Empowering the technologists of tomorrow

Outside of my daily responsibilities leading a team of software engineers at J.P. Morgan, I appreciate the numerous opportunities our firm provides our technologists to give back in our local communities.

As part of J.P. Morgan’s volunteerism efforts, we partner with Fundación Pescar, a Buenos Aires-based nonprofit whose primary objective is to equip individuals coming from vulnerable communities with career skills. We recently worked with Fundación Pescar to provide a six-month software development training program called Paths to the Future, which brought new learning opportunities to 300 young women interested in launching a career in technology.

The program consisted of 13 courses and numerous sessions with coding instruction and career development advice. Students also benefitted from mentoring sessions, resume workshops, and mock interview practice. Students were also able to gain hands-on experience and instruction in full stack web development.

Over the six month period, volunteers played a fundamental role in mentoring the students. With the leadership of Valeria Dunayevich, a Technology Infrastructure Project Manager and employee volunteer, we were able to bring together more than 100 of our Buenos Aires colleagues to share the lessons they learned when establishing their career paths. They also introduced students to the wide variety of roles available to professionals in the technology and financial services industries.

We hope that students who participated in Paths to the Future gained knowledge and confidence that will inspire them to set and achieve their future career development goals.