Microsoft partners LinkedIn, GitHub to upskill 25 million people worldwide

Tech giant Microsoft is partnering with LinkedIn, GitHub to launch an initiative to help 25 million people worldwide acquire the digital skills needed in a COVID-19 economy.

The initiative will bring together every part of Microsoft, combining existing and new resources from LinkedIn, GitHub, and Microsoft.  It will be grounded in three areas of activity:

• The use of data to identify in-demand jobs and the skills needed to fill them;
• Free access to learning paths and content to help people develop the skills these positions require;
• Low-cost certifications and free job-seeking tools to help people who develop these skills pursue new jobs.

According to Brad Smith President of Microsoft, in a blog post, “At its heart, this is a comprehensive technology initiative that will build on data and digital technology. It starts with data on jobs and skills from the LinkedIn Economic Graph. It provides free access to content in LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Learn, and the GitHub Learning Lab, and couples these with Microsoft Certifications and LinkedIn job seeking tools.”

“In addition, Microsoft is backing the effort with $20 million in cash grants to help nonprofit organizations worldwide assist the people who need it most. One-quarter of this total, or $5 million, will be provided in cash grants to community-based nonprofit organizations that are led by and serve communities of color in the United States.”

“Our vision for skills extends beyond these immediate steps for job seekers. Employees will also need to skill and reskill through their careers, and we want to make it easier for employers to help. Our vision is a connected “system of learning” that helps empower everyone to pursue lifelong learning. That is why we are also announcing today that Microsoft is developing a new learning app in Microsoft Teams to help employers upskill new and existing employees. This will bring together best in class content from LinkedIn Learning, Microsoft Learn, third-party training providers, and a company’s own learning content and make it all available in a place where employees can easily learn in the flow of their work.”

“We are also pledging that we will make stronger data and analytics available to governments around the world so they can better assess local economic needs. Finally, we will use our voice to advocate for public policy innovations that we believe will advance the skilling opportunities people will need in the changed economy.”

“While this represents the largest skills initiative in Microsoft’s history, we recognize that no company can come close to closing the skills gap alone. Sustained progress will require a renewed partnership between stakeholders across the public, private, and nonprofit sectors, and we’re committed to supporting this.”

In a related initiative, Microsoft partnered with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to launch the Learning Passport, a global online learning platform, to help in addressing the education of children during this coronavirus lockdown.