FORTE Presents Talent Development Panel at TechWeek

June 26, 2012 - PRLog -- CHICAGO – June 25, 2012 – FORTE Group is presenting its Talent Development Panel at Techweek 2012. The panel takes place on Tuesday, June 26th at 3:00pm at The Merchandise Mart’s “Second Stage” conference room as part of Chicago Techweek.

The panel will focus on how to foster and maintain IT talent in Chicago and the Midwest. Several of the issues that will be discussed are: misconceptions about the IT industry, the IT talent gap, the Midwest vs. the West Coast, and talent gap solutions. Misconceptions about the IT industry will enumerate on how the public views the IT industry and those views are incorrect and potentially widen the talent gap that already exists in the industry. The talent gap is a real issue in the IT industry – there are not enough IT professionals to fill the industry’s demand for these individuals. The panel will discuss solutions for closing the talent gap and foster a healthy IT community in the Midwest. There will be a discussion on whether Chicago and the Midwest are actually losing IT jobs to Silicon Valley and what can be done to combat this.

You can never exaggerate the importance of talent development. Having the right people on your team means project success, potential innovation, and even business competency. With the rapid change in the technology world, new challenges are arising in the field of talent search and development. Many companies are striving to find best ways not just to hire a qualified professional with “N years of experience”, but to identify the real talent who “does the job” and develop a team that helps business win. In this session, a panel of tech entrepreneurs will share their expertise and experience in addressing talent gaps with innovative approaches. They are on the forefront on fostering IT education and talent development in Chicagoland. Attendees will hear about stories, approaches, and solutions on how to enhance talent development for a strengthened workforce.

The panel consists of: Dan Lyne, Director of Technology Development at World Business Chicago (WBC), Fred Hoch, President and CEO of the Illinois Technology Association (ITA), Sandee Kastrul, President and Co-Founder of i.c.stars, and Steve Kreynin, President and Founder of FORTE Group and FORTE Knowledge. The panel will be moderated by Michael Lev, the Associate Managing Editor for Business at The Chicago Tribune.