Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar’s US Army job: Finding coders the Army doesn’t know it has
Palantir CTO Shyam Sankar is leveraging his role in the US Army Reserve to help identify and better utilize soldiers with coding skills. As part of the newly formed Detachment 201, Sankar and other tech executives are working to modernize the military's approach to human resources and talent management.
Why it matters
The initiative represents a significant effort to bridge the gap between private-sector tech expertise and military operational needs to improve institutional efficiency.
Palantir chief technology officer Shyam Sankar has a second job in the US Army Reserve, and it has little to do with weapons or battlefield software. Speaking to CBS News on Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan, Sankar said his main role as a lieutenant colonel is helping the Army find soldiers who can code, and then making sure that talent is put to proper use.Sankar works with the Army’s G-1, the department that handles personnel and human resources. The problem he described is structural. The Army has skilled programmers in its ranks, but its career system was built for an industrial-era military, a model Sankar likened to Napoleonic codes.
Get smarter about the news
Sign up free for a feed built around what you actually care about, Dive Deeper research on any story, and the full text of every article.
Create free accountAlready have an account? Sign in