Posts Tagged ‘BILT’
BILT (Part 2): A Business Imperative
When businesses get engaged in a local BILT (Business and Industry Leadership), we call this a “win-win” approach. In a previous post we talked about the value to education institutions partnering with local businesses as well as the rewards this presents to the students, but businesses can also find immense worth being on such a…
Read MoreBILT (Part 1): Critical to Student Success
Having a business council working with colleges is not a new concept. However, the Convergence Technology Center’s approach puts business in a co-leadership role rather than just a business approval role. The approach is key to ensuring that the students educated/trained by our partner educational institutions are “workforce ready” to be hired by the businesses.…
Read MoreThe Latest and Greatest in IT Industry Trends
As has become custom, a recent conference call meeting with the National Convergence Technology Center’s (CTC) Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) kicked off with a lengthy discussion of current and future trends in IT. The goal is to let faculty members also on the call know about the real-world state of the industry. Where…
Read MoreTrends Talk
A regular feature of our Business and Industry Leadership Team (“BILT,” for short) meetings is a quick discussion of current and future trends. What are IT departments looking for in new hires today and what will they be looking for in 18 months? This is always a great way for our Convergence College Network (CCN)…
Read More31 Flavors of Business Meetings
Engagement with business and industry leaders is an essential element for any community college’s IT workforce program. Anyone familiar the National Convergence Technology Center (CTC) knows this – we call these groups business and industry leadership teams, or “BILTs” – is one of our cornerstone beliefs. We preach about the value of a BILT whenever…
Read MoreWearing Tech on Your Sleeve
At a recent meeting of the National Convergence Technology Center’s (CTC) national Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT), the subject of wearable technology came up. The consensus among this esteemed group is that the sky is the limit for that side of the IT industry, which means plenty of opportunities for IT students. More and…
Read MoreViews on Successful Hiring
At the recent ATE PI conference in Washington, DC the National Convergence Technology Center (CTC) participated in a panel discussion on the hiring process of students who were successfully hired in their industry. The discussion focused on student mentoring, resume and interview preparation, and the hiring process. Dr. Ann Beheler facilitated a discussion with Collin…
Read MoreStudent Portfolios Matter
A long-repeated request of our national Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) has been to get community college students to develop a strong portfolio for job interviews. We’re told that job interviews in the IT industry are not just about resumes and Q&A. Hiring managers want to see vivid examples of the interviewee’s work, understand…
Read MoreHumble Attitude, Tenacity & Excitement for Information Technology Accelerate Student’s Career
Six months ago, a rainbow-haired Chelsea Hall-Fitzgerald had just completed a computer networking certificate at Collin College. She also worked part time in a big box appliance store. Today, her hourly wage as a full-time project coordinator for AMX by Harman is three times what she made as a clerk, and she is on track to complete her…
Read MoreThe SDN Revolution
The National Convergence Technology Center (CTC) meets quarterly with a Business and Industry Leadership Team (BILT) to help steer program curriculum. The meetings often involve a passionate discussion of current trends. The group isn’t always in agreement on what’s relevant to our community college students. But time and again, the BILT has proven its collective…
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