How Economic Inequality, Talent Gaps, and Dr. King’s Dream Inspired The Ideate Project
The number of times we heard unprecedented last year was seemingly mind-numbing. With COVID, our nation’s political climate, and the push for tangible action to right the wrongs of racial injustice, we found ourselves in a place that many of us wouldn’t have expected.
Upon closer examination however, many of the problems we are facing could have been predicted. Economic inequality is at an all-time high. In the ’80’s middle- and lower-income Americans made up for 40% of U.S. Wealth. Fast forward to today and that number has been cut in half to 20%. From rural America, to our inner cities, people have felt the effects of rapidly increasing inequality in their day to day lives.
Historically, individuals with a bachelor’s degree tend to earn between $600,000 to $1,000,000 more over the course of their lifetimes. Unfortunately, today, 53% of college graduates are unemployed or working jobs that don’t require a bachelor’s degree and only 35% of adult Americans even have college degrees.
These statistics point to a bleak future, but there are many reasons to be hopeful. The rate of technological innovation and access to information are both at an all-time high. The technology sector is growing so fast that by 2030, there is projected to be a human talent shortage of over 85 million people. This industry is also one of the highest paying and economically mobile for individuals whether they choose to work as employees or entrepreneurs.
As you can see, there is a clear solution to some of our nation’s issues with lack of access to economic mobility for the working class (I’m not naïve enough to think this will come remotely close to solving all of our economic and inequality issues both here and abroad — but it’s a start). With so many Americans struggling with economic inequality, and one of the highest paying and most upwardly mobile sectors of the economy experiencing a crippling talent shortage, it seems like the quick fix is to help people find their way into tech roles. Unfortunately, our education system has been unable to adapt as quickly as the rate of innovation, creating a need for outside players to provide training and upskilling opportunities for the masses, as well as access to the technology ecosystem.
This is where Ideate comes in. There have been so many pioneers in the upskilling and technology education space including General Assembly, Lambda School, The Flatiron School, Holberton School, Foundry College, and countless others. These companies are much needed beacons of opportunity for people looking to increase their economic mobility by breaking into the technology sector.
We partner with groups like these — as well as work with individuals and universities — to help individuals get roles with technology companies. These aren’t just engineering roles at social media companies; we help companies working to make healthcare and education more accessible, the legal field more transparent, and help individuals and corporations decrease their carbon footprints find talent across all functional roles. Our technology helps companies understand which candidates have the required skills before the interview, allowing candidates and employers to focus on cultural fit and value alignment, while streamlining the hiring process. This provides value to everyone involved — from the individuals seeking opportunity to the entities helping these individuals gain the experience they need, to the companies themselves, actively looking to fill their talent gaps.
We have a primary focus on supporting underrepresented groups at Ideate as inequality has been the greatest catalyst for our venture. We want to bring more racial, gender, academic, geographic, and socioeconomic diversity into the technology industry. This increase in diversity will benefit the technology industry as it will push business models and products to be more inclusive and mutually beneficial to society as a whole.
My path from entrepreneurship, to venture capital, then back to entrepreneurship has been a journey to say the least. From launching Pyramid Productions and hosting shows for artists like the Chainsmokers and falling in love with entrepreneurship before turning 21, to those research papers on Snapchat and Square that opened my eyes to the outsized impact that technology has on our day to day lives, every moment in the journey has shaped my current passions and worldview.
While my day-to-day work building The Moves was focused on providing event hosts with a tool to increase the efficiency of their businesses and my time working in venture consisted mainly of meeting with countless people at the intersection of trying to change the world and/or trying to become personally wealthy, my North Star has never shifted. Entrepreneurship is the most powerful tool to bring about change in the world both economically — through job creation — and socially — through facilitating social paradigm shifts.
As Black History month comes to a close, we mustn’t forget that Dr. King’s fight for racial equity hinged on economic equality. While King was unable to fully see his vision through, I can only hope that Ideate serves as a beacon to further his goals of equality through economic opportunity.
Chandler Malone is the Founder and CEO at The Ideate Project, a Venture Partner at Atento Capital, and the Founder of Underground Ventures. The Ideate Project is focused on giving individuals access to the educational resources, community, and opportunities necessary to succeed in the technology industry. If you’re interested in learning more, or know someone who could check benefit from Ideate, visit us at www.ideateproject.com.
