The workforce landscape is evolving, and with it, the requirements for filling in-demand jobs are changing. While a college degree has traditionally been the primary focus for many companies, a growing number of roles don’t require a four-year degree. This shift is leading us to an untapped talent pool: high school graduates. In this blog, we’ll explore the potential of high school graduates as a valuable resource for companies and how early engagement and awareness can open the door to mutually beneficial opportunities.

The Changing Face of In-Demand Jobs

The evolving job market is characterized by rapidly changing industries, driven by technological advancements and shifting business needs. Many of these new job opportunities are in sectors that require specific skills and expertise but don’t necessarily demand a four-year degree. Roles such as cybersecurity, healthcare, manufacturing, and many others can be successfully filled by individuals who have honed these skills through focused training and experience.

The Untapped Potential: High School Graduates

High school graduates represent a vast reservoir of untapped talent. They are at a crossroads, deciding their next steps, which often involve navigating through a maze of career choices and further education options. Many of these young adults have aptitudes and interests that align with the in-demand roles we discussed earlier.

Here are some compelling reasons why high school graduates are a valuable focus for companies:

• Cost-Effective Talent: Hiring individuals straight out of high school can be cost-effective for companies. They can acquire and develop skills through alternative pathways like apprenticeships, online courses, or vocational training, avoiding the financial burden of a four-year degree.
  
• Fresh Perspective: High school graduates bring fresh perspectives and are often eager to learn and adapt. They can provide a diverse range of experiences and insights that may not be present in a more traditional workforce.
  
• Diverse Backgrounds: This pool of talent is diverse and can offer companies a unique blend of backgrounds and experiences, fostering innovation and adaptability.
  
• Long-Term Investments: By focusing on high school graduates, companies have the opportunity to make long-term investments in their workforce. Early engagement can lead to loyal employees who grow with the company.

Early Engagement and Awareness

To harness the potential of high school graduates, companies can employ several strategies:

• Early Career Awareness Programs: Companies can collaborate with schools to develop early career awareness programs. These initiatives introduce middle and high school students to various career options, emphasize the importance of skills, and shed light on accessible pathways to in-demand roles.

• Engagement Through Technology: Leverage technology, such as mobile apps and gaming experiences from Skillionaire Games, to engage with youth in or out of school. These platforms provide opportunities for companies to spotlight their jobs and pathways early and allow youth to “try on” careers.

• Partnerships with Educational Institutions: Forge partnerships with high schools, community colleges, and vocational training centers to create structured pathways for students to gain practical experience and relevant skills.

• Apprenticeships and Internships: Offer apprenticeships and internships that high school-aged youth can access directly, including virtual gameplay. These opportunities can serve as a bridge to the workforce, allowing students to gain real-world experience while working toward full-time employment.

Filling the In-demand Jobs

High school graduates are a largely untapped talent pool that holds immense potential for companies looking to fill in-demand jobs that don’t require a four-year degree. By focusing on early engagement and awareness, companies can build relationships with high school students, introducing them to viable career paths and offering accessible, debt-free ways to attain the skills needed to thrive in the workforce. This not only benefits companies but also empowers young individuals with opportunities to jumpstart their careers without the weight of traditional higher education debt. In a rapidly changing job market, it’s time to recognize that talent can be found in diverse places, and the journey to a fulfilling career doesn’t always begin with a college degree.

In an era of rapid technological advancement and evolving workforce dynamics, companies are constantly striving to innovate and stay ahead of the curve and their competition. However, one area where change has been slow to adapt is workforce development. As the newest workforce generation, Gen Z, enters the job market, it becomes increasingly crucial to engage them in a way that resonates with their digital-native behaviors. One innovative solution is career gaming, which allows Gen Z to explore careers in playful virtual environments, discover opportunities, and take control of their future in a fun and interactive way.

The Challenge of Engaging Gen Z

Generation Z, born between the mid-1990s and the early 2010s, is the first generation to grow up with smartphones and constant connectivity. They have a unique set of values, expectations, and preferences when it comes to learning and career exploration. Traditional workforce development approaches, such as job fairs, videos and websites, often fall short in engaging this tech-savvy generation.

The Power of Career Gaming

Career gaming offers a compelling solution to this engagement challenge. Here’s how it’s transforming the talent development landscape:

• Accessible and Engaging: Gen Z is already accustomed to spending time on their smartphones – 7+ hours a day. Career gaming brings career exploration directly to their devices, making it accessible from anywhere and engaging.
  
