Penn Foster secures investment to accelerate the pairing of data science with digital learning based on skills.
prnewswire | January 21, 2021
Labor force improvement pioneer Penn Foster today declared a critical new speculation from BayPine and Two Sigma Impact to quicken the form out of its computerized learning stage zeroed in on planning frontline laborers to flourish inside high-development, high-expertise occupations. The two speculation organizations will band together with Penn Foster to acquire new capacities information science and trend setting innovation to help the organization keep on contribution down to earth, reasonable answers for its understudies.
"Skill gaps and economic mobility are, in many ways, two sides of the same coin," said Frank Britt, Chief Executive Officer of Penn Foster. "This investment reflects our belief that the combination of advanced labor market analytics with low-cost digital training can help individuals make better-informed decisions about their educational investments. It's about enabling employers to close skill gaps by identifying and creating career paths for historically untapped talent."
A computerized learning stage that works in association with bosses, public labor force offices, and local area based associations, Penn Foster conveys expertise based preparing for in excess of 300,000 working students every year. Notwithstanding offering authorize projects and declarations in fields going from medical care to talented exchanges, Penn Foster accomplices with significant managers, including Lowe's and Walmart, to give secondary school recognition and vocation instructional classes that are regularly entrances to higher pay jobs.
"Two Sigma Impact believes that by focusing on creating a better workforce, we can create long term value and better business outcomes," said Ian Blasco, Partner at Two Sigma Impact. "We are excited to work with Penn Foster to apply advanced data science techniques to the development of dynamic, skills-based training that is tightly coupled with the demands of the labor market."
"For decades, Penn Foster has been at the forefront of delivering flexible, affordable, and job-relevant development programs that have redefined the intersection of education and work," said Anjan Mukherjee, Managing Partner at BayPine. "The implementation of digital transformation initiatives to unlock human potential is core to our thesis, and we look forward to working closely with management to develop a modern, agile platform at Penn Foster that leverages the power of data to drive better outcomes for working learners."
In "Unstuck in the Middle," a white paper delivered by Penn Foster a year ago, the organization put forth the defense that perceiving ability fulfillment along a range could open financial versatility for laborers utilized in positions that require in excess of a secondary school confirmation however not a long term degree. As per the National Skills Coalition, while center ability occupations make up the biggest segment of the US work market, only 44% of laborers are right now prepared to the center expertise level. A new report distributed by the philanthropic, Opportunity@Work, proposes that the assessed 71 million Americans who need four-year degrees, however are "Gifted Through Alternative Routes" (STARs), speak to an undiscovered pool of ability for US bosses.
"The critical need for different ways to approach training and education for workers has become more prominent in the past few years, and the pressure on our economy created by the pandemic has only emphasized that the time has come for a workforce transformation," said Ann Ruble, Operating Partner at Two Sigma Impact. "New data-driven approaches to learning will help expand access to training in high-demand fields for both workers and employers at a time when it is needed most."
This speculation speaks to the following period of Penn Foster's development following an effective organization with Bain Capital Double Impact, the effect contributing unit of Bain Capital. Terms of the exchange were not unveiled. Macquarie Capital filled in as monetary guide and William Blair and Company as co-consultant to Penn Foster. Everberg Capital additionally partook in the exchange. Jamieson gave exchange the board guidance.