In the time that IT Career Lab has been in the Twin Cities area, it has helped dozens of job seekers jumpstart exciting careers in the IT industry. IT Career Lab is on its way to becoming the go-to educational resource for all job seekers seeking Cisco and Microsoft certifications. In order to serve as many Minnesotans as possible, Jared Fessler, an Education and Community Outreach Manager joined the team! On Jared’s addition, Program Manager Greg Shirbroun, says: “The growth of IT Career Lab will allow us to play an expanded role in developing technology talent for the Twin Cities region. Jared has built strong relationships across the workforce development community and we’re lucky to have him on the team!”

We interviewed Jared to learn about his experiences and discuss why he thinks IT is the future.

Tell us about yourself.

I’m originally from Iowa, and I’ve lived in Minnesota for over six years. I absolutely fell in love with the area. Over the last summer before my senior year of undergrad, my friends and I decided to randomly live in the Twin Cities for the summer and I had never even given the Twin Cities a thought as a place to live and hadn’t been in the area since I was in grade school for a family vacation. I came back to finish one more semester of undergrad and then went on to pursue my master’s degree in public administration organizational management and knew after I finished, that I was going to return to the Twin Cities. I returned to the Twin Cities area because it always felt right. I’m really big into music, museums, coffee shops, and theaters. I especially enjoy seeing shows at The Orpheum, Ordway, and the Guthrie theatre.

What drew you into joining the IT Career Lab team?

I’ve worked as a community relations and operations manager for several years, so my expertise is in outreach, recruitment, and sales. Although my focus was in industries like light industrial, skilled industrial, professional/clerical, and hospitality, I noticed a huge jump in the number of job seekers searching for positions in the IT industry. At a hiring event, I came across IT Career Lab and was interested in learning more about the IT field, and everything fell into place after that. IT Career Lab has given me the opportunity to apply my skills and knowledge to the ever-expanding field of IT within the Twin Cities area. I can say with certainty that IT is the way. It’s the way of the future. I’m glad to be a part of IT Career Lab so that we can help train job seekers who want to be successful in the industry.

What’s your number 1 interview tip for job seekers in the IT industry?

Be curious and ask questions. Ask a ton of questions! It shows that you’re really interested in the position. When you’re making a life change you want to make sure that the organization is solid, so you make sure that you have all your questions answered.