Our Interconnected Ecosystem

Bitwise Industries operates under the pulse of an interconnected business model, all happening within a tailored ecosystem that connects our coding classes, apprentices, and the real-world projects we do in Technology Services. Alone, each part of that delicate ecosystem is designed to benefit our students, our apprentices, and our thousands of clients. Together, though, our ecosystem is designed to lift up lives, underserved communities, and strengthen local economies. In today’s blog post, we take a closer look at Bitwise’s operating pipeline, and how it all comes together to best represent our mission.

Keepin’ it Classy

The first piece of the Bitwise pipeline are the Workforce Training classes we offer to members of our numerous Bitwise campus communities. These classes are built to fit into a progression, becoming more challenging as students continue to build knowledge. Each class is six weeks long, with 36 cumulative hours of instruction. Our curriculum does not come from textbooks, but is instead hands-on and taught by senior developers, lead programmers, and marketing professionals from our own local communities.

Here’s a breakdown of our classes and student journey:

Beginner-level Classes:

Websites for Beginners: Our introductory class that jumpstarts beginners newly entering the tech world. In this class, students learn to build websites in HTML5 and CSS3, in addition to learning things like industry-specific terminology and page construction. And the best part? There’s no coding experience required. 

Mobile-friendly Websites: This class builds on the knowledge acquired from Websites for Beginners–and includes learning responsive web concepts, CSS frameworks, advanced layout techniques with Flexbox, and an introduction to responsive design.

Intermediate-level Class:

Javascript for Beginners: Learn how to think like a programmer by building interactive web pages in Javascript. This class requires experience in HTML/CSS, GitHub, and responsive design (all of which can be learned in the beginner-level classes!).

Advanced-level Classes:
React: Learn how to build a web application and gain knowledge in essential React concepts–strong Javascript and HTML skills are required.

What Makes Us Different?

Let’s address the elephant in the room: what sets Bitwise’s Classes apart from other coding boot camps available online? The key aspect? Accessibility. Our classes are designed to be accessible by underserved communities, and our virtual format and flexible time creates opportunities for those not previously exposed to opportunities to build knowledge and develop a portfolio of new skills relevant to the tech industry. 

Our classes have a flat rate of $250 and financial assistance options are available–meaning that the roadblocks keeping prospective students from breaking into tech are lifted, and opportunities are just a registration away. Additionally, Bitwise’s Wraparound Services ensure that students’ needs are met throughout the way–including Student Success Specialists that help walk you through the process, and transportation (when classes eventually return to in-person attendance). 

The cherry on top? Joining the Bitwise ecosystem and taking classes opens students up to way more than skill-building and portfolio development; taking Workforce Training classes can lead to an apprenticeship–an opportunity to get paid to learn and gain real-world experience, using the skills developed in our Workforce Training classes. 

Awesome Apprenticeships

The next link in the Bitwise pipeline is qualifying as a candidate for one of our many apprenticeships–these apprenticeships are an opportunity to build real-world experience and get paid a livable wage to learn. This means by taking our classes, you’re building skills and through our apprenticeships, get to use those skills to build mobile apps, learn the ins and outs of online marketing, and get your feet wet with inside sales. 

How does one become an apprentice? After you’ve taken our courses (and hopefully taken advantage of our Wraparound Services), you can connect with your Student Success Specialist about being nominated for one of the many apprenticeships available at Bitwise. Once nominated, students from our classes have gone on to participate in graphic design and tech support apprenticeships, gain experience as a Salesforce administrator working on real-time builds on internal systems and outside projects for various clients. 

When the apprenticeship concludes, the apprentice has had hundreds of hours of knowledge and experience to take and apply at other tech companies, employment within the Bitwise ecosystem, or cultivate their resume to work in another area supported by our apprenticeship opportunities. 

Talkin’ About Tech Services

The final, and maybe most integral part of the Bitwise pipeline is the hands-on experience and training while working on real-world projects within the Tech Services division of Bitwise Industries. While working with a senior team lead, each apprentice learns to work on real projects for clients that partner with Bitwise Industries, including improving their technological infrastructure, or designing software that improves the overall workflow of our clients. 

Projects our apprentices work on utilize the foundational knowledge they’ve learned in our classes, combined with the real-time learning opportunities that come from an apprenticeship. These options include developing mobile apps, dynamic web design, inside sales work with clients, learning how to be an administrator in our Salesforce org, or supporting our contact center projects. Over time, apprentices become well-versed in each area of learning; there’s a good chance they’ll get hired as full-time employees within the Bitwise ecosystem, or have developed the knowledge and skills to work in other technology spaces or industries. hundreds of apprentices have gone from taking Websites for Beginners to joining Bitwise as full-time employees working on Salesforce builds, designing ad campaigns with our online marketing team, and helping to fix and implement tech support systems as IT professionals.

The People Pipeline

From beginning to end of the Bitwise pipeline, people are the priority. Our ecosystem and this operating model is great on paper–giving students accessible and flexible opportunities to learn and then apply that knowledge with the apprentice role, to eventually becoming full-on employees within Bitwise or another tech ecosystem like it. What sets Bitwise apart, though? It’s the way we utilize community and humanity throughout the pipeline. Our students are representative examples of all the communities we serve–of all ages, cultures, and backgrounds–who have been overlooked, disenfranchised, underestimated, and systemically left on the outskirts of the tech industry. 

Bitwise gives students the opportunity to thrive. When barriers from stories of poverty are removed, these humans learn, succeed, and eventually find hope. This hope empowers them to improve their lives, their families, and their communities. This hope gives those the chance to change the outcome of their lives, and gives them the opportunity to build what they never thought could be possible–a sustainable income and the chance to build generational wealth and knowledge for their lives and their communities. This hope turns to action. And this action is what lifts lives and economies. 

Sure, Bitwise is in the business of creating tech solutions and supporting app development and building client relationships, but most of all, we are in the business of people. Our humans, from our instructors to our student support specialists to our apprenticeship leads, are there to support students every step of the way–slowly removing barriers and chipping away at the biases that have kept otherwise underserved members of our community outside of the tech industry. 

Register for a Class

If you’re interested in taking our classes or becoming an apprentice, click here. Do you have any questions about classes or apprenticeship opportunities? Reach out directly to our incredible Workforce Training department at [email protected]. 

Bitwise Industries specializes in custom software development, Salesforce implementation and administration, and Contact Center-as-a-Service. Our technology professionals have deep experience applying cutting-edge technology solutions to help entities of all sizes navigate the technology landscape to find solutions to optimize their operations.

This post was written by Amber Carpenter, Jr. Copywriter at Bitwise Industries. When Amber isn’t writing, she’s power-lifting–not squatting or bench pressing weights, but lifting her homies’ spirits with little jokes and tomfoolery.

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