Hockett oversees Talent Ready Utah, a center legislatively created to represent the voice of industry in developing short-term and long-term workforce development strategies. Talent Ready Utah is industry-facing and focuses on workforce alignment by convening government, industry, and education partners to create and expand workforce training programs, K12 pathways, certificates, apprenticeships, and degrees executed by the state’s higher education institutions and public school system.
Hockett has over 13 years of operations and executive leadership experience in the advanced manufacturing sector. He has served in engineering, plant management, and C-Suite roles, was over Process Engineering & Product Development for a multi-billion dollar Fortune 100 Company, and owned a corporate consulting company specializing in organizational leadership, quality management implementation, lean six sigma, and safety compliance. While in industry, he served as an adjunct instructor for Dixie State, wrote curriculum and developed manufacturing programs for Dixie Tech College, and later served five years as the Executive Vice President of Dixie Tech College before returning to industry to lead a large manufacturing company as COO. Hockett excitedly returned to the public sector in 2021 to pursue his passion for workforce development and statewide impact as he accepted the Director of Talent Ready Utah role at the Governor’s Office of Economic Opportunity.
When not at work, Hockett loves to spend time shanking balls around any golf course, woodworking, home improvement projects, enjoying the family cabin, and spending as much time as possible with his incredible wife and three kids. Hockett is also a proud citizen of the Chickasaw Indian Nation of Southeast Oklahoma.
