Statewide Initiative Scouts, Ranks, and Certifies the Top Employers Hiring Athletes Across New Jersey's Commercial, Industrial, and Digital Infrastructure Economy
Atlantic City, NJ — Athletes Make The Best today announced the launch of the New Jersey Top 100 Employers for Athletes, a statewide initiative that scouts, ranks, and certifies the top employers to recruit and train athletes across New Jersey's commercial, industrial, and digital infrastructure economy from entry, mid, senior, and executive level. The Top 100 is not a "best places to work" list. It is a verified employer ranking that measures five things: athletic experience, sports played, level of competition, leadership ability, and on-the-job performance.
New Jersey's infrastructure economy is one of the most active in the country. The state is investing billions across utility and energy systems, broadband networks, and port modernization, with the Port of New York and New Jersey ranking as the busiest port on the East Coast. The engineering and construction industry projects a need for nearly 500,000 new workers by 2026. More than 78 percent of infrastructure firms report difficulty filling skilled craft positions. Most of these projects require local workforce and suppliers to meet federal, state, and municipal contracting compliance, also known as local and domestic content requirements. The Top 100 gives employers a competitive edge in meeting those requirements.
The data on athletes as hires is clear. Ernst and Young found that 94 percent of women in C-suite positions are former athletes. Psychology Today found that 68 percent of top CEOs competed in collegiate sports. McKinsey confirms that resilience, coachability, performance under pressure, and team accountability are the same traits every infrastructure employer is trying to hire.
"Employers across New Jersey are competing to build their workforce to keep up with public-private infrastructure demand and local hiring compliance," said Tenicka Chaney, Senior Director of Athletes Make The Best. "The Top 100 gives them a certified pipeline of athletes who are already ready to compete in business."
After registering online, employers receive a Top 100 Toolkit to help distribute a 5 to 10 minute employee "Athletes Workforce Survey." Employers have 14 days to have their employees complete the survey and are verified through the Athletes Make The Best Athlete Business Enterprise (ABE) certification. Recognition tiers are earned by employee participation: Platinum at 60 percent or higher, Gold at 50 to 59 percent, Silver at 40 to 49 percent, and Bronze at 30 to 39 percent. The survey measures five dimensions: how many athletes are on your team and how long they competed; what sports they played and how those sports shaped the way they work together; how high they competed and how they perform when the pressure is on; whether they led teams on the field and carry that into the workplace; and what they achieved as athletes and whether they still stay active in sports today. All certified companies are automatically published as a Top Employer for Athletes. The Top 100 will be announced in October.
Athletes Make The Best and Sports Power Infrastructure will continue to build on their job applicant pipeline in addition to working with New Jersey construction safety training partners, including Piscataway, NJ-based T.S. Safety Solutions, to provide OSHA 30, Site Safety Training, Confined Space Entry Training, Flagger Certification, and Project Management certifications. Partners looking to leverage the excitement of the World Cup are engaging Sports Power Infrastructure solutions, including a summer academy, premium experiences, and coaches clinics to power further workforce and supplier investment across the state. The Top 100 pipeline delivers New Jersey residents who arrive site-ready, safety-certified, and trained to perform from day one.
"The love and excitement of sports as a player or fan is unmatched," said Robin Tabakin, President of Technoforce and Board President-Elect of the New Jersey State Women's Chamber of Commerce, and Dwayne R. Wilkins, Senior Director of Economic Development for LocalContent.com. "We want the region's athletes to know that we have curated a list of employers they can trust to build their future with."
The initiative launches across Newark, Jersey City, Hackensack, Bayonne, Asbury Park, Atlantic City, Camden, Trenton, and Burlington City, powered by Technoforce, a New Jersey-based workforce and community development firm and licensed affiliate of the Top 100.
Job seekers and for-profit and nonprofit organizations that want to become Top 100 Employers for Athletes can visit www.athletesmakethebest.com or call Technoforce at (973) 328-1047.
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