It was Genesis10’s entrepreneurial spirit and a vision and culture set by CEO Harley Lippman that led Angelia Brekke and Tara Wyborny to propose an idea for:
“a talent creation program motivated by our belief in the unlimited potential of people. Designed in direct response to the talent shortage, Dev10 creates new tech talent.”
Brekke tells the story of Dev10 in a new article “A Pathway to a Different Kind of Life: An Interview with Angelia Brekke, President of Dev10 at Genesis10” posted on the workplace culture and compensation site, Comparably.
The story begins with a mom who valued education,
viewing it as a pathway to a different kind of life.
Recalling Dev10’s launch, Brekke said that her team was hearing from clients that some essential skills, namely Java programming, were in short supply. The team recognized that there were not enough developers to meet demand and it didn’t appear likely that there would be any time soon.
“There was going to be enough pain around solving this problem that clients would entertain more creative solutions,” Brekke said. Brekke and Wyborny’s plan called for three months of intensive, immersive training that takes recent college grads and career changers who have the raw aptitude and the passion to want to be a software developer, and place them on great projects with some amazing companies. Wyborny is Vice President of Talent Development at Dev10.
In the four years since launch as a pilot in St. Paul, Dev10 has expanded nationwide to such metro areas as New York, Milwaukee, Cleveland, and others. Hundreds of people have completed the training and are working as Software Developers and Data Analysts/Engineers.
Asked for a piece of advice she’d give these new Software Developers and others, Brekke said:
“Be passionate, commit and care. Every job can be your dream job. You have to find the joy in it and recognize that that’s going to change over time.”
Earlier this year, Twin Cities Business recognized Brekke as a Notable Woman in Technology, for “driving innovation at Genesis10 while mentoring the next generation of leaders.”
Under Brekke’s leadership, Genesis10’s Minnesota office consistently places in the top five firms on the Minneapolis-St. Paul Business Journal Top IT Consulting Firms list. The office also is a Star Tribune Top Workplace in Minnesota.
Genesis10 is a Best Company for Career Growth and CEO Harley Lippman a Best CEO for Diversity and a Best CEO for Women.