Google Launches Free Digital Skills Training Platform for Job Seekers And Entrepreneurs Impacted By COVID-19

Since the start of the COVID-19, or novel coronavirus, pandemic, over 700,000 jobs have been lost causing over 30 million American workers to file for unemployment putting their financial health in jeopardy. Many small business owners have been forced to shut down operations in order not to continue bleeding money as they struggle to keep their workforce. The public health crisis has left many to have to pivot into other ventures in order to stay afloat amid the changing landscape. Now, tech giant Google is creating a new platform to help make that transition easier.

Google unveiled its new program aimed to help job seekers and small business owners transition to the digital space by learning new skills. Grow with Google OnAir is a free virtual skills training program that brings the resources and courses in addition to virtual one-one coaching sessions. The original in-person program started in 2017 with the goal of helping individuals obtain training in digital skills sets the corporation specializes in.

The new website will allow users to easily search and register for upcoming events and browse through an archive of “On Demand” events. The former in-person curriculum will provide a foundation for the new digital content of the virtual program, including product workshops for small business owners in areas like Analytics or YouTube and skills workshops for job seekers.

“Face to face learning has always been integral to Grow with Google’s mission. Since that’s no longer possible, we are pivoting our resources to a virtual space that is personalized and interactive to give users an equally beneficial experience,” said Jesse Haines, Director of Grow with Google in an email statement. “We hope that people across the country — including job seekers and small business owners— can boost their potential with the diverse content contributed by our Grow with Google team and our incredible partners.”