The new economic framework intends to better convert innovation into operating capacity and economic mobility

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M., May 5, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- Central New Mexico Community College (CNM) today announced its leadership role in the national launch of the Technician Economy™—a new economic framework designed to accelerate the conversion of innovation into real-world operational capacity and expand pathways to lasting economic mobility.

The initiative was publicly unveiled at the Close It Summit in Santa Fe this week and represents a coordinated national effort to address a growing challenge: the widening gap between innovation and rapid technological advancement and the workforce needed to implement it. 

At the heart of the Technician Economy is a simple but urgent reality—innovation cannot scale without skilled technician capacity. Professionals trained in mechanical, electrical, electronic, and industrial IT systems are essential to building, maintaining, and operating the technologies that power our modern industries.

CNM President Tracy Hartzler is serving as inaugural Co-Chair of the Technician Economy Futures Council alongside Matt Austin of Amazon, where he serves as Principal for Career Choice Program Strategy & Development. The council brings together 12 leaders—six from major employers and six from community and technical colleges—to drive collaboration across education, industry, and economic development.

"We are in a period of extraordinary technological advancement with the potential to transform our economy and improve quality of life in New Mexico and communities across the country," said CNM President Tracy Hartzler. "But progress is being slowed by critical workforce shortages—especially among skilled technicians who install and keep these systems running. In New Mexico and nationwide, we need to expand pathways into high-quality, in-demand technician careers that offer real financial security. The Technician Economy gives us a framework to move from fragmented efforts to coordinated action—ensuring education and training leads directly to employment and long-term economic mobility while boosting economic growth."

"The US hasn't lost the ability to innovate or invest," said co-chair Matt Austin. "But after decades building operating capacity overseas while neglecting our own, we have created an enormous deployment gap. That gap is now shaping both critical economic needs and major technician career opportunities for those ready to build the skill to meet that demand."

A National Response to the Innovation-Deployment Gap

The Technician Economy directly addresses what leaders describe as the "innovation-deployment gap." While the U.S. continues to invest heavily in research and innovation, it lacks the coordinated workforce infrastructure needed to deploy those innovations at scale. This gap slows economic growth and restricts opportunities for working learners.

The Technician Economy framework focuses on:

• Aligning employer demand across industries and regions
• Enabling colleges to rapidly deliver job-aligned training pathways
• Converting skill development into measurable technician hires
• Building a repeatable system that supports lasting economic mobility

Building the Technician Economy Locally

As part of the launch, CNM is encouraging regional stakeholders—including employers, higher education institutions, chambers of commerce, and economic development organizations—to engage with the Technician Economy framework and help strengthen workforce pipelines in their communities.

A national Technician Economy Playbook will be released to support communities in assessing and building their local technician workforce infrastructure.

CNM's leadership in this effort builds on its role as a founding member of Unmudl in 2019—a coalition of community and technical colleges working to better connect skills training and employment through the Skills-to-Jobs® marketplace. Through CNM Ingenuity, the college's economic development arm, CNM has invested in expanding this platform to create accessible, job-aligned learning opportunities for students and workforce solutions for employers.

Today, that foundation has evolved into the Technician Economy, with the Skills-to-Jobs® marketplace serving as key infrastructure to translate workforce demand into measurable outcomes for the hiring of technicians.

About Central New Mexico Community College 

Central New Mexico Community College is a national leader in workforce education and training, connecting learners to high-quality careers that support economic growth and community prosperity. CNM is a founding member of Unmudl and a leader in developing innovative, job-aligned education and training pathways.

About the Technician Economy 

The Technician Economy is a national framework supported by Unmudl designed to power workforce deployment at scale—closing the innovation-deployment gap by turning investment into operational capacity and opportunity into lasting economic mobility. 

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SOURCE Central New Mexico Community College (CNM)