All-new online platform to add to nearly 13,000 young adults hired since inception

Indianapolis – March 10, 2022 – This morning at Crew Carwash, Mayor Joe Hogsett and EmployIndy kicked off the summer hiring season by announcing the 2022 edition of the Project Indy summer jobs initiative. Project Indy is currently offering 1,261 positions from 63 local employers on its all-new online platform at projectindy.net, which makes applying for jobs easier than ever.

“By offering real-world job experience, Project Indy partners do much more than provide a paycheck,” said Mayor Hogsett. “They allow young people to explore opportunities along a productive path, at a time when negative influences can be harmful to individuals and the community at large. Essentially, it allows young people to define their futures for themselves. That’s good for our youth, it’s good for our employers, and it’s great for our city.”

Since Mayor Hogsett’s launch of Project Indy in 2016 with EmployIndy, the Greater Indianapolis Progress Committee, and the Marion County Commission on Youth, the program has empowered nearly 13,000 young adults in Marion County by providing work experiences that build their employability skills and allow them to explore new career fields. During that time, 218 employers have posted open positions on the portal.

New this year, Project Indy has moved to a new virtual platform that utilizes text messaging to recruit and onboard job seekers. Youth ages 16-24 can get started by simply texting “project Indy” to 317-659-9657. Other additions include a location-based tool to connect to nearby opportunities, as well as an enhanced tool to filter by interest. Once registered, job seekers can easily apply to any of the hundreds of open positions by providing a few pieces of basic information. The website upgrade was made possible through a partnership with PivotCX, formerly WorkHere.

Hiring youth in Indy provides job opportunities, soft-skill development, and job-readiness training to in-school and out-of-school youth in Marion County. Additionally, it offers employers, such as Crew Carwash, the opportunity to create a talent pipeline for their business or industry and play an important role in training the future workforce.

“We feel it is important to invest in our people and their future,” said Sally Grant, Executive Vice President at Crew Carwash. “We hire many 16, 17 and 18-year-olds who come to Crew as a first time job. We work hard to provide them world class training, great benefits, and a fun working environment that sets them up for success here at Crew and in future endeavors.”

EmployIndy, which administers Project Indy, will be increasing awareness about the enhanced tool over the coming weeks. That includes face-to-face recruiting at Indianapolis-area high schools, targeted social media campaigns, and presence at local youth hiring fairs. Through increased in-person outreach, EmployIndy hopes to exceed the job seeker participation limited in recent years by the pandemic. In 2021, over 2,000 young people in Indianapolis were connected to job opportunities through Project Indy.

“Project Indy provides an incredible opportunity for young people to gain valuable work experience and soft-skill development, and job-readiness training through Job Ready Indy prepares them for these jobs,” said EmployIndy President & CEO, Angela Carr Klitzsch. “Employers can be confident that they're hiring eager and ready candidates.”

EmployIndy, in partnership with Mayor Joe Hogsett's office and the Indy Chamber, launched Job Ready Indy in 2018, an online employability skills program focused on providing the soft skills needed to succeed in the workplace. When an individual completes one of the online courses, a Job Ready Indy badge will appear on their Project Indy profile – notifying an interested employer that they are deemed by EmployIndy and the Indy Chamber as someone who demonstrates the “job-ready” skills that are important in the workplace.

Regardless of company size or resources, every organization can make a difference in their community through Project Indy. Youth ages 16-24 can learn more and apply at projectindy.net or by texting “project Indy” to 317-659-9657. Employers interested in hiring youth can also sign up using the link.

• A toolkit with social media assets, a video from Mayor Hogsett, and other materials is available here.