• Interactive Learning: Games provide an interactive and immersive discovery experience. Gen Z can explore a wide range of careers by “trying them on” in a virtual environment, fostering a deeper understanding of what each job entails.
  
• Discovery and Advocacy: Career games empower individuals to discover opportunities and pathways they might not have considered otherwise. As they navigate virtual careers, they can advocate for their own futures based on their discoveries during play.
  
• Skill Development: Career games incorporate skill-building exercises relevant to specific professions, allowing players to acquire practical skills while having fun.
  
• Player, Industry, and Mentor Interaction: Online career games facilitate player-to-industry interactions and connections through in-game mentoring, creating a support system and network for Gen Z to learn from and a way for Gen Z to connect with future employers.

The Future of Talent Engagement

As the job market continues to evolve, talent engagement and recruitment strategies must evolve too. Career gaming is not just a trend; it represents the future of workforce development. Companies that embrace this innovative approach are not only better positioned to attract and retain Gen Z talent but also to foster a workforce that is more informed, engaged, and capable.

Conclusion

Career gaming is revolutionizing the way companies engage with Gen Z and prepare them for the workforce. By meeting Gen Z where they are—on their phones and in playful virtual “internship/apprenticeship” environments—companies are ensuring that the talent pipeline remains vibrant and adaptable to the ever-changing demands of the job market. The future of talent engagement is exciting, interactive, and just a few taps away on your smartphone.

To fulfill the demands of our changing workforce, there’s been a lot of discussion about the optimal age to start engaging kids in a more comprehensive career discovery than the traditional doctor/lawyer norm in school. While ‘younger is better’ is arguably a unanimous sentiment globally, the controversy lies in allocating appropriate resources to support earlier (than high school) intervention, with a more balanced emphasis on our most in-demand careers and skills. But, unfortunately here in the U.S., employers need employees now, making investing in tomorrow’s workforce seemingly feudal in alleviating their immediate pain. And on the educator side, schools are still reeling from the lowest reading and math scores in decades, relegating the less pressing ‘career exploration’ to the back seat. 

Meanwhile, our talent pipelines continue to dwindle to a prospective 85 million talent deficit over the next five years, and poverty cycles continue to persist, despite there being enough people to fill those pipelines. Earlier awareness to these in-demand careers isn’t just one answer to closing this gap, it’s the only answer. 

So what is the most impactful age to initiate meaningful career exploration in order to move that needle? Research suggests (and we agree) middle school, even as early as eleven years old.

1. Enhanced Cognitive Development: According to Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, children typically enter the Concrete Operational Stage at around 11-12 years old. He considered this stage a major turning point in a child’s life, because it marks the beginning of logical or operational thought when they start to think more abstractly and consider hypothetical scenarios. At this stage, kids are equipped to understand the complexity and variety of different careers, as their ability to reason and make decisions are strengthened. 

2. Strengthened Decision-making: Erikson’s theory of psychosocial development emphasizes the Identity Versus Role Confusion stage starting at twelve. According to him, this is important to the process of forming a strong identity and developing a sense of direction in life. Exploring various career options during this age can facilitate the development of a coherent identity and future career goals. 

3. Increased Career Satisfaction: Those of any age who actively engage in career exploration tend to experience higher levels of career satisfaction based on clear expectations. Exposure to various careers can facilitate in children those same results – a clearer alignment of their interests with their future academic pursuits. Research published in the Journal of Vocational Behavior confirms that early career exploration aids in reducing potential conflicts between aspirations and realities.

4. Improved Academic Performance: Educational psychology researcher Diana Raufelder published a study in the Journal of Education and Work revealing that middle school students who engaged in career exploration activities showed improved academic motivation and achievement, as well as increased self-efficacy in their academic pursuits. It essentially sets off a ripple effect: When students understand the relevance of their studies to potential future careers, they become more motivated and focused on their education.

5. Reduction in Stereotype Bias: Early exposure to different careers can also help challenge gender and racial stereotypes and biases related to specific occupations. Providing children with a variety of role models and career options can eradicate misconceptions about certain jobs before they’ve ever learned them – some much younger than eleven – opening up a broader range of opportunities and promoting more equitable career choices.

