Genesys Works Trains Gen Z for Office Basics, AI as Employers Flag Skills Gaps

National nonprofit Genesys Works is expanding an eight-week summer crash course teaching underserved high schoolers workplace etiquette, Excel, digital literacy and AI use before they enter paid corporate internships. CEO Byron V. Garrett says employers want candidates "ready to go to work," not just technically trained. The program served 2,161 teenagers in 2025 and has trained more than 14,000 students since 2002 across nine regional markets, partnering with 205 companies including Accenture, JPMorgan and Mayo Clinic. Students learn resume building, mock interviews, email professionalism and AI fact-checking ahead of senior-year internships paying up to $14,000. Alumni seven or more years out earn an average $67,000 annually, above the $56,153 typical starting salary for comparable recent college graduates, per 2026 Clever data. Genesys reports 73% of surveyed alumni out-earn at least one parent. Garrett cites healthcare, construction and technology as the strongest hiring pockets, with Mayo Clinic's Jacksonville campus doubling its intern cohort.