Employers in the Greater Moncton region report challenges in finding and cultivating skilled workers, a situation that may worsen in the face of anticipated retirements and slowing population growth. Young people may fill this employment gap if they are aware of the career opportunities available in the region.To address this issue, the 3+ Economic Development Corporation (now named the Southeast Regional Service Commission) initiated a project using virtual workplace tours to introduce high school students to potential careers in high-priority sectors.

There is growing demand for workers with advanced digital skills. To address this demand, Georgian College aimed to modernize itself. Guided by a Digital Transformation Strategy, this project involved integrating campus-wide extended reality (XR) technologies to enhance teaching and learning, remote collaboration and tools for daily work.

This research project, led by Accelerate Her Future, centres the voices of Indigenous, Black and racialized women to explore how systemic inequities shape career development and advancement experiences of Indigenous, Black and racialized women.

FAST helps participants build job readiness, navigate Canadian workplace culture and connect with credentialing resources. The program features six sectoral streams ranging from information technology (IT) to seniors care.

The COVID-19 pandemic and its series of lockdowns disproportionately impacted the service industry and many young women who work in this sector. This project provided online workshops and coaching to help young women in the service industry develop transferable social-emotional skills in leadership and confidence, communications, business literacy, job interviewing and networking to support their capacity to undertake career changes. 

In Canada’s North, entrepreneurship is important for local job creation and economic diversification. Because many entrepreneurs are Indigenous, their businesses also bring direct economic benefits to their communities. To support entrepreneurship, strong networks and access to training, mentorship and other supports are essential.

The Retail Entrepreneurship Acceleration Program (REAP) + iLaunchHERproduct, led by de Sedulous Women Leaders and funded by the Future Skills Centre, is a single program with two components that was designed to address the systemic barriers faced by Black, racialized and immigrant women entrepreneurs in retail.

This project was designed to address two key issues related to training programs that address skills gaps in manufacturing—employer underinvestment and low participation. The Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC), in partnership with Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC), piloted an outcomes-based “pay-for-performance” model, which reimbursed employers if they successfully supported the delivery of EMC’s Manufacturing Essentials Certification soft skills training program and met key performance targets.

Indigenous and Northern entrepreneurship and businesses play a crucial role in bolstering local economies by supporting economic diversification, job creation and community development.