 While thirteen is our magic number for initiating gamified awareness and access to local careers and opportunities –  specifically to under-served and underrepresented communities – in an ideal world:

• elementary school should be reserved for career discovery;
• middle school for awareness and planning;
• high school for preparing. 

At what age do you start your job awareness and recruiting efforts?

By: Aminata N. Mbodj

Introduction

During the training process, just as on the field, one crucial factor that greatly influences an individual’s continued motivation and positive learning outcomes is self-efficacy. Self-efficacy refers to a person’s belief in their own ability to succeed in specific tasks or situations (Bandura, 1997). Research studies have consistently revealed that individuals possessing high levels of self-efficacy exhibit enhanced persistence, increased effort, and improved performance when faced with challenging tasks (Chen et al., 2001).

Understanding Self-Efficacy

Self-efficacy, recognizing and fostering the belief in one’s own capabilities, is the secret ingredient to effective skill development and performance. Within the context of the manufacturing industry, self-efficacy significantly influences motivation, adaptability, and the ability of workers to navigate complex work environments (Lent et al., 2000). Consequently, by actively nurturing self-efficacy, organizations can effectively cultivate a more skilled and self-assured workforce.

About Gen-Z

As the newest generation entering the workforce, Gen Z exhibits unique characteristics and preferences when it comes to learning and engagement. Growing up in the digital age, they have a strong inclination towards interactive and immersive learning experiences (Oblinger, 2003). By leveraging gaming, organizations can effectively capture the attention and maximize the learning potential of the Gen Z workforce by designing engaging, efficient, and effective learning experiences.

Integrating career video games in industry workforce development constitutes not only a cost-effective and scalable solution that aligns with Gen-Z learners’ preferences and maximizes their engagement (Sung et al., 2019), but also an asset to attract and retain Gen-Z talent by providing an innovative and effective learning experience (Reeves & Read, 2009). Career games can thus help you develop a vetted workforce capable of meeting industry demands and adapting to technological advancements.

Four (4) ways Skillsgapp’s Career Games can Engage a Vetted Pipeline

At Skillsgapp, their Skillionaire Games help you engage a workforce that excels in both individual and team settings.

1. Aptitude

First, their games enhance engagement and motivation by creating an immersive and interactive learning environment (Connolly et al., 2012). Their ability to capture the learners’ attention fosters a strong desire to actively participate in the learning process.

2. Action

Second, game-based learning promotes experiential training, allowing players to apply their skills in simulated real-world scenarios (de Freitas & Oliver, 2006). Through simulated environments, players can gain practical experience and develop their abilities in a risk-free setting, which translates into improved performance when faced with actual manufacturing challenges. 

3. Awareness

Third, video games provide immediate feedback and adaptive learning, enabling personalized skill development and addressing individuals’ needs (Plass et al., 2013). The timely feedback provided by the mechanics in Skillionaire Games allows players to understand their strengths and areas for improvement, facilitating a more tailored and effective learning experience. 

4. Access

Finally, video games facilitate collaborative and social learning opportunities, fostering teamwork and knowledge sharing (Squire & Jenkins, 2003). By incorporating multiplayer features or collaborative elements, the games encourage interaction and cooperation, enabling players to learn from each other’s experiences and build essential teamwork skills.

By providing progressive challenges, opportunities for skill development and practice, and promoting a growth mindset and perseverance, skillsgapp’s career video games contribute to building competence and mastery (Gee, 2003). The dynamic nature of their video games allows adaptive play tailored to Gen Z’s strengths and weaknesses; this, in turn, leads to increased self-efficacy and confidence (Papastergiou, 2009).

Conclusion

Through creating a sense of self-efficacy in your future workforce, game-based learning fosters  engaging and interactive learning experiences that enhance motivation, skill development, and performance. By investing in career gaming technology, you can revolutionize your recruitment methodologies, attract and retain Gen-Z talent, and ensure a highly skilled workforce capable of driving industry growth.

Aminata N. Mbodj, a First-Year Ph.D. Candidate in Human-Centered Computing at Clemson University, Aminata is deeply fascinated by the humbling process of learning. Three questions keep her up at night: “Which cognitive processes do we use to build mental models of the world as we experience it?”, “To what extent can we use algorithms to map these structures out?”, “What resulting computing solutions are accessible, so as to optimize our everyday learning?”

