Thank You Alliance Members

The NEW Digital Alliance would like to welcome Associated Bank as an Executive Level Investor! We greatly appreciate their support. To learn more about Associated Bank, click here.

Alliance News:

It’s hard to believe that it’s already December, and the busy holiday season is upon us. As we wind down the year, I’d like to take this time to thank all of our investors who make the work we do possible. Check out our January newsletter to learn about how your investments are making a difference in Northeast Wisconsin!

NEW Connect IT

In November, volunteers from NEW Digital Alliance investors and local colleges connected with over 300 high school students as part of the NEW Connect IT event series. Students heard learned about college pathways, as heard from panelists about high-demand careers in tech fields such as data analytics, cyber security, programming, and more. They also learned about the value of a college degree when seeking employment in a tech-related area, and had the opportunity to ask local IT professionals about their careers.

Thank you to all our volunteers from:

• EDCi
• Faith technologies
• Heartland Business Systems
• J. Keller
• KI
• Stellar Blue
• Thrivent
• FVTC
• MPTC
• NWTC
• UW GB
• UW Oshkosh

Your efforts are making a difference in the lives of our youth!

Cybersecurity Roundtable

In October we launched our Cybersecurity Roundtable. Our next meeting will be on December 16 at 8:00 where we will be discussing the world of cyber insurance. We will be bringing in a guest speaker from M3 Insurance to share changes in the cyber insurance process, and let us know what we can expect this coming year.

Future topics will include security frameworks, developing a cybersecurity team, C-suite/board cyber education, and understanding attack tactics.

This discussion group is open to cybersecurity leaders from our investor companies and is designed to:

• Help regional cyber leaders connect and build a local network they can reach out to for support

• Share cybersecurity hiring, skills & training needs, tool usage, best practices, and the latest threats

• Learn about local resources to help them and their teams

The Cybersecurity Roundtable will meet every other month in a hybrid format. To learn how you can take part in the discussions, contact NEW Digital Alliance Director, Kim Iversen, at Kim@newDigitalAlliance.org. 

Computer Science Teacher Licensure Cohort

On November 30 NEW Digital Alliance investors Plexus, Secura, Community First Credit Union, and Smart IShosted teachers from across the state for an IT Shop Hop. This event was open to teachers in the CS Teacher Licensure cohort, as well as local teachers already holding their CS license.

Seventeen teachers joined Alliance director Kim Iversen, and CSTEY Coordinator Amy Bires on an all-day adventure visiting local companies and talking with IT leaders. CIOs and their teams shared some of their challenges in finding IT resources, as well as which roles are hardest to fill. They also spoke to the fact that IT is an area of lifelong learning, and as a result look for individuals with good soft skills and passion – they’ll teach you the rest!

The teachers thought it was a fantastic day, and went home full of new knowledge to share with their students.

Looking to the Future

This week is CS Education week. Reach out to your local schools to see how you can help teachers and students learn more about IT careers.

In January NEW Digital Alliance Executive Committee will be gathering for our annual strategy session. We look forward to sharing the exciting new things 2022 will bring.

The NEW Digital Alliance team wishes you and yours a safe and happy Holiday Season!

Unemployment Updates

Updated data for September was not yet available at the time of publication.

National unemployment rates for November have returned to pre-pandemic levels, hovering around 4.2%. Demand for talent in Wisconsin continues to remain higher than national demand, as reflected in the lower unemployment rate of 3.2% for October vs. the national rate of 4.6% for the same month (state-level data is not yet available for November).

Tech unemployment continues to remain below the 3% seen in January 2020, despite an increase to 2.6% in November.

Data Sources: CompTia IT Employment Tracker, Bureau of Labor Statistics, and New North IntelTracker