Electric vehicles seem certain to have a huge impact on the US workforce as we know it. Driven in part by policy pushes (like state efforts to ban the sale of new gas vehicles), demand for EVs is on the rise—and so is the demand for skilled labor.

Many of the world’s largest auto manufacturers are committing to electric, competing with younger, techier EV companies for new types of talent. But finding that talent is proving challenging. As the US Chamber of Commerce puts it: “We have a lot of jobs, but not enough workers to fill them.”

Those who are focused on building and maintaining a talent pipeline that can keep up with the industry’s rapid growth describe a multipronged approach that includes everything from upskilling programs and internships to university partnerships and better outreach to younger generations.

Ashlee Breitner, the workforce development director at the University of Michigan’s new Electric Vehicle Center, said coordinated pipeline efforts are really just ramping up.

“There’s been a lot of activity happening in the last few years, but from my opinion at least, it’s been pretty siloed,” Breitner told Tech Brew.

In Michigan, where automotive jobs make up 20% of the state’s workforce, the EV ecosystem is broad, encompassing universities, community colleges, and the state labor agency, in addition to employers themselves, she explained.

“Just in the last few months here…is where we've started to see everyone start to say, ‘Hey, we really need to have a coordinated effort,’ particularly for talent retention purposes, in making sure that our workforce pipelines and our programming and everything we're doing is going to serve not only today, the needs of employers, but the future of this sector.”

Building pipelines

Charly Mwangi, a general partner at Eclipse Ventures who spent over a decade in the auto industry, has seen the university/industry partnership play out firsthand. Schools aren’t just valuable for software engineering talent, but can add value all along the chain, including in construction and manufacturing, he said. On that front, partnership often starts years before a factory even opens, he explained.

“Usually when you’re trying to locate a factory you will try and look for where there’s already a density of this type of talent,” he said. That's often at odds with state and federal incentives to open manufacturing operations in certain regions, which are geared at boosting skilled trades.

Cindy Nicola, VP of talent acquisition at Rivian, said the company is casting “a very wide net” when it comes to its hiring approach.

“There's really that need to zoom out and think about, how do we build relationships in advance of need and have pipelines that will support our growth for many, many, many years to come?” Nicola declined to say exactly which universities Rivian partners with, but said its approach also involves relationships with trade schools, apprentice programs, and an internal “bootcamp.”

But it’s not just automakers who are grappling with pipeline development.

Ryan Kennedy, CEO of Atom Power, which designs electric charging infrastructure, said electrical talent is in high demand, but that he’s focused on leveraging university relationships.

“My belief is we're in a once-in-a-century event right now where everything is becoming electrified…so there is a huge pull from every industry for all knowledge, electrically speaking, you know, and we're finding that tough,” Kennedy said.

“We definitely center ourselves around universities,” he added.

On the software side of the industry, Johannes Hund, co-founder and CTO of Munich-based charging system designer EcoG, said end-of-study internships, which are common in many European countries, serve as a great way to get junior-level workers in the pipeline. And, as EcoG looks to expand into the US, the company plans to prioritize opening offices in close proximity to potential university partners.

“Can we acquire talent there? Is it an attractive region for people, can we attract talent there?” Hund said.

For all of these efforts to have a lasting impact, the industry needs to be setting its sights even earlier in the pipeline and adjusting its approach to cater to younger generations, Mwangi said.

“First you have to make it attractive for younger generations so that they can actually participate in that pipeline,” he said. “Today is a different way of thinking, because if it was being effective…people would be going to community colleges and going after these jobs.”

Breitner, at the University of Michigan, said that new ways of thinking have to include exposure to the industry that starts much earlier than college. And universities can help to distill information for younger students, she added.

“We have a lot of opportunity for us beyond your traditional educational setting,” Breitner said. “You can’t pull education and workforce apart; they go hand in hand.

Correction 08/24/23: This piece has been updated to reflect that EcoG is based in Munich, not Berlin.