Red Ventures CEO invests $5 million in skills-training program

Red Ventures CEO Ric Elias has invested $5 million in a program called Road2Hire, which focuses on helping equip unemployed and underemployed young adults in the Charlotte area with the skills they need to land a good job.

The Red Ventures-affiliated program trains participants on interpersonal, life-management and workforce preparation skills, Road2Hire said in a recent statement. When they complete the program, graduates receive job-placement opportunities with Red Ventures and other area businesses.

Road2Hire said the training is intended for the one-third of high school graduates who cannot find a job that matches their skill or education level, or who are looking for full-time jobs but can only find part-time work.

The program is divided into two tracks: sales, which will focus on sales and customer-service job training and placement, and tech, a continuation of a recently launched Red Ventures program called Code2Hire.

Applications for both tracks are open through June 20 online at www.road2hire.org. Road2Hire is launching its first class for sales this summer and its third class for tech after that.

“This is a population in our community that is largely overlooked and underestimated,” Elias said. “Road2Hire is going to provide them with a clear path to jobs that will help them break into the middle class.”

Red Ventures has said in keeping with the company’s ongoing effort to help high-performing children of undocumented immigrant families, Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) students can apply. Elias, a native of Puerto Rico, has long said he does not believe a college degree should be required in order to succeed in the U.S.

This story was originally published May 23, 2016 at 3:45 PM with the headline "Red Ventures CEO invests $5 million in skills-training program."