Microsoft partners with the Markle Foundation to help workers gain digital skills

Microsoft has announced a new partnership (opens in new tab) with the Markle foundation in an effort to help American workers gain digital skills in response to the evolving labor market. Specifically, Microsoft is boosting Markle's Skillful initiative with a $25.8 million investment over the three-year partnetship.

From Microsoft:

Starting by expanding throughout Colorado and then moving to additional states, the partnership aims to create a skills-based labor market model that can be replicated across the U.S. to help millions of Americans overcome barriers to obtaining better-paying jobs. In addition to its $25.8 million investment, Microsoft Philanthropies brings to the partnership decades of experience in providing digital skills training for individuals, as well as learning tools for coaches, educators and employers.

The hope is, Microsoft explains, that proper training can help to fill the estimated 6 million jobs that go unfilled because of a shortage of skilled workers. In addition to monetary support from Microsoft, Markle's Skillful initiative is also using LinkedIn's training finder to help workers obtain the training they need.

Be sure to check out Microsoft's announcement (opens in new tab) for more on its joint efforts with Markle.

Dan Thorp-Lancaster

Dan Thorp-Lancaster is the former Editor-in-Chief of Windows Central. He began working with Windows Central, Android Central, and iMore as a news writer in 2014 and is obsessed with tech of all sorts. You can follow Dan on Twitter @DthorpL and Instagram @heyitsdtl

5 Comments
  • I think there's a typo / exclusion at the start of the article, as I don't think it would be noteworthy if Microsoft were partnering with another organization with a $25.80 investment over three years.
  • Could somebody explain what kind of jobs are unfilled?
  • Usually "unfilled skilled" jobs require at least a 4 year degree while paying minimum wage. It should read more along the lines "people don't want to work for this low pay."
  • Aha, jobs that don't need that much education then. And I thought, it's all IT connected jobs, my bad!
  • Learning to get better paying job looks like the worst idea ever. Education is about freedom to work for ourselves and not for any body else. Its an involuntary activity like eating and drinking. We should learn new things to quench the thirst of knowledge. That's what Bill Gates & Einstein did. While big companies l like Microsoft may classify people as skilled and un skilled, I classify them as one and intelligent. You only need to realise it!