The Association of Service Providers for Employability and Career Training (ASPECT BC) partnered with Ethos Career Management Group to conduct a research project.  

Our Competency of Career Development Practitioners for Virtual Services project is funded by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre and undertakes a needs assessment of career practitioners and their capacity to offer online services during the pandemic. Career development professionals (practitioners) have responded by transitioning their in-person services to virtual delivery. Although some have thrived in this new virtual environment, some have struggled and may lack adequate competencies to provide services.

Our research is made up of an online survey to determine competencies needed for virtual services and a series of focus group discussions addressing the needs of those underrepresented in the workforce, and those who may have barriers to accessing virtual services.

Thank you to everyone who participated in helping us collect the evidence needed to support the future of the employment services sector.

Click here to download the final report.

Acknowledgements

Thank you to Dr. Roberta Borgen (Neault) and Cassie Taylor of Life Strategies Ltd. for being academic leads on this project. Thank you to Deborah Bromley, Martin Beach, Chris Oaten, and the tech development team at ETHOS Career Management Group Ltd. for converting the results of the research into a virtual learning pathway.

Thank you to the 243 Career Development Practitioners who volunteered their time to plan the survey, respond to the survey, participate in the focus groups, test the learning intervention, and suggest recommendations. Without your expertise, this research project would not be possible.

Thank you to the Future Skills Centre funded by the Government of Canada for investing in this project and making it possible. The Future Skills Centre (FSC) is a forward-thinking centre for research and collaboration dedicated to preparing Canadians for employment success. We believe Canadians should feel confident about the skills they have to succeed in a changing workforce. As a pan-Canadian community, we are collaborating to rigorously identify, test, measure, and share innovative approaches to assessing and developing the skills Canadians need to thrive in the days and years ahead. The Future Skills Centre was founded by a consortium whose members are Toronto Metropolitan University, Blueprint, and The Conference Board of Canada, and is funded by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Program.

The Competency of Career Development Practitioners for Virtual Services project is funded by the Government of Canada's Future Skills Centre.

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Le Centre des Compétences futures est un centre de recherche et de collaboration avant-gardiste qui se voue à préparer les Canadiennes et les Canadiens pour qu’ils aient du succès en emploi et qu’ils satisfassent aux besoins émergents en talents des employeurs. En qualité de communauté pancanadienne, le CCF réunit des experts et des organismes de différents secteurs afin de déterminer, d’évaluer et d’échanger de façon rigoureuse des approches novatrices au développement des compétences nécessaires pour favoriser la prospérité et l’inclusion. Le CCF participe directement à l’innovation grâce à des investissements dans des projets pilotes et de la recherche universitaire sur l’avenir du travail et les compétences au Canada. Le Centre des Compétences futures – Future Skills Centre est financé par le gouvernement du Canada dans le cadre du programme Compétences futures.

 Services virtuels pour les professionnels du développement de carrière est financé par le programme Compétences Futures du Gouvernment du Canada.