Virginia Talent Accelerator Program

The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program is a discretionary incentive available to competitive economic development projects that create direct jobs in the Commonwealth.  Significant job creation and capital investment are required to establish eligibility.  All aspects of eligibility are determined on a case-by-case basis at the discretion of VEDP.  The general eligibility guidelines are as follows:

• Both new to Virginia and existing Virginia company expansion projects are eligible.
• The project must be affiliated with a basic employer, meaning most of the facility’s revenue must be generated outside the Commonwealth.
• The project must be an active and realistic competition between Virginia and another state or country for attracting the project.
• At the appropriate time, public announcement of the project must be coordinated by VEDP and the Governor’s Office.

Each project must meet the following thresholds for job creation. 

• Manufacturing and distribution operations:  at least 25 net new jobs created within the first year of operations
• All other eligible operation types: at least 50 net new jobs created within the first year of operations
• The average annual aggregate wage for the new jobs must be at least equal to the prevailing average annual wage in the locality, excluding fringe benefits.  If the locality is designated as distressed (unemployment or poverty rate above the average statewide rate), the average annual aggregate wage for the new jobs must be at least equal to 85% the locality’s prevailing average annual wage.
• At the discretion of VEDP, jobs may include teleworking positions, held by Virginia residents, who are employees of the recipient company or its affiliates.

Every Virginia Talent Accelerator project begins with an analysis of company processes, job roles, tasks, culture, and existing recruitment/training resources.  All proprietary information will be protected by a non-disclosure agreement. 

The needs analysis is generally done at an existing company location in close collaboration with company operations, human resources, and training leaders, along with their designated subject matter experts.  The goal is to understand a client’s best practices for recruiting and training, then collaboratively identify where the Virginia Talent Accelerator Program can add capacity and expertise to scale a client’s recruiting and training capabilities for a major expansion.  The consensus on how to address each need will be documented in a statement of work. 

Analysis, design and delivery of high-quality recruitment and training services are all included in the comprehensive solutions offered by the program.

Virginia Talent Accelerator Program resources are ready to deploy as soon as an eligible company commits to a Virginia location or expansion. The program team brings a wealth of private sector industry experience and understands the unique demands of new and expanding operations.  All services are designed, developed, and delivered by this in-house team of experts.  All company-specific materials developed during the project become the property of the client.  The program’s focus is to deliver highly customized recruiting and training that shorten the new hire timeline and learning curve, thereby accelerating the start-up of the facility’s new operations.

Can a company qualify for both VJIP training grant funds and Talent Accelerator recruiting and training services on the same project?

No. Most eligible companies will be provided with the option to choose the VEDP talent incentive option that best fits their needs: The Virginia Talent Accelerator Program or the Virginia Jobs Investment Program (VJIP) Grant.

How quickly can the Virginia Talent Accelerator Program team get started and when do the services end?

Our team of experts begins planning the needs analysis the day a company commits to a Virginia location. The scope of work is created as soon as the needs analysis is completed. Design, development, and delivery of recruitment and training solutions is done between the announcement and the start-up. The more the engaged and accessible a company is, the more high-value training can be delivered.

Virginia Talent Accelerator Program services continue until the commitments made in the documented scope of work are fulfilled. The overall project duration will be based on the company hiring plan.

Does the company retain ownership of company specific training materials?

Yes. All company-specific material becomes property of the company and all proprietary information will be protected by a non-disclosure agreement.

Is the training just for new employees or can current employees be trained as well?

The training will be designed for the newly-created positions, which are generally associated with new processes and equipment. We recognize that expanding companies often prefer to assign their best and brightest employees to the new equipment. In that scenario, existing employees can be trained, but only up to the number of new positions that will be created.