Leading US-based online learning platform Springboard, co-founded by two Indian-born entrepreneurs in the Silicon Valley, said on Wednesday that it tied up with global software product behemoth Microsoft to bridge global skills gap in analytics. “We have also raised $11 million (Rs 78 crore) in post-series A financing led by Reach Capital, Pearson Ventures, International Finance Corporation (IFC) and venture fund investors like Costanoa Ventures, Learn Capital and Blue Fog Capital,” said the startup in a statement. Springboard will also train 5,000 students in analytics discipline through its Data Analytics Career Track in partnership with Microsoft in the next three years. The analytics training programme will deploy Microsoft’s educational resources and Springboard’s experts to train and place students in high demand jobs.

Springboard was founded in 2013 by Parul Gupta and Gautam Tambay to train professionals needed in the digital economy landscape. According to the startup, present day economy demands specialised talents in AI, machine learning, data science, data analytics and other disciplines. “Millions of mid-career technology professionals are fast becoming redundant in their jobs, further adding to the issue. Reskilling is the only way technology professionals can future-proof their careers,” Springboard pointed out.

In the next five years, the startup expects up to 65 per cent IT jobs to undergo a transition.