References:

Bandura, A. (1997). Self-Efficacy: The Exercise of Control. W.H. Freeman and Company.

Chen, G., Gully, S. M., & Eden, D. (2001). Validation of a new general self-efficacy scale. Organizational Research Methods, 4(1), 62-83.

Connolly, T. M., Boyle, E. A., MacArthur, E., Hainey, T., & Boyle, J. M. (2012). A systematic literature review of empirical evidence on computer games and serious games. Computers & Education, 59(2), 661-686.

de Freitas, S., & Oliver, M. (2006). How can exploratory learning with games and simulations within the curriculum be most effectively evaluated? Computers & Education, 46(3), 249-264.

Gee, J. P. (2003). What Video Games Have to Teach Us About Learning and Literacy. Palgrave Macmillan.

Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (2000). Contextual supports and barriers to career choice: A social cognitive analysis. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 47(1), 36-49.

Oblinger, D. (2003). Boomers, Gen-Xers, and Millennials: Understanding the New Students. EDUCAUSE Review, 38(4), 37-47.

Papastergiou, M. (2009). Digital Game-Based Learning in high school Computer Science education: Impact on educational effectiveness and student motivation. Computers & Education, 52(1), 1-12.

Plass, J. L., Homer, B. D., & Kinzer, C. K. (2013). Foundations of Game-Based Learning. Educational Psychologist, 48(4), 243-259.

Reeves, B., & Read, J. L. (2009). Total engagement: How games and virtual worlds are changing the way people work and businesses compete. Harvard Business Press.

Squire, K., & Jenkins, H. (2003). Harnessing the Power of Games in Education. Insight, 3(1), 5-33.

Sung, Y.-T., Chang, K.-E., & Liu, T.-C. (2019). The effects of integrating mobile devices with teaching and learning on students’ learning performance: A meta-analysis and research synthesis. Computers & Education, 128, 1-18.

This is skillsgapp’s third annual installment. 

Last year we reported that the skills gap took a big hit in 2022, in part due to the Great Recession, when a near-record high of 4.2 million US workers left their jobs voluntarily in November alone. High-growth industries like Cybersecurity/IT, Aerospace and Skilled Trades took the brunt of that workforce deficit, each seeking employees with specific skill sets in place in order to perpetuate an ambitious rebound pace as the constraints of the pandemic softened.

A new report suggests that the lingering effects of the Great Resignation and pandemic are still impacting the skills gap in 2023, however, with 69% of HR respondents reporting that their companies currently have a skills gap, reflecting an increase from 55% the year prior. This prevailing workforce shortage, elevated by supply chain limitations, is reducing operational efficiency and margins for manufacturers, specifically, who are still on track for a workforce shortage of 2.1 million over the next seven years, equating to a $1.2 trillion loss in revenue.

According to Deloitte’s 2023 Manufacturing Industry Outlook, addressing the tight labor market and workforce churn is expected to remain a top priority for manufacturers this year. Despite a record level of new hires, job openings in the industry are still hovering near all-time highs. Lack of employee development initiatives and resources for training are likely to blame as big culprits in the skills gap. Non-competitive compensation, inability to quickly adapt to technological change, and shifts in company strategies and product offerings were also noted as contributors. 

The biggest post-pandemic impact on the skills gap, however, is arguably the kinds of skills now needed to be employable in manufacturing. Surpassing previous years, the demand for soft skills rose for 48% of organizations surveyed, while 33% now need fewer hard skills. 

According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report 2023, the biggest priority on hard skills training relates to analytics this year. Another report adds digital communication and project management to that list. The good news is those can be taught, along with technical skills. The bad news is those constantly change. Soft skills, by contrast, remain with a person throughout their career, and if they already have them, employers don’t have to train them. As a result, they can more easily hit the ground running and make valuable contributions to a company. 

According to a report by MAU Workforce Solutions, these are the most in-demand soft skills in manufacturing:

Top Five Soft Skills in Manufacturing for 2023:

1. Communication
Manufacturing employees are often seen as lone wolves, but no one is isolated when working in a thriving manufacturing plant. Collaboration, conflict mitigation, and effective communication are key in avoiding poor performance as well as unsafe working conditions. 

2. Interpersonal Skills

Interpersonal skills are important in any job, but are especially necessary for manufacturing where one person’s inability to work with others well can take down the entitre team’s performance. 

