As we all know, the tech industry has long been a space for white men and is hard to break into. A Wired survey that was done in October 2019 estimated that the combined Black, Hispanic, and Indigenous population is at an abysmal 5% for Silicon Valley firms. In the IT field, the U.S. Equal Opportunity Commission Bureau estimates these groups together accounted for 16% of the industry population last year.
Enter Harrison Horan and Shelton Banks. Two men who will change the world. Seriously.
reWORK TRAINING
Harrison Horan founded reWORK TRAINING in 2016, a non-profit organization dedicated to training individuals for BDR, SDR, and AE roles within the tech industry’s revenue generation sector. Unlike many programs that focus on coding or development, reWORK TRAINING Chicago offers free tech sales training to members of overlooked and untapped communities. The program includes resume assistance, mentorship, career and sales skills development, and aims to secure jobs with an average salary of $55,000 plus full benefits. Since its inception, reWORK TRAINING has supported 168 individuals, resulting in a combined salary of over $16 million.
Shelton Banks, the current CEO of RE:WORK, is an inspiring and dynamic leader. Born on the south side of Chicago, his guiding principle is that life’s outcomes are shaped by how you play the cards you’re dealt. Shelton’s mission is to foster workplace diversity across all communities, starting with the tech industry. By bringing communities together, celebrating diversity, and empowering individuals to secure meaningful employment, RE:WORK TRAINING is transforming the landscape. Better incomes lead to better outcomes, and their ambitious goal is for 25,000 people from underserved communities to collectively earn $30 billion in salaries over the next 20 years.
Headquartered in Chicago and expanding soon, RE:WORK helps BIPOC individuals from overlooked communities get jobs in tech sales through free training, education, and resume building. RE:WORK’s mission is to create diverse workplaces, thereby changing the map of economic distribution. At their 5-year anniversary party, founder Harrison Horan made a profound statement that resonated with me: “I’ve come to realize that this is what community does: helps each other get through this thing [referring to life]. So when we talk about community at RE:WORK, I don’t take it lightly because it’s actually the point.”
Do you have the right stuff to be a candidate?
Do you have the right stuff to be a candidate? ReWORK TRAINING believes that everyone has untapped potential, and they are here to help you find it. This is why they offer a variety of programs designed for different levels of experience and expertise.
A few of the benefits that RE:WORK can offer you is:
- Certified Resume Writing Service
- Expert Interview Coaching
- Strengths Coaching
- LinkedIn Support
- Executive Sponsorship
- 8 Weeks Of Paid Training
Classes take place on the weekends (via Zoom). Each attended class earns a stipend, along with additional bonuses. If you’d like to BECOME A CANDIDATE: https://reworktraining.org/apply-now
Are you a company? Here’s How You Can Help!
Donate
You can DONATE here: https://reworktraining.
Get Involved
Over 500 volunteers have made their communities better places. Here’s how to volunteer your time: https://reworktraining.org/become-a-volunteer
Looking for talent?
Need talent? Well, they have some! These candidates have already shown they’ve got commitment week in and week out. They are precisely just what you are looking for. Companies like Glassdoor and LinkedIn are some of their success stories. If you’d like to join forces with reWORK TRAINING: https://reworktraining.org/for-companies.
I really enjoyed reading this post, this looks like a wonderful experience.
This sounds like a great program to help strengthen and grow a community! Free training and support where and when needed most. Awesome
This looks interesting, but I have no idea what BDR, SDR and AE is, so I am not exactly sure what the goal is here.
They sound like they would come in handy for sure. They can do so much! It’s impressive.
This sounds like a wonderful opportunity. I was not familiar with Rework and it is nice to know more about it.
Pulling communities together, celebrating diversity, and helping members of the community empower themselves is so important; this is great that RE:WORK is upholding this! More companies need to make this their mission/goal!
Wow this sound really amazing! I know this is a really great opportunity to others.
This sounds really interesting. Sounds like there are some great benefits to this. I’ll have to check it out.
Those are some great benefits! A lot of people who is finding a job will surely love this opportunity!
This is wonderful and I would love to know more about this program.
It’s nice to see free training programs like this. I am sure many would really benefit from this.