How desirable does East Tennessee look to a qualified job candidate in the tech field? How well is the region taking advantage of technological advances to support economic development? A report by the Knoxville Technology Council makes the case that there is room for improvement.
The Technology State of the Union relies on references and data like the Knoxville Chamber’s Knoxville Innovation Report and many others to paint a picture of the current state of technology as it relates to education and jobs. The report concludes with recommendations to improve these things:
- Workforce readiness
- Financial support
- Infrastructure planning
- Coordination of various stakeholders
The report shows that employers often find new college graduates are not up to the task, and that there aren’t nearly enough qualified candidates for the emerging tech job market in and around Knoxville. This, despite notable efforts by the University of Tennessee and the area’s other colleges and technical schools to be responsive to employers’ needs. The report calls for better wages, hybrid work options, and better overall competitiveness in technology innovation.
One place leading the way seems to be Oak Ridge National Laboratory. The report highlights the landmark projects happening there:
“Infrastructure investments fuel additional research and innovation by bringing together leaders from industry, government, and academia. One example is the Next Generation Data Centers Institute (NGDCI) at ORNL, launched in February 2026 to address the growing electricity demand from AI data centers. NGDCI will use the lab’s computing and research capabilities to evaluate how to improve the efficiency, reliability, and security of AI data centers.” This, while local governments around the state have begun moratoriums on data centers outside of the federal reservation.
The hottest jobs to train for? This report lists cybersecurity analyst, data analyst and cloud engineer/architect at the top. Read it all for yourself here.
Anne Brock-Rankin is Marketing Coordinator for Solar Alliance, a renewable energy company based in Knoxville. She can be reached at abrock@solaralliance.com.
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