When a tech CEO decides to invest time in local education instead of chasing quarterly profits, it tells us something important about where the industry might actually be headed. John Snyder, CEO of Net Friends, just took on a new role that proves some business leaders still believe in building communities, not just balance sheets.
Let's be honest here — when's the last time you heard about a tech CEO doing something that actually benefited their local community without expecting a massive return on investment?
That's what makes this story interesting.
John Snyder, the CEO of Net Friends (a managed IT services company based in Durham, North Carolina), recently got appointed to the Information Technology Advisory Committee at Durham Technical Community College. On the surface, this might sound like just another corporate appointment — the kind of thing that generates a press release nobody reads and then gets forgotten.
But I think there's something genuinely worth talking about here.
Before we dive deeper, let's break down what this actually means. Durham Tech's IT Advisory Committee isn't some rubber-stamp organization, either. These folks have real influence over:
In other words, this committee helps decide whether the next generation of tech workers emerges from school actually prepared to do the job — or if they're walking into employers' offices with outdated knowledge and mismatched expectations.
That's a big deal. And it's exactly the kind of bridge-building between education and industry that we desperately need more of.
Here's what caught my attention: Snyder isn't just showing up to check a box. He's talking about strengthening the small business community in the Triangle (that's the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill area, for those not familiar with North Carolina geography).
Think about what he's saying. Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, but they often struggle to compete for talent against big corporations with bigger paychecks and shinier benefits packages. By helping shape how local students get trained, Snyder is essentially investing in a future workforce that might actually stick around and serve local companies.
That's smart. It's also the kind of long-term thinking that seems increasingly rare in tech.
We talk about the IT skills gap constantly in this industry, and honestly, sometimes it feels like empty chatter. But this appointment actually addresses it in a concrete way.
When business leaders sit on advisory committees, they bring real-world knowledge about:
Students benefit because they're learning relevant material. Employers benefit because the pipeline produces job-ready candidates. It's not revolutionary, but it works — when people actually do it.
For those wondering, Net Friends has been operating for nearly 25 years, providing managed IT services, cybersecurity solutions, and technical staffing across North Carolina and beyond. They've built their reputation serving businesses of various sizes, and they've apparently decided that investing in local education is part of their long-term strategy.
That's refreshing. Too many companies treat community involvement as performative — a logo on a sponsor banner or a tweet on #GivingTuesday. But this feels different. Snyder is literally shaping curriculum that will influence who gets hired in the region for years to come.
Look, I'm not here to heap uncritical praise on any executive. But here's what I'll say: in an industry where we constantly complain about talent shortages, security vulnerabilities, and the disconnect between what schools teach and what jobs require, we should celebrate when someone actually does something about it.
Is this going to solve all our problems? Obviously not.
But it's a step. And in a world where too many tech leaders are busy optimizing for engagement metrics or extracting value from data, maybe stepping up to help train the next generation of technicians isn't nothing.
What do you think? Is community involvement in tech education making a real difference, or is it just window dressing? I'd love to hear your take — drop a comment below.
Tags: ['tech leadership', 'community involvement', 'it education', 'small business', 'tech careers', 'workforce development', 'north carolina', 'managed services', 'cybersecurity careers', 'tech industry']