Many veterans retire from the military having received advanced training in a wide range of skills. Unfortunately, those skills often do not translate to the jobs that are available to them in civilian life. As a result, entering the workforce can be the most stressful challenge that veterans face upon transitioning back to life as civilians.
Micheal Gibbs, CEO of Go Cloud Careers, wants to change that by empowering veterans to start a new career in a high-paying and in-demand sector of the tech industry.
“I believe that everyone that leaves the military should have a wonderful six-figure job waiting for them,” Michael says. “That’s why we created the Helping Our Heroes Get Hired program.”
The program that Micheal has developed is a one-of-a-kind cloud architecture and engineering vocational training program for veterans, as well as current military servicemen and servicewomen.
“I have a deep affinity and admiration for the people who put their lives on the line for this great nation to defend notions of the American dream that give businesses like ours the chance for success. This is our way of giving back,” Michael says.
Cloud computing ranks among the most rapidly growing IT fields today. In 2020, six out of ten businesses reported moving their work from localized networks to the cloud. The dramatic increase in cloud usage has created an ever-increasing need for professionals who can design, build, and care for the cloud.
The programs offered by Go Cloud Careers take a unique approach to preparing students for cloud careers. While most programs stop at providing technical certifications or proficiency, Go Cloud Careers provides a comprehensive education that teaches all of the responsibilities necessary for building an elite tech career. At Go Cloud Careers, the focus goes beyond training to make sure that students have everything they need to get hired.
“Seeing the incredible and unprecedented success we had with the civilian version of our program, which boasts a nearly 100 percent hire rate for our students who complete all program requirements, we believe this program will take our warriors and aid in their transition to civilian leadership for maximum success,” explains Michael. “Every one of our military servicemen and women should have the opportunity to earn a six-figure salary after service. Cloud architects and cloud engineers are two of the highest paying and most in-demand tech jobs.”
Michael refers to the highly-effective program that he and his team have developed at Go Cloud Careers as “certification plus.” It provides a deep understanding of the technical competencies that are critical for a cloud career as well as training in soft skills. These include business acumen, communication skills, presentation skills, emotional intelligence, sales skills, interview skills, and more. As Go Cloud’s students add these skills to their technical competency, they become more desirable to employers and more effective in their careers.
To optimize the “Helping Heroes Get Hired” program, Go Cloud added a special section on emotional control and management, cognitive behavior therapy, mediation, and yoga. Michael believes that equipping veterans with these skills will help to alleviate the anxiety of career transitions, help with post-combat-related stress and depression, and help reduce the pain of overuse injuries. He calls this component of the program “the healing protocol.”
The program for veterans also includes special leadership training designed to address a huge challenge that veterans often face when adapting to civilian employment.
“One of the biggest challenges that our military people face is transitioning from the traditional ‘command and control’ leadership style employed in the military to something that is more appropriate for the civilian world,” Michael explains. “They’re in the civilian world now, and another leadership style is required.”
“The net result is a program that will get our veterans high-paying and fulfilling careers with rapid career progression and long term career success,” adds Chris Johnson, Go Cloud Careers’ Chief Operating Officer. “Anybody can get cloud certified, but not everyone can get cloud hired. Our program and unique method of practically giving away the knowledge tools, but training on the executive, leadership, emotional, and other skills necessary for cloud success separates the program Mike Gibbs has crafted from other cloud educational institutions.”
