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Retail's Tech Transformation

Upskilling Frontline Employees for Next-Gen Careers

By:
 
Chirlie Felix
Chirlie Felix
 
Katherine Townsend Kiernan
Katherine Townsend Kiernan
 
Kimberly Shin
Kimberly Shin
 
Joel Simon
Joel Simon
 
Youri Tabet
Youri Tabet
 
Ashley Yuan
Ashley Yuan
August 2025
Retail's Tech Transformation

The same retail companies where so many young people start their working lives are also technology firms employing not only cashiers and stock clerks but also software developers, data scientists in their computing operations as well as logisticians and vehicle technicians in their transportation and warehouse operations.  Despite working within the same companies, relatively few workers advance from those early-career retail functions into technology roles.  The Burning Glass Insitute, along with our partners FSG, Jobs for the Future, and the Education Design Lab explored how young people can build on those frontline retail experience to access opportunities in technology, and how retail employers can develop the workers they already have to address tech workforce needs.

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