The Tech Talent Bulletin is a quarterly publication by the Information and Communications Technology Council describing its programs, events, and news for employers, policy-makers and educators. ICTC has many innovative programs, products and services to help ensure a diverse, well-trained workforce. For more information, contact ICTC Vice-President of Talent Innovation, Sandra Saric, at [email protected] .
To follow ICTC President Namir Anani’s conversation on the digital economy:@NamirAnani_ICTC
[accordion] [acc_item title=”Partnership launch first of many exciting announcements to meet every employers HR needs”]
The Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) and the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) have partnered to launch an online portal which will act as a central location for tools, resources and self-assessments for every employers HR needs.
The portal will serve as a hub from which learning resource consumers (i.e. employers, third party consultants, immigrants) can easily preview and access learning content from TRIEC Campus and ICTC as well as other partners.
ICTC is the national not-for-profit organization that is committed to enabling industries to maintain a competitive advantage in a global market and develop Canada’s future skilled and innovative talent.
The Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council (TRIEC) brings leadership from across all sectors together to find ways of better integrating skilled immigrants in the Toronto Region labour market.
They support employers to hire and develop immigrant talent, providing them with practical solutions that will help them build inclusive workplaces. They also provide information and resources to immigrant job seekers, so they can source knowledge and connections that will help them find meaningful employment.
TRIEC and ICTC have worked together on a variety of initiatives and programs over the past 10 years to meet employer supply and demand challenges. Our newest initiative will bring together the strength of both organizations to provide employers with a central online portal to support all their recruitment, integration and retention needs.
A central portal will leverage previous investments into programs similar to the Employer Campus by ensuring long-term viability and promote continuous improvement of learning content, tools and resources rather than reinvention/duplication across the sector.
Other organizations who currently offer their own suite of products and services can benefit by establishing a virtual storefront on the site. This will enable organizations to leverage employer outreach and relationship building across sectors to expand their reach, enhance their learners experience by offering access to a broader catalogue of complementary resources from other organization and promote sustainability of their programs through a variety of revenue streams from the website.
This single entry point will allow employers to access to a wide variety of learning materials promoting cross-cultural effectiveness and workplace inclusion from different sources.[/acc_item]
[acc_item title=”Hiring Immigrants through Express Entry”]
In January 2015, Citizenship and Immigration Canada will launch Express Entry, changing the way that people apply for economic immigration. For prospective immigrants, Express Entry will result in a more user-friendly experience. Those invited to apply for permanent residence will also benefit from faster processing. These changes will also help employers by making it easier to find skilled international candidates for positions when they are unable to find qualified Canadians and permanent residents.
On Wednesday, September 17, ICTC hosted a webinar with Citizenship and Immigration Canada for employers to hear how the new system will work.
With over 300 employers participating from trucking to food services to ICT , it was evident that the new immigration process is a topic of major interest to employers from all sectors and right across Canada. ICTC is committed to bringing employers the experts to address all questions around ensuring you have the best talent possible.[/acc_item]
[acc_item title=”Looking for ICT Talent? We’ve got you Covered!”]
In my role as a Chief Information Officer at a Canadian company, finding the right talent in the ICT sector is real challenge. The skills gap is a reality. We have had tremendous success in hiring foreign trained professionals. They are the hidden gems that can often be overlooked for no good reason. The skill sets are easily transferable, but the key differentiator is the attitude and gratitude for the opportunity. We have a strong stable team that acts together as a single unit to create amazing results. ICTC is exhibiting the leadership to set the example so that Canadian companies can benefit from the tremendous resources that come to our country every year.
– Ted Maulucci, CIO, Tridel
Are you searching for the right talent to close your resource gap? Looking for skilled ICT talent to consolidate your diverse team?
The digital economy is growing quickly and ICTC’s research indicates that digital platforms alone will account for the creation of an estimated 18,000 to 22,000 new jobs by 2018. You are likely experiencing resource shortages in emerging ICT roles that now demand a mix of technical, business and soft skills experience and are frustrated with the usual recruitment channels
Well look no further, ICTC’s Talent Initiatives Programs offer you a unique resource channel to connect with skilled and talented international ICT professionals post and pre-arrival. ICTC is a leader in developing workforce solutions, enabling Canadian businesses to access the right talent with the right skills needed for them to drive innovation and productivity in an increasingly competitive environment.
We are committed to providing solutions to enable your recruitment strategy and address your skills challenges. One of these unique workforce solutions is ICTC’s Bridging Programs. Consider us your one-stop shop to recruiting, hiring and retaining talented ICT professionals!
Through our programs, newcomer ICT professionals are prepared for working in Canada and are attuned to what Canadian employers are looking for. They have been screened, completed a highly intensive training program and prepared to integrate into your workplace with insights on Canadian workplace culture and communication, as well as recent Canadian business networking and volunteer experience. You will find our ICT talent:
- Have international ICT work experience, skills and education
- Ready to join your team, prepared to work and make a productive contribution to your team, organization and community!
