Jerome Grant on organizational mission
From Producing High-Quality Students | Jerome Grant | #podcast #business #education #ceo #leadership · · BoardDeveloper
“It's a mission that we're on to try to do this in a very successful way, and that's what allows you to grow and move to the next city.”
On , Jerome Grant, Chief Executive Officer & Director at UNIVERSAL TECHNICAL INST, spoke about organizational mission during Producing High-Quality Students | Jerome Grant | #podcast #business #education #ceo #leadership on BoardDeveloper.
About Jerome Grant
Jerome Grant, CEO of Universal Technical Institute (UTI), has stated that the company is experiencing a "real trend in the skilled trades market," citing a 10% year-over-year revenue increase and a 7% rise in average full-time students. Grant has attributed this growth to a shift in sentiment, noting that "people are really thinking about the trades and thinking about Healthcare in a way they've never thought about them before." He has described a "skills gap" in the U.S., saying there are "three to four jobs on the job board for every single graduate" on the UTI side and "five to 10 jobs for every conquered graduate" in healthcare. Grant has also discussed the company's "Northstar strategy," which he said has more than doubled the company's size and tripled its profitability since its implementation in 2019. He outlined a target of reaching approximately $1.2 billion in revenue and $220 million in EBITDA by 2029, driven by plans to open "at least two campuses a year" and "six to 10 new programs a year." Grant has emphasized the company's focus on student outcomes, stating that UTI graduates 70% of its students and places 85% of them in jobs within the first year. He has contrasted this with community college graduation rates, which he said average around 30%. Grant has also addressed the impact of artificial intelligence on skilled trades, noting that diagnostic tools in fields like auto mechanics and healthcare are now "AI-enabled" and that UTI must stay on "the cutting edge" of that technology. Regarding the broader workforce, Grant has agreed with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang's statement that the future workforce will need hundreds of thousands of electricians and plumbers, adding that Huang is "having trouble building data centers because he doesn't have enough electricians." Grant has said that UTI's "biggest competitor is a parent" and that the company is working to break down stereotypes about skilled trade careers.