As a founding member of the Twin Cities board, Allison brings a wealth of leadership experience and passion for Genesys Works’ mission to her role as executive director.
TWIN CITIES, MN (December 8, 2020)– Today, Genesys Works, a national youth workforce development program for promising high school students and diverse talent pipeline for top U.S. employers, announced Allison Barmann as executive director of its Twin Cities program, effective January 11.
Since 2008, Genesys Works has partnered with Twin Cities companies to provide meaningful work opportunities to thousands of talented high school students, most of whom are first-generation American, first-time college goers and identify as students of color, minority groups that have been historically marginalized and underrepresented in the workplace. As executive director of the Twin Cities program, Barmann will lead regional strategy and operations, while actively collaborating with corporate and community leaders to build the Twin Cities’ future workforce.
“We are thrilled to have a leader of Allison’s caliber leading the next phase of growth and impact for Genesys Works Twin Cities,” said board chair, Matt Neale. “Allison’s deep experience in both the corporate and nonprofit sectors, combined with her strong strategic and analytic skills, makes her well-positioned to elevate and lead the Twin Cities program. As a respected leader in the Twin Cities community, she will be an influential advocate for the students we serve.”
Prior to joining Genesys Works, Barmann served as the vice president, Strategy & Learning at the Bush Foundation. While there, she championed and supported many efforts related to education, social business and diversity, equity and inclusion, including a strategy to serve the Native Nations in the region, the creation of a vendor diversity policy as well as an impact investing strategy.
“I am honored to join Genesys Works, a program which has been instrumental in expanding opportunities and economic prosperity for high school students in the Twin Cities community,” said Barmann. “Genesys Works provides pathways for students to achieve upward economic mobility, while building the tech talent pipeline companies need for continued success. I look forward to working with our business, philanthropic and education communities to move this important work forward.”
Prior to joining the Bush Foundation, Allison was a strategy consultant with McKinsey & Company and directed the Itasca Project, an alliance of CEOs and civic leaders addressing economic competitiveness in the Minneapolis-St. Paul metro area. She also previously worked at a technology start-up in San Francisco and as a Plant Engineer at 3M. She earned her MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and her Bachelor of Science in Mechanical Engineering from MIT. Allison currently serves on the Boards of Emerging Prairie and BETA.mn.
About Genesys Works
Genesys Works provides pathways to career success for high school students in underserved communities through skills training, meaningful work experiences, and impactful relationships. Our program consists of 8 weeks of technical and professional skills training, a paid year-long corporate internship, college and career coaching, and alumni support to and through college. Our goal is to move more students out of poverty and into professional careers, creating a more productive and diverse workforce in the process. Since its founding in 2002, Genesys Works has grown to serve thousands of students annually in Houston, Chicago, Minneapolis/St. Paul, the San Francisco Bay Area, Washington’s National Capital Region and New York. To learn more, visit genesysworks.org.
