Access Emerging Talent
Connect with aspiring professionals who have experience applying their skills outside the classroom.
Organizations across every sector are searching for technology professionals who can contribute quickly, communicate effectively, and apply their knowledge to real-world challenges. At the same time, many employers face a frustrating reality: entry-level applicants often possess academic knowledge but limited practical experience.
95% of cybersecurity professionals report at least one skills need and 59% report critical or significant skills shortages, with AI (41%), risk assessment (29%), and GRC (27%) the most cited. Source: ISC2, 2025 Cybersecurity Workforce Study (16,029 respondents, July–August 2025).
TechStep Foundation helps bridge that gap. TechStep works with colleges, universities, industry mentors, and community organizations to provide supervised project experiences that help participants develop practical skills before entering the workforce. Participants gain exposure to cybersecurity and risk assessments, data governance initiatives, AI risk and governance programs, compliance and privacy projects, client engagement and communication, reporting and documentation, and team collaboration and project delivery. By the time participants enter the job market, they have worked on real challenges with real organizations.
Connect with aspiring professionals who have experience applying their skills outside the classroom.
Engage with candidates who understand project workflows, stakeholder expectations, and professional communication.
Help strengthen pathways into technology, cybersecurity, risk management, data governance, and AI-related careers.
Support a model that simultaneously develops talent and strengthens nonprofits and community organizations.
Why Experience Matters — Experience doesn't just benefit participants. It helps employers make more informed hiring decisions by providing evidence of communication skills, project execution, documentation practices, teamwork, and professional judgment before a candidate enters the workforce.
Employers can also access Stepping Stone directly: view graduate portfolios, see validated clinic hours, and schedule informational interviews with graduates — before extending an offer.
TechStep participants learn in an environment designed to mirror real professional engagement. Through the TechStep Clinic and Stepping Stone workforce platform, participants work within structured project environments that include professional oversight, mentor feedback, project governance, documentation standards, and quality review processes. The result is experience that goes beyond coursework and simulated exercises.
TechStep welcomes employers who want to serve as industry mentors, participate in advisory activities, support workforce development initiatives, collaborate on community-impact projects, or connect with emerging talent pipelines. Our goal is simple: help employers access talent that is better prepared for the realities of today's workplace.
What you get
Participant availability
Join the pipeline — tell us what you need and we will reach out when we have a match.
TechStep Foundation believes workforce development is a shared responsibility between education, industry, and community organizations. By connecting all three, we help create a stronger pipeline of capable professionals while delivering meaningful impact where it is needed most. That's the workforce TechStep is helping build.
Employers don't just need more candidates. They need candidates with experience, judgment, and purpose.
Career readiness starts before the first job offer.
Universities build knowledge. Employers need experience. TechStep helps connect the two.