The potential of new tech can be wasted if not enough people know how to use it. That’s why network-equipment giant Cisco for decades has helped young talent get into the tech space. The company partners with nonprofit Code.org to teach digital literacy among K–12 students: To date, 13.3 million kids have completed a computer science fundamentals course through this initiative. And through the Cisco Networking Academy, which has reached 24 million learners in 191 countries since 1997, students can earn industry-recognized certifications on topics including data science, cybersecurity, operations, and Linux.
Consultancy Cognizant has also become a major “upskiller” in workplace tech—most notably through its Synapse initiative, which launched in 2023. The program aims to provide tech training to 1 million people worldwide (including as many as 200,000 of its own workers and contractors) by 2026—with an emphasis on marginalized groups and underserved communities whose access to formalized tech education is limited. Skills training spans from digital literacy to generative AI. Cognizant’s partners include India’s Nasscom tech trade association and Google’s cloud division; to date, 10 months in, Synapse has already reached almost 250,000 workers.