Job Site Ready (JSR) partners with Montana's employers, two-year and tribal colleges to equip participants with the essential skills required to start an entry-level job in the construction trades through 30 hours of online coursework and 15-hours of onsite, hands-on learning. "For me, Job Site Ready was an interesting balance between the classroom and workplace. I am confident that I will be able to apply the knowledge and training I have received directly to the job site and in building a career!" -Ross, Helena College JSR badge earner

Developed by working Salesforce professionals at ATG Cognizant, the Salesforce Administrator ten-week program prepares trainees with a foundation of core business essentials and the skills to pass the Salesforce Certified Administrator Exam. This microcredential validates an earner has the skills and knowledge to hit the ground running in an entry level position. "The Accelerate MT Salesforce Administrator course, along with the incredibly helpful instructors, taught me the foundational skills to effectively use the Salesforce platform and transferable skills for other workflow automation tools as well. This training played a pivotal role in my career transition and professional growth." Hope Scott, Salesforce Administrator microcredential earner

Matt Schmidt, Vice President/Principal of DCI Engineers, Missoula, MT requested specialized training for a cohort of new and experienced employees in Revit/BIM Essentials and a digital credential to validate they completed a nationally accredited 20-week, 185-clock hour program in Blueprint Reading, Revit and Building Information Modeling (BIM). “DCI has partnered with Accelerate Montana to see the program become a reality, not only for the technical leg-up this provides new staff, but for what we see this program becoming – a new educational pathway for technical staff coming into the Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry as a whole.”

Glacier Country Tourism offered a workshop on Customer Service and Conflict Management to regional tourism professionals, with assessment that measured a participant’s ability to identity types of conflict and individual conflict styles, approaches to managing conflict, and strategies to prevent future conflicts. This credential expires after a year to encourage annual re-verification.

Denman Construction, Whitefish, MT faces a competitive labor market and a need to train new employees.  Adam Shilling, Director of Apprenticeships and Trainings, recognized the validated skills gained from Job Site Ready (JSR) and now hires JSR badge earners: “We have been able to streamline our previous training classes utilizing the Job Site Ready microcredential program. This cut down the time we had to do in-class learning as our apprentices completed work through online modules that also included great accompanying video content. At Denman Construction we see JSR as an excellent starting point.”

Accelerate Montana developed a five-hour online Project Management Primer to provide a practical orientation to project management. This course builds a shared understanding of PM elements, terms, and basic methods as participants frame their own project, and test and assess their approaches. Course can be paired with optional in-person training to meet specific employer needs.

Shawna Kimerly earned a digital badge for successfully completing the Media Training Center’s Production Assistant course which prepared her with skills and a practical orientation on how to work on a film set and obtain an entry-level job working on a professional film crew. “My experience taking the class was wonderful. I have used my knowledge from the Production Assistant class for every film I have been apart of.” Since completing training Shawna has worked on productions including 1923, the NBA All Stars, Catfish MTV, PBS’s Wild Hope, and several Netflix documentaries.

Experiential Learning and Career Services (ELCS) at the University of Montana developed a year-long career readiness program for students working on campus focusing on a broad range of essential professional skills. Five badged modules covering communication, critical thinking, teamwork, workplace excellence and career and personal development culminate in the Griz Career Skills Certified microcredential.