonThree uses its decades of experience in IT and technology consulting, and flagship Pods Program to offer lower-risk, cost effective solutions for companies seeking to enhance their talent acquisition strategy for entry-level, junior, and mid-level technologists. For more information, please visit https://ionthree.com/