Ruchir Shah didn’t set out to build an education company. Shah, who has an engineering degree from Rice University and an MBA from Stanford, was running a training business in oil and gas when COVID hit and thousands of capable workers lost their jobs overnight. At the same time, HVAC and plumbing contractors kept telling him they couldn’t find help. The disconnect struck him as absurd: the work existed, the people existed, but there was no real bridge between them.

That frustration led to SkillCat, an online training platform that now serves the next generation of skilled trades people across HVAC, plumbing, electrical and appliance repair.

SkillCat uses simulation-based training to teach before students ever step into the field. Shah is clear about what simulation can and can’t do, and he’s building a national network of contractor partnerships to provide hands-on weekend training and camps that complement the online curriculum.

He also founded the GRIT Foundation to introduce young people to trade careers early, particularly those who don’t see it as an option based on their zip code or income.

PHCPPros: First off, tell us about yourself and how you ended up founding SkillCat.

Shah: I didn’t plan to build an edtech company. It came from watching people get stuck.

Before SkillCat I ran a training business in oil and gas. When COVID hit, thousands of really capable workers lost their jobs almost overnight. At the same time HVAC and plumbing companies were telling me they couldn’t find help. That gap made no sense to me.

The work existed. The people existed. But there was no real bridge between the two.

Many trade schools were expensive, slow and built around classrooms instead of real life. Really good ones absolutely crushed it, but, if you didn’t have a lot of money or the right connections, it was hard to even get started.

So we tried to build the trade school system America never really put together. Not just videos, but simulation-based training that teaches how systems actually work and how techs think. Coupled with employer partnerships to help students get hands-on experience. 

We became one of the first platforms approved for fully online EPA certification and expanded from there into plumbing, electrical, facilities, and appliance repair.

Today hundreds of thousands of people have used SkillCat, from high school kids to laid-off workers trying to reset their lives. That’s what keeps me in it.

PHCPPros: SkillCat was built to expand access to the trades. From your perspective, what are the most persistent barriers preventing people from entering skilled trades careers today?

Shah: It’s not that people don’t want to work. It’s that the path isn’t clear.

Most people don’t know what to learn first or which credentials actually matter. Contractors want techs who show up ready and safety-minded, but new entrants don’t have a good way to prove that.

Cost and flexibility are another huge problem. Adults can’t just stop working for a year and go into debt to retrain. If training doesn’t fit around real life, people won’t use it.

PHCPPros: Many prospective tradespeople struggle to visualize what a career really looks like. How does SkillCat’s simulation-based curriculum help people determine which trade is the best fit?

Shah: Most people choose a trade with almost no real exposure to what the job feels like.

Simulation lets them see how systems behave, how troubleshooting actually works, and how techs think before they commit their time and money. Some realize they love HVAC diagnostics. Others discover plumbing or electrical fits them better. That clarity early saves a lot of pain later.

PHCPPros: The trades are inherently tactile. How do you determine which skills can be effectively taught through virtual simulation, and which require hands-on instruction?

Shah: We don’t think simulation replaces the field. It prepares you for it.

You can teach system logic, safety thinking, diagnostics, and decision-making really well online. But actually installing a toilet or joining pipe, that only comes from doing it.

The goal is to have people show up already understanding what they’re looking at, so in-person time is spent on the physical skills that truly need repetition.

PHCPPros: You mentioned the goal of building a national network of contractors to host camps and weekend hands-on training. What would an ideal contractor partnership look like, and how will those partners benefit?

Shah: It’s practical. Contractors host weekend sessions, camps or supervised practice that lines up with what people are learning on SkillCat.

They get access to learners who already understand systems and safety, not people starting from zero. That shortens onboarding and builds a real pipeline instead of constantly scrambling to hire.

PHCPPros: Many of the next generation tradespeople are mid-career adults. What have you learned about helping experienced workers translate their skills into the skilled trades?

Shah: Most career switchers aren’t beginners. They just don’t know how to talk about what they bring.

Work ethic, customer communication, discipline, problem-solving. Those matter in this industry, but they’re often invisible on a resume. We help people surface that experience and add job-relevant training so they can show up useful right away.

A lot of career switchers also have deep hands-on experience that is usually hidden on their resume. SkillCat’s portfolio builder helps create visual portfolios that career switchers can use to show hiring managers they actually do have the skills, even if their resume doesn’t show it.

PHCPPros: What have been the most surprising or impactful lessons learned from tradespeople using the SkillCat platform?

Shah: How much pride people take in this work.

It’s not just about the money and the opportunity. It’s about actually accomplishing meaningful things every single day. 

A lot of them aren’t chasing a job. They want stability, respect, and a way to take care of their families. When training respects that, people don’t just log in. They commit.

PHCPPros: Looking ahead, what changes are necessary within traditional apprenticeships, vocational schools and contractor training programs to better align with workforce realities of the next decade?

Shah: Training shouldn’t be something you do only before your career starts.

It should run alongside the job. Modular learning that people can apply immediately in the field, not theory that sits on a shelf for a year. See it at work, practice it in training, understand why it works. That loop builds real confidence.

SkillCat has a Department of Labor-approved apprenticeship program with this exact goal: Use SkillCat alongside hands-on training to gain the fastest, best path into a trades career.

PHCPPros: Tell us more about the Grit Foundation and how it complements the approach taken by SkillCat.

Shah: GRIT is about lighting the spark early, especially for kids who don’t see the trades as an option.

Through camps and community programs, it shows people what these careers really are. SkillCat builds the pathway. GRIT helps people find the door. Together the goal is simple. Make sure opportunity isn’t limited by zip code, income or who you know.