Happy new year and greetings as we begin 2019. This is a year to celebrate many successes and to look forward to growth and further important changes.
For Tourism HR Canada, 2018 was a year of tremendous progress and increased organizational strength. We celebrated our 25th anniversary and wrapped up the Strategic Plan that was introduced three years ago—one that focused on organizational stability, increased flexibility and responsiveness, secured government funding, further diversified revenue strategies, invested in our people, and reinvented solutions to enable us to deliver on our mandate.
It’s been a busy three years that paid off: we achieved nearly all our priorities and further established ourselves as essential to meeting the needs of our stakeholders. Of note was the securing of federal funds for two of our signature projects: Destination Employment and the Future Skills Framework. We also gained the opportunity to work for several new clients, whose projects are essential to shaping the future of their industries. We were very active at the national level on various policy fronts with immigration, labour, tourism research, and transportation. Our Board elected a new Chairperson and sanctioned a new three-year strategic plan.
And so we welcome in the new year with the launch of our 2019-2021 Strategic Plan.
This key publication details how Tourism HR Canada will continue to focus on building a resilient and innovative tourism labour market. It maps out how we will make progress on five strategic priorities, all aimed at addressing two fundamental concerns: filling 100,000s of job vacancies and increasing skills and capacity to ensure individuals and businesses can thrive.
Based on extensive consultation with tourism stakeholders and in response to the Government of Canada’s goal to significantly increase international visitation, these priorities are:
- Leading comprehensive labour market research and analysis
- Forecasting future skills to foster growth and innovation
- Positioning tourism as a destination for employment
- Innovating skills development to optimize the workforce
- Making strategic investments to ensure organizational strength
Looking forward, we will continue to increase our flexibility and responsiveness, further diversify our strategies, and invest in our people.
As our new strategic plan notes: “Tourism HR Canada has a stronger, more cohesive, and more proactive voice in national public policy. The past few years have also focused on innovation and transformation to ensure the organization can better demonstrate impact, remain financially stable, and offer more customized services.”
This is a vibrant organization with an important mandate. Thank you for sharing in and supporting our work. We anticipate another successful year ahead, and our team looks forward to accomplishing it with the same enthusiasm and commitment.
I encourage you to review the new strategic plan, as it will shape the years to come.
With very best wishes,
Philip Mondor
President and CEO, Tourism HR Canada