We are your – Innovative Connection to Talented Candidates! Our programs help you to cost-effectively recruit, hire and retain candidates to meet your organization’s talent needs by:
- Providing access to qualified candidates
- Reducing the amount of time spent on pre-screening potential applicants
- Increasing your edge in the race for qualified talent
- Offering pre and post-employment support
We’ll work to match your opportunity with one of our talented candidates!
Contact Maureen Ford at [email protected] to learn how you can access and leverage ICTC’s Bridging Programs as a resource channel partner or for more information on ICTC and how you can become an ICTC partner![/acc_item]
[acc_item title=”Early successes in advancing women in Canada’s digital workforce”]
With women constituting 24% of the Canadian ICT workforce according to ICTC’s research there is a clear opportunity to engage and advance more women in current and emerging technology sectors. This can be accomplished by focusing efforts on attraction, integration, retention and promotion of women in the Canadian ICT industry and onto corporate boards and in C-Suite positions.
The Women in Technology (WIT): Retention and Advancement of Women in the Digital Economy Initiative is addressing this above call to action. Status of Women Canada (SWC) is funding the 36 month projects (2013/2014 to 2016/2017) in collaborating with ICTC.
The initiative aims to promote equality for women and their full participation in the economic, social, and democratic life of Canada. More specifically, these projects will provide women the opportunity to contribute to – and advance – the Canadian digital economy.
Each active project recently completed their first year evaluations and the preliminary results appear positive! For a brief description of the projects below click here.
- Society for Canadian Women in Science and Technology (SCWIST) — Vancouver, British Columbia
- Calgary Council for Advanced Technology (CCAT) — Calgary, Alberta
- Communitech Corporation (Communitech) — Waterloo, Ontario
- Information Technology Association of Prince Edward Island (ITAP) — Charlottetown , Prince Edward Island
- Digital Nova Scotia (DNS) — Dartmouth, Nova Scotia
- TECHNOCompetences (TECHNOCompetences) — Montréal, Quebec
As we move into year two of this three year project ICTC will widely disseminate key findings from these projects through various communications channels and partner network.
Are you interested in supporting women in our digital economy? If you would like to know more about the initiative or join in supporting the dissemination of the key findings, please feel free to contact us!
Contact:
Email: [email protected]
Website: www.ictc-ctic.ca[/acc_item]
[acc_item title=”Creating new pathways to employment- ICTC’s Focus on Youth Careers program”]
Just four weeks left before our first intake for the Focus on Youth Careers pilot program, and we are actively recruiting participants, revising curriculum, and preparing for the program. It is an exciting time for all of us at ICTC and Willis College.
Creating opportunity for Canada’s young adults to enter the labour market is exciting work, and there is so much work to be done. Youth, 15 – 24 yrs old, in Canada face an unemployment rate of 13.3% – and that does not include those who are no longer looking for work – and, according to a BMO Student Survey, they are graduating from university and college with an average of $26,300 in student loan debt. These two factors make the decision to choose a new path to employment even more difficult for young people. Creating innovative and new ways to help educated youth get employed is a challenge that we should undertake, and in this context the “we” includes companies, governments, service agencies, and public and private post-secondary institutions. Here at ICTC that path to employment is through information and communications technology skills. We know that if you are a young individual with ICT skills in demand you are likely to gain employment. ICTC delivers innovative programs including: the Focus on IT (FIT) curriculum that is taught at 200 secondary schools across Canada, our Integrated Work Experience Strategy (IWES) bridging program for Internationally Educated Professionals (IEPs) that connects qualified immigrants to employment, our CareerConnect program that offers companies a wage subsidy to hire recent ICT graduates, and now the Focus on Youth Careers pilot program for young adults. ICTC also knows that Canadian employers that hire Information and Communication Technology (ICT) workers continue to experience frustration when it comes to finding talent with the up-to-date skills that they need. An unemployment rate of 2.9% (August 2014 Snapshot, ICTC) for Canada’s ICT occupations affirms the employer’s argument, that there is not enough skilled supply to meet their demand. ICTC built the Focus on Youth Careers pilot program to bridge these two needs.
The Focus on Youth Careers pilot program takes ICTC’s model of delivering the “package” of skills – job readiness, technical skills, and practical experience – and condenses it into a 28 week program (plus a 12 week work placement) for the October intake, and a 14 week program (plus a 12 week work placement) for the May 2015 intake. The October intake is being offered to university or college graduates from any discipline, except ICT. ICTC strongly believes that having domain knowledge in areas such as commerce, business, HR management, or health information coupled with Java programming will create employable candidates that can offer companies immediate and tangible value. The May 2014 intake of the program is being offered to post-secondary graduates with an ICT education and or experience. This version of the program is focused on reskilling participants with Java programming to increase their employ-ability.
