By Tina Zwolinski
CEO and Founder, skillsgapp and Skillionaire Games
In New Haven, CT, near where I grew up, kids make an important choice some time around age 13 or 14 -- which school will they attend for their future? Different high schools are weighted towards a particular career path or industry, perhaps healthcare or technology.
Hector might choose the high school focused on the healthcare industry because a couple of his friends are attending there, and he wants to hang out with his friends. But two years into high school Hector realizes that healthcare isn't something he's at all interested in. He'd always wanted to build things. He's stuck.
Just a few months ago in South Carolina, a student was entering her last semester of high school. Her plan was cosmetology -- she'd seen plenty of friends go that route, and why not? A career counselor saw something different and pushed her to try one of skillsgapp's games in a contest and after navigating the skills tasks she discovered life sciences, got to visit a life sciences company, and realized this was a real career option she wanted to pursue. She'd never even heard of something called "life sciences." But her career path was instantly changed by those choices.
Industry, K-12 schools, and postsecondary options are all doing their job. But they remain siloed and disconnected from one another, as well as disconnected from the motherlode of talent potential we have in our schools.
Good Intentions, Fragmented Efforts
Our skills gap continues to widen in industry after industry, sector after sector, and real and lasting impact will not come from siloed effort. It comes from unified, collaborative effort.
Over my thirty years working in workforce development strategy and marketing, I’ve seen meaningful advances in postsecondary and industry-led initiatives, including pre-apprenticeships, apprenticeships, work-based learning, and the growth of Career and Technical Education (CTE). These efforts matter. But they are difficult to scale, and typically engage only after key career decisions have already been made.
If we want to close the skills gap and meet workforce demand, all three options -- industry, K-12, and postsecondary -- must come together earlier and with deeper coordination.
Career decisions begin forming as early as seventh and eighth grade, when students start selecting courses, programs, and high schools that shape future options. Early exposure helps students see what’s possible and understand how education connects to real careers.
By high school, access to social and knowledge capital becomes essential. Students need exposure, support, and real-world context to navigate their career journeys without feeling that certain paths represent a “Plan B” rather than a viable and valued option.
Ultimately, the challenge isn’t a lack of people to fill jobs. It’s an awareness and access gap that makes it difficult for individuals to discover, navigate, and pursue the careers that exist around them.
Why Industry Must Help Lead
Industry is uniquely positioned to drive workforce development. Employers understand where talent gaps exist, which skills are in demand, and why hiring and retention remain challenging. That insight is essential for helping educators and students understand real, local pathways into high-demand careers.
When industry engages across the continuum by partnering with postsecondary institutions on curriculum, certifications, and apprenticeships, and engaging earlier with K-12 through classroom visits, educator webinars, company tours, and hands-on learning, career pathways become visible and attainable.
Early engagement benefits everyone. Students gain clarity. Educators gain relevance. Employers build awareness, trust, and long-term talent pipelines well before hiring begins.
To sustain this work, companies must invest in workforce leadership roles focused on long-term strategy rather than reactive hiring. In the years ahead, intentional workforce pipeline development and investing in engagement initiatives will be a defining competitive advantage.
The Role of K-12 Schools in Encouraging Discovery
K-12 educators operate within real constraints, including limited time, packed curricula, and increasing demands. Career learning can’t be another “add-on.” It must be woven into learning across subjects, helping students connect what they’re learning in math, science, and English to how it applies in the real world.
Career discovery tools can play a valuable role when they are flexible, engaging, and easy to integrate. This includes their use during career exploration courses, CTE programs, or short windows of available classroom time including practice after completing an aligned learning session.
Partnerships matter here. Career counselors, CTE faculty, and educators benefit from direct relationships with state and regional industry organizations that can connect schools to employers and emerging workforce needs.
Most critically, K-12 systems must continue promoting all postsecondary pathways, including certifications, two-year degrees, and four-year degrees, as valid and respected options aligned to student interests, goals, and timelines for getting their first job.
Postsecondary Pathways as Connectors
Postsecondary institutions sit at the intersection of K-12 education and employment. Their pathways must be clearly communicated to K-12 partners and easy for students and families to navigate.
Offering flexible, stackable, and accelerated options allows learners to move from interest to employability more efficiently while adapting as workforce needs evolve. Strong alignment with industry ensures that what is taught reflects real-world expectations and skill demands.
As careers increasingly require ongoing skilling, postsecondary institutions must continue adapting their models to support learning that is scalable, accessible, and aligned with working learners’ lives.
As I travel the country and engage with leaders in industries, K-12 schools, and postsecondary institutions about the challenges of recruiting and the skills gaps in our workforce pipeline, I see significant promise and strengths. Individual corporations are connecting with regional schools and postsecondary institutions and all three are doing great things -- within narrow, isolated sectors. But without scalability and further integration among all three, we will fail to meet the great employment challenges of this century and we will fail to compete. As importantly we will fail to tap the passion and potential of our people.
Alignment can bring abundant advantages.
Alignment Brings Changes
Clear benefits for learners
When industry, K-12, and postsecondary pathways align, learners gain clarity instead of confusion. They see how learning connects to real careers, understand the range of options available, and make informed decisions earlier without feeling locked into a single route.
Stronger talent pipelines for employers
Alignment creates pipelines that are intentional and expansive rather than reactive and limited. Employers benefit from better-prepared candidates, earlier engagement, and reduced costs related to recruiting, onboarding, and retention.
More resilient regional economies
When K-12, postsecondary pathways, and industry move in the same direction, learners are more likely to stay and work locally, employers gain access to homegrown talent, and regions can respond more quickly to changing workforce needs with a flexible expansive talent pool.
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Leveling Up the Workforce Pipeline is an ongoing series focused on the systems, partnerships, and decisions that shape how learners move from education to meaningful work and how employers build the talent pipelines they need to thrive. Drawing from real-world experience across industry collaboration, K-12 education, and postsecondary pathways, this series explores what it takes to align workforce and education needs in ways that are responsive, inclusive, and future-ready for both learners and employers.