Our Story

The Beginning

It Started with a Problem

Back in 2014, the tech industry was facing a growing crisis: too many open roles, not enough qualified candidates. Large employers across Washington—and soon, nationwide—were struggling to find skilled workers. Traditional hiring pipelines weren’t keeping pace with demand, and non-traditional talent was too often overlooked.

Jennifer Carlson, then working with WTIA (Washington Technology Industry Association), realized that local, grassroots solutions weren’t scalable. She brought together industry giants like Amazon, Microsoft, and Google to have honest conversations about talent shortages and hiring barriers. What emerged was a bold idea: build talent rather than search endlessly for it.

Jennifer drafted a business plan—part manifesto, part movement—focused on solving the tech workforce crisis by training net-new talent without requiring college degrees or prior experience. This marked the beginning of Apprenti.

What if we built talent instead of searching for it?