Ten at the Top had a dynamic conversation with leaders from Piedmont Technical College to learn how they are tackling rapid upskilling while maintaining workplace culture.
Crystal Hendrickson, from TATT partner Pinnacle Partnership hosted the TATT Chat.
Speakers from Piedmont Technical College were Carla Gilliam, Assistant Vice President for Academic Affairs, Matt Wiggins, Dean of Workforce Innovation, and Tara Gonce, Dean of Health Care.
The mission of Piedmont Technical College (PTC) is to transform lives and strengthen communities by providing opportunities for intellectual and economic growth. They are focused on access, opportunity, and impact to support students and the broader community. PTC serves as a workforce development engine for their seven-county service region by training and upskilling the workforce, meeting learners where they are and helping employers stay competitive.
Matt Wiggins groups students into three categories – those with the intention of transferring to a four year university, those looking for associates degree in the technical field, and those attending short term credential or certification courses to enhance current employment or act as a catalyst to new career path.
The PTC main campus is in Greenwood with satellite campuses and classes also being held in the community, at companies, and schools. They recently introduced a mobile training lab to take education to remote service areas and partner with employers on credit required trainings.
Over the 2024-2025 academic year 2,124 students were served, 54 companies, and there were 100+ unique classes. Scholarships are available and passionate instructors are always needed! PTC recently conducted an economic impact survey that revealed the scale of PTC’s impact. In one year, they generate at total regional economic impact of $349M.
Just as important as innovation and growth is keeping the workforce people focused. “People may forget the process, but they remember how they were treated.” AI can support the work, but people define the experience. While AI can write emails, draft reports, build schedules, analyze data, generate lesson plans, assist with customer service, support healthcare documentation, but it can’t replace compassion, build authentic trust or inspire human confidence.