Philadelphia launches tech apprenticeships to offer career development and diversity

Philadelphia’s Office of Innovation and Technology (OIT) is launching a new apprenticeship programme to provide a path to higher paid jobs and ensure the team better reflects the diversity of the city’s population.

The city said it believes the OIT Apprenticeship Program is unique in government and the tech industry and noted that: “Teams with diversity in experiences, background, and other dimensions build better products. To build applications that residents can use, designers and engineers need to understand what Philadelphians need. More diverse perspectives in the process allow for better understanding of how to match the city’s needs.”

Initially supported by the city’s new Operations Transformation Fund, the two-year programme will provide training and mentoring for selected employees and equip them with new skills in software engineering and user experience.

The OIT Apprenticeship Program was created by Sara Hall, User Experience Practice Lead, and Dan Lopez, Director of Software Engineering at the City of Philadelphia.

Lopez told Cities Today: “The OIT Apprenticeship will help the city expand its capacity to take on innovative technology projects with existing staff, as well as help the city improve the quality of these projects through the diverse experiences of OIT Apprentices.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has reinforced the need for operational transformation and we firmly believe the best way to do that is with our existing resources within the city.”

Training

Before the start of the apprenticeship, selected applicants will participate in a full-time 3-4 month bootcamp in software engineering with Launch Code and user experience with General Assembly.

After this, they will be placed on high-impact, resident-facing projects to get hands-on experience.

The pilot year of the programme will include three apprentices and the goal is to have a six-apprentice cohort each year.

The apprenticeship will pay US$60,000 per year with preference given to city employees who make under S$50,000 per year and who work in resident-facing roles, such as clerks or customer service representatives. Any employee interested in the apprenticeship will need to submit an application that will be reviewed by the UX Design and Software Engineering teams. Finalists will be interviewed by a panel consisting of the OIT leadership as well as their potential peers.

At the conclusion of the programme, the city said apprentices will have two years of industry-specific work and a portfolio that demonstrates their ability to work on various projects. They will be qualified for a variety of mid-level roles in the technology industry, although the goal is to retain as many as possible within the city government.

Financial support for the first year of the programme comes from the Operations Transformation Fund, a US$10 million initiative launched by Philadelphia’s Mayor Jim Kenney to support projects focused on government efficiency, equity and improving city services.

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