This pilot program has already provided learning opportunities for ICTC and we are actively looking to expand and adapt the program to meet the market needs.
The recruitment of participants for the Focus on Youth Careers program is ongoing and there are still a few positions available for the October 2014 intake. More information about the Focus on Youth Careers program and an application for the program can be found at www.ictc-ctic.ca/?page_id=20590 .
ICTC is also recruiting companies to offer work placements for the Focus on Youth Careers participants. Work placements must be a minimum of 12 weeks and must offer participants the opportunity to apply their Java skills. Work placements will begin in May 2015.
Contact for more information:
Lee Jacobs, Program Manager,
at 613-237-8551 ext. 149
or
[email protected] [/acc_item]
[acc_item title=”The Search for Global Talent”]
According to a survey conducted by Hays Canada, a number of Canadian technology companies are facing a talent shortage for 2014. The availability of skilled workers are shrinking. Paul Darby, director of the Conference Board estimates a shortfall of 3 million skilled workers by the year 2020. With the ageing population and demographic changes, performance and productivity will be adversely impacted.
In the ever growing war for talent, employers now have to address long-term misconceptions and perceived risks of hiring internationally educated professionals. Hiring New Canadians is not charity, its smart business.
Starting in 2015 Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) will roll out its application management program “Express Entry” which will provide employers direct access to candidates and aims to provide flexibility and decrees processing time. As well ICTC continues to collaborate with academia, government and Industry partners addressing policies that support newcomer integration and closing the talent gap. Newcomers help grow the overall Canadian economy and bring valuable assets to organizations with an understanding and skill worth their weight in gold.
Benefits of Hiring an Internationally Educated Professional:
- Diversity of Knowledge
- Understanding of Global Market place
- Possess In demand skill-set
- Ability to compete regionally, nationally, globally
- Multinational experience
If you would like more information on engaging with Internationally Educated Professionals ready for work in Canada contact Akanni Frederick at[email protected][/acc_item] [acc_item title=”The Ottawa Job Match Network (OJMN)”]
In partnership with the YMCA-YWCA and OCISO – focuses on helping employers access qualified internationally trained candidates as well as providing post-hiring support for managers and employees. OJMN is currently delivering intensive 6-day workshop to the top thirty clients in four areas:
• Business Administration/Management
• Applied Sciences
• Social Sciences, and
• Public Administration.
Each workshop culminates in an “Employer Event” on the last two days. ICTC was pleased to participate as both a panelist and a coach in the Applied Sciences Employer Event on September 23 & 24. Stephanie Wilson, Manager of Employer Relations presented on the technology labour market and programs to help companies with their talent acquisition and management challenges (desired competencies, recruitment methods, etc.).
Digital Adoption Compass:
This fall 2014, ICTC in collaboration with its partners CATAAlliance and the CIO Association of Canada, will be launching a Digital Adoption Compass (DAC) in order to assist SMEs fast track their adoption of technology to boost their productivity and performance. DAC will be a web enabled interactive hub designed as a one-stop information-rich portal with targeted and easy to use information and learning tools. The hub will also provide a means to open up avenues of collaboration with other members of the community.
Through this hub, the Digital Adoption Campaign will feature select leading technology organizations. Leveraging their expertise through case studies, video interviews, and webinars, industry leaders will demonstrate the value of technology to business innovation and growth. The aim is to fast track digital adoption in Canada and enhance the productivity and innovation factor.
Digital Advantage:
In the Learning Resources and tools section of the Digital Compass, ICTC has developed the Digital Advantage tool for business leaders to gain rapid understanding of the value of emerging technologies (for example: cloud, mobile and apps, social media, and cybersecurity) in advancing their business objectives. Through the Digital Advantage tool, business leaders will better plan, leverage and advise their organizations for greater innovation, productivity and success in today’s rapidly-changing, technology-enabled workplace.
LMI Portal:
ICTC’s new LMI portal will provide Canadians seeking new or upgraded employment with access to a dynamic interactive map that describes job trends in ICT at the national, regional, provincial. It will also provide census metropolitan area levels, LMI forecasts, and real-time job postings on the Working in Canada portal. It will be connected to a self-assessment tool and training programs at universities and public and private career colleges.
This unique tool and dataset will be leveraged by ICTC in all of its research and program offerings, including studies describing the impacts on the Canadian economy of emerging technologies, as well as programs that address under and unemployment among youth, Aboriginal youth, internationally educated professionals, and women.
For more information on the LMI Portal contact:
Meenakshi Gupta
Senior Director, Policy and Research
[email protected]
LMI Portal is funded by the Government of Canada’s Sectoral Initiatives Program.[/acc_item]
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