3. Timeliness
This skill seems simple, however, it’s lacking en masse. If deadlines aren’t met, it can cause huge delays in shipment, making this soft skill one of the most important in manufacturing. 

4. Adaptability/Problem-Solving
In an ideal world, machines run smoothly, parts that need assembly would always be pristine, and products would always be shipped on time. But in manufacturing, if it can go wrong it will, and at the worst time possible.

5. Attention to Detail
There are a lot of moving parts in manufacturing, so it’s important for employees to keep up with the details. Losing sight of the small stuff can lead to some dangerous situations.

From the pandemic to the Great Resignation and remote working, to economic and geopolitical uncertainty, the issues that have burdened industry are going nowhere in 2023. But with the 2M+ million workforce shortage looming overhead, none should be manufacturers’ top priority. Instead, according to Lisa Caldwell with EY, focusing on addressing a talent challenge unlike anything we’ve seen in the past should be priority #1.

What skill do you most value when hiring?

Attracting talent with all the tech or hard skills you need represents just about any industry’s greatest pain point. But those are teachable. What’s harder are those employable skills that correlate with a human’s dynamic capacity to feel and respond. And contrary to the stereotype, those who game represent an untapped pool with such skills that are going overlooked.  Esports journalist, Travis Gafford, vehemently refutes what many of us are thinking. “Gamers,” he attests, “are not antisocial basement-dwellers. They’re leaders, entrepreneurs, and visionaries.” There’s no question that games promote problem solving, presenting players with a variety of challenges and obstacles that they must overcome in order to progress. But empathy? Adaptability? How can an autonomous, predominantly dextrous pastime nurture an employable suite of people skills that rely on, well, people?

1. Empathy

According to global VR director, Chris Milk, “Video games are the ultimate empathy machines.” When interacting with other characters, creatures, or cultures in an immersive gaming experience, players gain a perspective and understanding for circumstances different than their own, and in a safe environment with more opportunities for exploration than in real life. MIT’s Ilya Vedrashka takes this sentiment even further and states, “video games are the closest thing we have to a universal language.”

2. Time Management

Time management games represent its own, popular genre of casual video games focused on fast, real-time allocation of resources to fulfill specific game objectives in a specific order. These games often assume actual work simulation themes, where the player is required to manage a business. The 1983 arcade game Tapper is the prototypical time management game, where the player is a bartender who has to serve patrons before their patience expires. Reacting to incoming requests during play and serving them in the most effective manner yields the greatest rewards. It does in real life, too. 

3. Adaptability

Games can be unpredictable, and players must be able to adapt to changing circumstances in order to succeed. The importance of flexibility, resilience, and perseverance are all a player has on their resume in games, as the who-you-knows, or what school you went to holds no value in a player’s success trajectory. Because of this, award-winning game developer, Jane McGonigal goes on to add, “Gamers always believe that an epic win is possible and that it’s always worth trying, and trying now.” 

Rockefeller himself went as far as putting a higher value on people skills than a purchasable commodity. “I will pay more for the ability to deal with people than for anything under the sun.” Today, the US Department of Labor agrees, claiming that soft skills are even more important than the 3 R’s (reading, writing, and arithmetic). They’re also agnostic, applicable to every industry. As employers are starved for talent today, perhaps adding ‘gaming’ to a desired skill set will yield a more employable candidate. Considering 90% of your future workforce classifies themselves as gamers, your hirable talent pool may have just gotten a lot bigger.

What soft skill do you value most in an employee?

This generation of technicians learns differently. Tina Zwolinksi, CEO & Founder, skillsgapp, shares her knowledge on how gamification can engage the younger generation and attract them to technician careers. Click here to listen.

(1:02) Guest Background
(3:12) Defining and Communicating with Gen Z
(17:12) Embracing the Digital World
(23:01) What is Gamification?
(33:29) Familiarizing Young Kids with the Industry
(52:11) skillsgapp Gamification

A story about using technology to connect youth to life-changing careers.

This podcast interview focuses on product innovation that has the power to help manufacturing and cybersecurity businesses to attract and grow a sustainable workforce pipeline.

During this interview, you will learn four things:

1. How to find transformative innovation opportunities by zooming out to the global picture
2. How to create a flywheel for growth when there’s no real owner of the problem. 
3. How you can solve a global challenge by approaching it locally.
4. The power that unlocks when purpose and technology blend.

