Business View Magazine - July 2023

215 BUSINESS VIEW MAGAZINE VOLUME 10, ISSUE 7 THE FI BER OPT ICS ASSOCIAT ION FOA was truly ahead of its time. The organization was founded in 1995 by a dozen prominent fiber optics trainers and leaders from the fiber optic industry, education, and government. They wanted to create a professional organization for fiber optics with the goal of building a competent workforce needed by the fiber optic industry. This is as important in 2023 as it was in 1995 because serious errors can occur when professionals in the fiber optics field tackle projects they are not professionally trained for. Then and now, hiring in the fiber optics field can be a challenge because it requires specialized knowledge that cannot be truly gained without proper education. That effort to build an educated workforce took hold at the university and technical school levels in the 1990s, with early support for the FOA provided by many notable experts, such as the head trainer of the U.S. Air Force and the head of standards for the U.S. Navy. Even more so, the FOA was also created as a source of independent certification to be used by the industry. It has grown to now being involved in numerous activities to educate the world about fiber optics and certify the workers who design, build and operate its fiber optic networks. The FOA has essentially created a knowledge base with a worldwide network of experts to create an extensive, noncommercial, reliable knowledge base that is shared with all those working in the field. According to FOA President Jim Hayes, who is also one of the founders, the FOA partners with institutions and organizations globally to conduct