Tourism HR Canada is excited to collaborate with the Outdoor Council of Canada (OCC) on Project Elevation, an initiative to increase the workforce resiliency of the outdoor industry in Alberta by enhancing the professionalism, skills, and standards of the outdoor workforce.
Alberta is known internationally for its outdoor experiences. Outdoor activities drive a significant portion of tourism in Alberta, bringing job creation and economic benefits to outdoor tourism businesses and other industries in the province. The industry was significantly disrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic and has faced a slow recovery, marked by a shortfall of workers. Prioritizing re-employment is essential to the recovery of the province’s visitor economy.
Thanks to funding from the Government of Alberta’s Workforce Strategies Grant, the three-year Project Elevation will focus on training, reskilling, and upskilling to help the outdoor industry recover from the lingering effects of the pandemic and ensure it remains globally competitive and resilient.
The outdoor industry, like the tourism sector as a whole, comprises a diverse workforce with skills covering the entire spectrum, from entry-to-practice to highly skilled professions such as mountain guides, whitewater rafting guides, and more. Skills erosion and the need for product growth mean that training in fundamental business skills is in high demand, especially for tourism products offered in rural areas, nature-based experiences, and Indigenous tourism.
Project Elevation will leverage Tourism HR Canada’s national Tourism Competency Framework—a comprehensive library of competencies covering the broad range of skills associated with Canadian tourism jobs. Through industry consultation, OCC and Tourism HR Canada will identify existing outdoor tourism competencies and best practices and integrate them into the framework.
Industry members, from employers to job seekers to educators and beyond, will then be able to make use of the robust selection of tools within the framework’s hosting platform, the Workforce Management Engine, to create occupational profiles, job descriptions, skills checklists, and other resources. This re-alignment of industry practices will allow businesses to offer high-quality experiences, reduce the likelihood and severity of accidents, protect the natural environment, and promote effective business management.
Further, this ground-breaking, forward-looking model will inform workforce and labour adjustments or needs, such as:
- Improving the quality of education and training provisions
- Informing curriculum content for better alignment with ongoing market demands/needs
- Providing a system for individuals to compare credentials or qualifications acquired in Alberta, Canada, or internationally with skill requirements for specific occupations
- Identifying routes of learning and career paths
- Assisting governments and employers with making more accurate projections on skills needs
To learn more about Project Elevation and how to get involved, visit the OCC website.
To learn more about the Tourism Competency Framework, and sign up for a free account, visit the Workforce Management Engine webpage.