Listen here:

#243 – Tina Zwolinski, CEO Skillsgapp – on game-changing workforce development

By Kamber Parker, Founder & Young Professional Expert, The YoPro Know, LLC //

The main topic on every business leader’s mind right now is this:

How does Gen Z think and how will it impact my business? From how they work to how they spend, leaders want to know: what makes them tick and will it be positive or negative for their business?

Gen Z is made up of tweens, teens, and young adults who were born between 1996 and 2015. A wide spread, the Gen Z generation will make up more than half of the U.S. workforce with their millennial counterparts by 2030 (Jason Dorsey: Center For Generational Kinetics). What does this mean for businesses? It’s your job to understand their behaviors, their goals and desires, to create a successful space for them in the workplace.

In this post, we will cover just that. You earned their interest through gamification or innovative recruiting efforts (think: social media, moving away from the age-old job fairs), but now it’s time to figure out how to keep them engaged long-term.

Here are the top 3 things Gen Z wants from you in 2023.

1. Stability. Gen Z is likely not going to be known as the “job-hopping” generation like their millennial counterparts, but there is a higher chance of them not being engaged in a post-pandemic world.
   
   • Pay them what they are worth. Many Gen Z-ers have watched their families experience previous recessions and witnessed the generation before them experience significant debt. They don’t want this, so if you can’t pay them a decent salary, you will not even be in the game next to your competitors.
     
   • Show them opportunities to grow. While you can’t give them a leadership role on day one, outline what their career trajectory can look like from the start. Setting expectations early on with help with building trust with your employees and team members, while setting them up for success.
     
   • Engage them through strong communication, education/training, and professional development. There is a plethora of information on this topic, but to learn more, visit our research here.
     
2. Transparency. This is important to this generation because they have witnessed a very different world than some of us reading this grew up in. Most of them came of age during the pandemic, and as a result, they have experienced tension from something unprecedented in our society. They understand when company cultures are being transparent or not and when they recognize that, they leave.
   
   • Set expectations from day 1. When you are in the hiring process, ensure your recruiting communication is extremely clear.
     
   • Clear is kind. When talking about salary, benefits, time off, and work hours, be honest! 85% of the young professionals I’ve interviewed over the past 2 years say they have left a company because one of these expectations proved to be false about 6 to 9 months in.
     
   • Share vision and long-termplans for the company (depending on size, this can be challenging). Give them a sense of ownership and treat them like they will be there for a long time. Most companies don’t get this part right, but you CAN!
     
3. Connectivity. While many want the opportunity to work from home – some time, not all the time – they still want to be connected.
   
   • If you have a hybrid schedule, encourage team members to all be in the office or site on the same day one day per week. This will create consistent face-time with peers and coworkers to build trust among the team.
     
   • If you only offer work-from-home, ensure there is still time to connect with each other in a meaningful way. Again, the pandemic resulted in less connectivity with other people and Gen Z does not want that. Consider coordinating lunch one day or a team-building exercise (I promise: Gen Z actually wants this these days!).
     
   • If you offer in-person work 100% and don’t have opportunities to give an at-home work structure, it’s important to note here that you will need to create some space for your Gen Z employees to provide flexibility. This looks different for everyone, but if you don’t offer it, they are more inclined to look for places that do.

Being intentional in your process can lead to thriving and retainable outcomes in your workforce. Take time to review and adapt your plans for 2023 to engage successfully with Gen Z.

About Kamber Parker: Kamber is the founder of The YoPro Know (2018), a platform designed to be the bridge between ambitious young professionals and the companies that wish to hire them and most importantly, retain them. Kamber has spent the last 5 years interviewing nearly 1,000 young professionals identifying their key struggles, successes, and ultimately, ways to make them more successful in the workplace. Her business offers consulting services for companies looking to increase young professional recruitment, retention, and engagement. She is a 40 Under Forty Recipient (2020), the Greenville Chamber Young Professional Of The Year recipient (2021), Jefferson Award Winner (2021), and Greenville Business Magazine’s Best & Brightest 35 and Under (2022). In her free time, she volunteers for the Association of Fundraising Professionals Board, Meals on Wheels, and is involved in the Greenville Chamber of Commerce Young Professionals group. You can find her at The Commons, on the Swamp Rabbit Trail running, or Soul Yoga!