Penny interviews Chancellor Juan Salgado of City Colleges, a remarkable servant leader who explained why employers and community colleges must work together to address today’s workforce challenges. Whether it’s healthcare, manufacturing, or emerging fields like AI and quantum computing, organizations need access to a pipeline of qualified talent to grow. At the same time, students need clear pathways to meaningful careers. To answer this need, City Colleges launched the Chicago Moonshot program, a new apprenticeship model connecting its students to paid apprenticeships in our city’s growing quantum ecosystem.

One takeaway from this conversation with Chancellor Salgado: the most effective solutions happen when leaders start with the pain points, and work backwards to design something that unlocks opportunity in a new way.