Denver, April 25, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Intermountain Health is the recipient of a $1.9 million seed grant from the Opportunity Now Colorado grant program, which aims to transform Colorado's growing workforce with new job opportunities.
The grant was one of 43 grants announced by Colorado Gov. Jared Polis that were awarded in 17 industries and is provided through the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade.
The grants from Opportunity Now are designed to spur innovation in education for employment and workforce development through new partnerships and solutions.
Intermountain Health will use the grant to launch Pathfinders: an AI-supported fully connected talent pipeline to engage, hire and provide upfront tuition coverage for entry-level frontline healthcare job seekers.
"It's no secret the nature of work is changing, and employers around the world are needing to adapt in new innovative ways. I'm proud to say at Intermountain, we aren't just adapting, we're leading the way through programs like Pathfinders,” said Heather Brace, chief people officer at Intermountain Health. “By staying true to our values and embracing new ways to reach future employees, we can build the kind of diverse talent pipeline that ensures Intermountain Health will continue to innovate, adapt, and succeed."
The Pathfinders program provides job matching based on skills, on-the-job-training, portable credentials, mentoring, and guided career steps toward higher-level healthcare jobs -- including upfront tuition funds to complete certifications or pursue college degrees.
The grant benefits job seekers in the Denver and Grand Junction areas, who currently work in jobs in any industry that pays less than $15 per hour, do not have a four-year college degree, or are unemployed.
Pathfinders also aims to reach nontraditional students over 25 years of age, full-time workers, or parents of small children. It provides full-time employment, fully funded academic programs, and strategic skill-building for a lifetime of growth. Additionally, learners receive career and financial coaching and language skills support.
Job applicants who are hired and accepted into the Pathfinders pilot project can start in roles as certified nursing assistants, medical assistants, or sterile processing technicians which lead to careers in nursing, imaging, and behavioral health.
Through a series of specific career steps and completion of a corresponding higher education degree, the employee can become a nurse (RN and/or BSN) radiology tech, or licensed clinical social worker. There are two career pathways for nursing careers, one path for nurses who will work in hospital units or in clinics, and another path for nurses who will work in surgical operating rooms.
“The program is inspired by my own and others’ experience as an underestimated, non-traditional student with minimal support. My experience taught me that multiple factors contribute to a person’s ability to grow their career, none of which can be taken for granted,” said Marguerite Samms, chief learning officer at Intermountain Health, who is leading the program.
The Pathfinders program offers career growth by supporting life, work, and learning. Participants will have ready access to financial coaching, transportation, nutrition support, medical premium assistance, and education funding as an employee.
Pathfinders participants will be hired as an Intermountain caregiver and immediately begin on-the-job training in departments led by managers who are specially trained to support their success. Learning opportunities include healthcare credentials, resume writing, interview skills, English language learning, and post-secondary workforce readiness skills of self-empowerment, communication, problem solving, and community membership skills as outlined in the Colorado Career Cluster Model.
Program participants will utilize the FutureFit AI platform to start the job-matching process. The platform uses proprietary algorithms to deduce job seekers’ skills and guides discovery of in-demand careers pathways, skills, gaps, relevant learning and resources, and quality job opportunities.
Intermountain’s recruiting team will hire qualified candidates from the FutureFit skills-based hiring platform which recommends candidates based on skills and potential.
Program participants are then eligible to receive live career coaching, including interview preparation, to help them go through Intermountain’s regular hiring process and be matched and hired into a critical entry-level job. Once matched, they can begin their training to advance within the health career pathways included in the program.
The program will provide on-ramps into healthcare careers based on skills, not degrees, for 30 Coloradans each year of the pilot project, for a total of 60 people.
Employees hired by Intermountain for Pathfinders are eligible for no-cost education during the pilot project. After the pilot, those working as little as 20 hours a week will have access to the ongoing support of $5,250 in education and training funding annually through Intermountain’s Path to Education, Advancement, and Knowledge (PEAK) program which partners with Colorado schools and online schools and is administered through InStride.
Following successful implementation in two Colorado counties, Intermountain aims to scale the Pathfinders talent pipeline pilot project to other Colorado healthcare employers and other locations where Intermountain has facilities.
Job seekers can find more information about jobs available at Intermountain Health in the Denver and Grand Junction areas by visiting the Intermountain Health careers webpage or by sending an email to recruitment@imail.org or by calling 1-800-843-7820.
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