Discussing the lack of available training and development of talent for mission critical operations professionals.

1. Mission Critical
Staffing and Training
Challenges

2. INTRODUCTION TO SPEAKERS
Salute Mission Critical – Jason
Okroy
 10+ years in Data Center
Industry
 CEO of Salute Mission Critical
since 2013
Brookfield GIS – Tony Rossi,
MBA
13 years in Mission Critical
Data Centers & Nuclear Power
Navy Nuclear Power Instructor
NCMCO Advisor since 2013
Author of MCO Fundamentals
textbook
7x24 Carolinas Board of
Directors
Chairman, Education Committee

3. AGENDA
Personnel Shortage and Training Challenges
Bridging “the gap”
Self-assessment and training tools
Stop the revolving doors
NCMCO
Questions

4. HOW MANY HAVE STAFF…
25 years or younger
30 years or younger
35 years or younger
40 years or younger
45 years of younger

5. STAFFING FACTS
•Approximately 30 - 40% of data center staff will retire
in the next 3 years.
•Data Centers are growing at an expediential rate –
15.42%
•Revolving door of personnel
•Change is necessary
•Training budgets not adequate
•Minimum requirements:1 – 2 years required
•Wage increase – Budget constraints
“Farm League”

6. BRIDGING THE GAP
What training programs exist today
 Military
 Trades
 College
How many hire without experience
Is HR and Operations on the same page
How much is enough experience

7. EXISTING PROFESSIONAL
TRAINING

8. DATA CENTER OPERATORS
Gradual evolution of Tradesmen
Electrician that gained exposure to
mechanical systems
Mechanics that gained exposure to electrical
systems
Cross-trained military Veterans
On the job training
Limited site-specific qualification programs
centered around drills, emergency procedures,
maintenance activities
No sources of study for integrated technical
fundamentals

9. SALUTE MISSION CRITICAL
Military Veterans
Course work
On the job training
3 areas of expertise:
Cleaning/Fundamentals
Power
Technician
Entry Level Technicians
1 -2 year experience

10. SELF ASSESSMENT

11. SELF ASSESSMENT CONT

12. SELF ASSESSMENT CONT

13. SELF ASSESSMENT CONT

14. CURRICULUM DEVELOPMENT
EXAMPLE

15. CLASSROOM TRAINING
1. OSHA 10 hour General Industry
a. 8 hours Basic Electrical Safety &
NFPA 70E
b. 4 hours
2. Basic Lockout Tagout
a. 4 hours
3. Base Technical
a. 8 hours
4. Structured Cabling Basics
a. 4 hours
5. Advanced Electrical Safety, NFPA 70E
& Arc Flash
a. 8 hours
7. Advanced Lockout Tagout
a. 8 hours
8. Method of Procedure (MOP)
Comprehension & Application
a. 8 hours
9. Schematic & Diagram Reading
a. 2 hours
10. Meter Usage & Application
a. 2 hours
11. Advanced Structured Cabling
a. 8 hours
12. OSHA 30 Hour General Industry
a. 30 hours
13. Safely & Effectively Managing Employees
a. 8 hours

16. ON THE JOB TRAINING
Subfloor
General
Equipment
Above Floor
Surface
Perforated
Tile
Drop Ceiling
Battery Maintenance
Battery Installation
Generator
Rack and stack
Containment
Tile cuts
Filter replacement
Level 1 & 2 support
CLEANING RAISED FLOOR ELECTRICAL

17. PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE TEAMS
Site specific training
Lower risk
MOP familiarization
Traveling teams
Quarterly Maintenance
Lower Opex
HR – hand pick staff
Culture fit
Minimize onboarding
Weeks not months to hire
Farm League

18. IN-HOUSE TRAINING TODAY
Limited bandwidth and resources for current staff / SMEs
Widely varied Data Center / Mission Critical infrastructure designs
 On-the-Job Training
 Military-based Qualification guides
 Vendor shadowing
12-18 Months to become Knowledgeable Operations professional
 Start over, to varying degrees, at new sites
No one is funding the fundamental education needed as cross-
trained seasoned tradesmen move towards retirement

20. HISTORY
Industry-wide lack of talent + continued
growth projections
7x24 Carolinas supported grant writing
$21M DOL grant awarded to consortium
led by Cleveland Community College
2014-2015 Program development
2015-2015 classes begin, certification
released

21. OVERVIEW
Shared resources for consortium
Certification development
MCO Textbook released (free!)
CCC classes begin fall 2015
Wake Tech classes begin fall 2016
Online study aides

22. CURRICULUM
Beyond traditional trade training
Mission Critical Mindset
MEP + digital fundamentals
Critical Infrastructure design
System-focused
Broad application (not just data centers)

23. FUTURE OF MISSION CRITICAL
TRAINING
Continued NCMCO development of curricula released to Creative
Commons
NCMCO as model for other regional partnerships
 Academic
 Service industry
 Military
CAGR 5-15% over next 5 years for mission critical industries
Business model for training? (internships, mentor programs)

24. QUESTIONS