SwiftWing Ventures announces the hiring of Patrick Mark Gusman, former president of the Equal Footing Foundation, to its executive team as chief operating officer, where he will focus on strategic planning, process optimization and operational excellence.
In this position, Mr. Gusman will also lead the workforce development and nationwide partnerships for TechTown Global, where he will leverage his networks and pursue opportunities such the recently announced $100 million TechHire initiative.
Chattanooga is one of 21 cities included in the White House-sponsored plan to increase technology education and job training.
"Our programs are designed to prepare and equip learners of all ages and abilities to actively engage the digital economy,” said TechTown CEO Cordell Carter. “We are not talking only about webpage creation; we are aiming much higher. There are a half-million open technology positions, and TechTown-Workforce is looking to partner with employers to train and fill those jobs. We look forward to someone of Patrick's stature leading the workforce effort here in Chattanooga and nationally as we expand to other cities.”
TechTown Chattanooga will open its downtown campus this summer. The group plans to expand to Seattle later this year.
"Patrick has a long history in leading technology organizations and projects to success,” said Christopher Cummings, SwiftWing Ventures CEO. “He’s focused on building programs that are community-based and results-driven. Bringing him to Chattanooga adds a wealth of experience to our team as we strive to grow a large variety of companies.”
Prior to joining SwiftWing Ventures, Mr. Gusman led the Virginia-based Equal Footing Foundation and is the founder of the Startup Middle School, a pilot program to train and develop a sustainable pipeline of tech-savvy, innovative leaders.
In addition, Mr. Gusman served as the executive director of ConvergeUS and chief innovation officer at the National Urban League. At ConvergeUS and the National Urban League, he led the organizations’ efforts to connect non-profits to the technology sector using strategies like increasing broadband opportunity and introducing the social media platform, IAmEmpowered.com. Mr. Gusman also has an extensive legal and private sector career in the automobile industry with the Chrysler and Daimler group of companies.
Mr. Gusman is a native of Louisiana and holds a Juris Doctor from Georgetown University Law Center, a Bachelor of Business Administration degree in Finance and a concentration in French from the University of Notre Dame.