Dive Brief:
- The Manufacturing Institute and information technology firm Solutions for Information Design are working with Walmart to expand a national program that helps military service members and veterans find jobs in the manufacturing industry, according to an Oct. 30 press release.
- With Walmart’s four-year investment, SOLID and the Manufacturing Institute plan to scale the Manufacturing Readiness Project to reach more veterans and employers across various industries, as well as give them better access to employment opportunities.
- Walmart initially provided a $785,000 grant when the project launched in 2022. The retailer’s nonprofit provided new funding this year but an investment number was not disclosed.
Dive Insight:
The Manufacturing Readiness Project focuses on skill analysis, Lauren Bevilacqua, SOLID’s VP of innovation, strategy, and delivery, said in an email to Manufacturing Dive.
The project’s platform analyzes over 300 military occupational specialties and translates them into civilian job skills, creating digital badges certifying a service member or veteran’s abilities and competencies, according to SOLID’s fact sheet.
Service members and veterans upload their military service documents, such as their Joint Service Transcript, and from there, the platform identifies and verifies the training they received with their military occupation, Bevilacqua said.
The platform then issues manufacturing badges that align with the service member or veteran’s experience, providing a description in specific manufacturing industry terms to show companies what they can do.
Engagement with the veteran population began in November 2023, Bevilacqua said. As of Oct. 11, over 600 veterans have created accounts on the platform Map My Future, and issued over 2,400 digital badges, according to SOLID’s fact sheet.
The platform addresses the issue of translating military skills to the civilian job market and helping service members and veterans find jobs. It also gives manufacturers better access to a skilled workforce, a critical need to fill over 580,000 open jobs, SOLID said.
“This project is about more than simply matching military skills to jobs — it’s about creating a sustainable ecosystem where veterans can thrive long after their service,” Gardner Carrick, VP at the Manufacturing Institute, said in a statement. “By making their skills easily recognized and understood by employers, we’re helping veterans transition smoothly into meaningful careers in manufacturing and demonstrating this solution for other industries.”
With Walmart’s four-year investment, SOLID and the Manufacturing Institute plan to scale the program to reach more veterans and employers across various other industries, as well as give veterans better access to employment opportunities.
The Manufacturing Institute’s Heroes Make initiative also partners with the Department of Labor. In June, the company signed an agreement with the agency’s Veterans’ Employment and Training Service’s Employment Navigator and Partnership Program, which provides transitioning service members and their spouses personalized employment assistance. The partnership extends Heroes Make’s reach to 36 additional military installations worldwide.
Other veteran employment organizations are also expanding their services. The National Institute for Industry and Career Advancement is expanding registered apprenticeship opportunities to veterans in the semiconductor and advanced manufacturing industries, according to an Oct. 8 release.
The nonprofit is using the Veterans Apprenticeship and Labor Opportunity Reform, or the VALOR Act, legislation that allows veterans to use their education benefits for registered apprenticeship programs. The law provides additional resources to help veterans transition into civilian careers, such as housing.
Correction: The story has been updated to reflect that Walmart funded the program's expansion.
