-
Why This Matters
Wilmington’s tech sector is growing, and many new jobs are being filled by people moving here. Our focus is to upskill and employ local residents as well as attract the talent our community needs to keep growing.
Early upskilling efforts were catalyzed by DigitalBridge Wilmington, a one-time ARPA-funded initiative that jump-started employer-aligned training.
We’re now scaling sustainable, business-aligned pipelines that connect residents to real jobs, faster.
“Wilmington’s tech economy is growing, but a significant share of new roles are filled by people moving here. Our challenge, and opportunity, is to help more local residents access these jobs.”
— Regional Labor Market Insight (UNCW/Dr. Guettabi) -
How It Works (TPM in Action)
Business-led, data-driven, outcomes-focused
-
Employer Collaboratives: Companies define roles, skills, and hiring demand.
-
Demand Planning: We forecast hiring needs and prioritize occupations.
-
Competency Alignment: Educators align curricula and credentials to employer-defined skills.
-
Work-Based Learning: Internships, apprenticeships, and project-based pathways.
-
Measure & Improve: Track completions, hiring, retention, and wage gains.
Join the Employer Collaborative today. Email Dr. Maggie Gorman at gorman@wilmingtonchamber.org to learn more.
-
-
For Tech Companies
Why Join
The tech industry evolves quickly. By participating in the Collaborative, your company gains direct influence over how schools, colleges, and training providers prepare students for careers in technology.Benefits include:
-
Early access to qualified talent through tailored pipelines.
-
Reduced turnover by shaping training programs around your actual needs.
-
Opportunities to connect with students through internships, apprenticeships, and career pathways.
How It Works
Through employer collaboratives, you’ll work with peers to share hiring forecasts, define critical skills, and align education programs with real-world business needs. -
-
Timeline & Milestones
Phase
Timeline
Milestones & Key Insights
Phase 1: Foundation Building
2022 – Early 2023
Tech Talent Collaborative formed under Cape Fear Collective, co-chaired by industry leaders, with early employer participants including Corning, GE Hitachi, Novant Health, nCino, and Apiture.
DigitalBridge Wilmington launched – a one‑time $2.5M ARPA investment to upskill and reskill residents for digital jobs, aligned to employer needs, delivered by Cape Fear Collective, StepUp Wilmington, and Wilmington Works Resource Coalition
Phase 2: Convening & Strategy
Late 2023 – 2024
Monthly employer convenings began, sharing labor forecasts and identifying in-demand roles like software engineers, data engineers, and Salesforce administrators
Partnership with Stiegler EdTech launched apprenticeship cohorts; nearly 900 applied for just 31 spots.
Phase 3: Expansion & Impact
2025
Strategic shift toward building local talent pipelines, reducing reliance on out-of-region hires. While DigitalBridge was one-time ARPA-funded, the focus now is on sustainable, employer-aligned training partnerships.
Broader employer engagement through surveys and meetings continues.
Regional acclaim: Wilmington ranked #11 nationally for tech talent growth (27.6% increase since 2019), while NC tech-sector employment growth (#8 national ranking, nearly 19% growth 2018–2023) reflects strong momentum
Dr. Mouhcine Guettabi’s recent data shows: in high-paying sectors like tech and finance, only about 15.6% of new hires in the information sector were already local residents; similarly low percentages in finance (25.7%), administration (26.2%), and utilities (15.2%)—highlighting the gap in locally captured job growth