Nick Otto Featured on Autodesk’s Digital Builder Podcast
Nick Otto, chief technology officer at Kimley-Horn, appeared on a recent episode of Autodesk’s Digital Builder podcast alongside host Eric Thomas and Beth Ihnatolya, program director of civil engineering and geomatics technology at Wake Technical Community College. The episode, “How Firms, Educators, and Tech Are Closing the Construction Skills Gap Together,” highlighted the strategic partnership between Kimley-Horn, Wake Technical Community College, and Autodesk to support technical skill development and find solutions to address deficits in the AEC industry workforce.
6 Suggestions to Support a Robust & Tech-Savvy AEC Workforce
Nick, Beth, and Eric discussed specific challenges and opportunities within each of their industry spheres and offered a variety of solutions, including the following:
- Keep a future-focused vision on both short-term and long-term technology changes, forecast skills gaps, and develop people to step into those gaps.
- Help college instructors stay up to date with real-world challenges and trends by encouraging them to engage with firms through externships.
- Foster collaboration between groups—for instance, Autodesk, Kimley-Horn, and Wake Tech—that can bring different perspectives and solutions to problems.
- Build hands-on internship programs that lead to full-time employment opportunities.
- Empower students to engage in the workplace by providing apprenticeships and creating flexible learning environments.
- Support teams by understanding their daily technology experiences and providing clear-cut, in-house solutions to their challenges.
Listen to the full podcast here
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