The value of military veterans extends well beyond our communities; as mission-driven leaders, they're critical to employers like Cisco in today's digital economy. And this week, as we celebrate the 100^thAnniversary of Armistice Day and Veterans Day, it is an especially important time to recognize their contributions while serving in the military and as part of the civilian workforce.

As the pace of technology innovation accelerates and the world becomes more connected, opportunities for veterans are greater than ever before. We are uniquely positioned to connect them with IT skills education, as well as career opportunities within our ecosystem of partners. Like many of our partners, we proudly support veterans to ensure they find a pathway to meaningful careers that leverage their unique capabilities.

Through our Veterans Program, focused specifically on IT skills education and employment, we are helping thousands of veterans transition to civilian careers each year. No program has been more impactful in preparing veterans for the workforce than the Cisco Networking Academy, which since 1997 has helped more than 87,000 military personnel on 31 installations advance their tech skills.

At this week's Cisco Partner Summit in Las Vegas, Nevada, a select group of military veterans are putting their technology and teamwork skills to work as part of the "Dream Team," working side-by-side with engineers to set up and maintain the event's network for several thousand attendees. It's these military veterans who represent the "bridge to possible" and the workforce of the future.

Today, as part of our ongoing efforts to connect and empower military veterans in the IT and networking field, we are excited to announce the expansion of our Talent Bridge Matching Engine, which has already connected more than 8,000 qualified candidates from our Cisco Networking Academy program to careers with our channel partners worldwide.

Building on the success of this platform, and adding machine learning capabilities powered by Cisco DevNet to help translate military roles to civilian jobs, we bring you Talent Bridge for Veterans:

Talent Bridge for Veterans will enable qualified veterans from around the globe to match their education, skills, and certification requirements to open job opportunities across our partner ecosystem while enabling employers to identify top veteran talent that matches their talent needs.

If you'd like to learn more about Talent Bridge for Veterans, please visit cs.co/talentbridge4vets.