As we embark on a new year and an expanded chapter of ICTC’s journey, I want to take a moment to reflect on last year’s achievements and the opportunities that lie ahead in 2023.  Last year, the global economy started on a positive note before plunging into a sea of uncertainties that tested its resolve. Rising inflation, persistent supply chain constraints, continued geopolitical conflicts, and the reverberating impact of climate change all weighed heavily on Canada’s economic recovery. While the overall job market remained strong, lingering economic conditions and inflationary pressures ..read more

By Mansharn Toor During the pandemic, cities across Canada paused many of their existing smart infrastructure projects. Along with larger investments in health and wellbeing, new municipal “smart” projects often prioritized diversity, equity, and inclusion along with initiatives to promote sustainability. Public consultations conducted by the Information and Communications Tech Council (ICTC) in 14 smart cities across Canada also highlighted diversity, inclusion, and environmental sustainability as a priority across many jurisdictions. Making Space for Equity-Deserving Tech Talent Canada’s sma ..read more

Ottawa, September 28, 2022—Smart city initiatives have multiplied across Canada and their success ultimately depends on attracting and retaining qualified talent with the right technical and human skills to navigate these complex projects. A new three-report series wraps up ICTC’s multi-year project on smart cities. Collectively, the reports explore developments, trends, and best practices to guide smart city projects. Notably, the reports detail the roles and technical and human skills needed by these projects, as well as the sought-after academic backgrounds and education programs that can l ..read more

In this era of rapid disruption, the digital economy is key.  Emerging economies, geopolitical inflections, health risks, cyber threats, and changing employment prospects are now top of mind. Against this backdrop are digital technologies that are accelerating innovation and transforming industries faster than economies can adjust.  ICTC continues to inspire a forward-looking digital agenda for Canada through offerings of research, policy guidance, workforce development, and enterprise solutions. Our work helps ensure that Canada’s digital transformation is prosperous, sustainable, a ..read more

Rob Davidson, Director of Data Science here at the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC), will be delivering a case study session at the 3rd Annual Big Data & Analytics West Summit live from Vancouver’s Pinnacle Hotel Harbourfront on November 9 & 10. Rob’s session will focus on NLP and specifically, building data pipelines. This presentation will close out the two-day conference which will play host to over 300 Big Data specialists from some of the biggest brands in the North American West. Our very own Director of Data Science will be guiding the data executive ..read more

Ottawa, September 12, 2022—Canadian retailers are increasingly hiring for digital-savvy jobs such as UX/UI designers, data analysts, software developers, and digital marketers as intelligent retail continues to accelerate post-COVID.  In 2021, retail comprised 5.2% of the Canadian economy, making it one of the 10 largest sectors. Digitization in retail has been ongoing for a decade, but the pandemic exponentially accelerated this trend. Digital roles in retail are seen as critical, whereas more traditional brick-and-mortar roles face constrained opportunities. Canadian retail is at a cros ..read more

By: Carleigh Reynolds  Carleigh Reynolds is part of ICTC’s WIL e-learning team. She sat down with course co-developers Sashie Steenstra and Craig Murrell to discuss ICTC’s new course, Agile Industry Mindset (AIM). This Q&A dives into what is essential about so-called “soft skills” and ICTC’s innovative approach to teaching them.  Soft skills—also referred to as people skills, human skills, or life skills—can help workers and organizations build stronger relationships, inspire ideation, problem solve, empower collaboration, and promote a healthier workplace.   “The shelf ..read more

Your organization is growing. You’ve realized that you need another team member to help balance the increased workload, and you have all the approvals you need to start the hiring process. Great! Now you need to put up a job post, and the applicants will begin rolling in…right? While writing a job description may sound like a simple task, many people don’t realize that it’s often the first line of communication between your organization and prospective employees. Unfortunately, this underestimation can lead to lacklustre descriptions, vague outlines of responsibilities and, overall, the wrong ..read more

Ottawa, August 12, 2022—Today, the Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) announced its Jump-Starting Digital Careers Initiative program to improve job preparedness for youth in an increasingly digital-led economy and recovery.  Jump-Starting Digital Careers is part of the federal government’s CanCode 3.0 program. It continues the success and momentum of ICTC’s previous CanCode initiatives for students and teachers. This new initiative will include personalized industry coaching and mentoring, CyberDays, and introduce an innovative virtual lifelong learning platform.&nbs ..read more

By Marc Lijour Finally, the world is unfrozen, and big conferences are back in town! People are flocking to Toronto to experience Canada Crypto Week this Monday, August 8, 2022.   To mark the event, I will be sharing important research insights from ICTC and  highlighting our key creative programs that address some of the most pressing challenges in crypto/Web3—for example, how to attract diverse talent to this burgeoning industry.   You can find me at the Blockchain Futurist Conference this week! Welcome to Canada!  For those who have just landed in Toronto ..read more