Kauffman-backed tech coalition gains runway (and funding) to help fill KC’s talent pipeline, leader says

A new talent-focused coalition led by the KC Tech Council envisions a reality where all of Kansas City’s tech jobs can be filled by Kansas City, said Kara Lowe, unveiling new details of an initiative made possible by the Kauffman Foundation’s new “Collective Impact” funding pathway.

Kara Lowe, KC Tech Council, networks with stakeholders and partners during a KC TechBridge kickoff event at CPKC Stadium; photo by Tommy Felts, Startland News

KC Tech Council on Friday publicly announced its employer-led tech talent pipeline program, KC TechBridge, during a meeting with stakeholders and partners that include such organizations as Garmin, H&R Block, JE Dunn Construction, Burns & McDonnell, Panasonic Energy, Per Scholas, i.c.stars, WeCode KC and Goodwill of Western Missouri and Eastern Kansas.

“The opportunity and runway to build together brings an entire new energy to this project,” Lowe, CEO of the KC Tech Council, told Startland News. “In the big coalition we’re building, we all want to fill tech jobs. And, we’re all doing good work. But thousands of unfilled tech jobs remain in Kansas City. Big challenges need big solutions, and this gives us the time and resources to build toward those solutions together.”

The KC TechBridge coalition — which also includes regional education partners at KU Edwards Campus, Metropolitan Community College, K-State Olathe, University of Saint Mary and Rockhurst University — is expected to build initiatives addressing fragmented professional pathways in the local business community, with a strong focus on employer engagement that emphasizes the “last mile” of talent development to enable recent graduates and early and mid-career professionals to transition smoothly into high-demand tech roles.

KC Tech Council was one of six coalitions — out of 60-plus applicants — awarded “Collective Impact” planning grants of up to $500,000 from the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation. Funding to the winning coalitions is the first piece of a two-part grant concept from the Kauffman Foundation, which could result in implementation funding of $5 million to $20 million over multiple years for successful projects.

“The planning grant allows for an eight-month runway to bring together our wide coalition, conduct thorough data gathering and analysis, and begin to ideate,” Lowe said. “The partners from industry, training and education are the key to our success. We need to learn from them to determine where our resources can best be used to build toward a successful talent pipeline.”

In May 2024, KC Tech Council released its three-year roadmap, outlining four strategic pillars — each with milestones that together bore the vision of making Kansas City a premier, sustainable and future-focused tech hub, Lowe continued. The KC TechBridge initiative was outlined as a milestone toward that goal.

“The idea of ‘coalition building’ isn’t new to KCTC,” she said. “In fact, the design of this grant plays right to our strength of existing at the intersection of industry and education within the tech sector.”

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Lowe thanked the Kauffman Foundation for the timing runway and funding that will allow the coalition to build a bridge between corporate and talent development leaders.

“Now the hard work starts,” she said. “And we look forward to leveraging established and future partnerships with local leaders to develop and implement KC TechBridge in a manner that truly benefits not only tech employers, but the broader business community and economic future of our region.”

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