Briefing for the Alberta Teachers' Association Strategic Planning Committee (March 9th) based on the work of the Advisory Council on Economic Growth (Canada) and the work of Dominic Barton, Managing Partner, McKinsey

1. CANADAS FUTURE
SOME OBSERVATIONS FROM THE ADVISORY COUNCIL ON ECONOMIC GROWTH / DOMINIC BARTON

2. FIVE MAJOR CHANGES COMING…
 Significant demographic shifts – 4:1 to 2:1 and more seniors than students in school in Canada
 Significant shifts in economic geography
 Massive growth of middle class in Asia, Africa, India – 2.2 billion new middle class by 2030
 Massive growth of economic engine cities – 424 cities will drive more than 60% of global GDP and 330 of these are in Asia
 50% of the world’s $1 billion companies will be in emerging markets by 2025
 Significant innovations in technology which will disrupt the nature of work – especially 3D Print based
manufacturing, artificial intelligence and robotics
 The 3 Planet / 9 Billion Challenge – in 2007 it took 1.5 years to replenish resource use by industry and
communities; by 2030 it will take 3 years. 9 billion people by 2050.
 Reinvention of work – 4 out of 10 jobs will disappear by 2030

3. CONTEXT
 Canada now 13th in World Economic Forum Competitive Index – we used to be 9th in 2000
 Canada’s productivity low in comparison with most developed world, especially US ($7,000 per worker
per year difference).
 Canada good at invention, (patents, etc.) but is weak at innovation – creating commercial and social
value from invention.
 Most of Canadian economy (90% of firms) are small businesses and most large firms are branch plants.
 While we have the highest level of education in the OECD (# of PSE qualifications) we also have growing
challenges with literacy and numeracy – 42% of adults have literacy skills below the level needed for the
occupation in which they are employed (2015 data).

4. THE SKILLS GAPS
 Gap 1: The Gap Between What Employers Seek and What Job Seekers Have to Offer
 Gap 2: The Gap Between What Employers Think They Need and What They Really Need to Spur
Competitiveness
 Gap 3: The Gap Between Employee Expectations and those of Employers
 Gap 4: The Underutilization of the Skills of Employees
 Gap 5: The Gap Between Current Skills and Future Skills Needed

5. PROPOSED ACTIONS
 Strengthen the innovation capacity and the innovation eco-systems which support entrepreneurship
 Refocus K-12, College, Undergraduate and Masters Programs on relevant skills – FutureSkills Lab
recommendation
 Focus on key sectors (e.g. agribusiness, cybersecurity, oil/gas/energy, advanced manufacturing, mining
technologies and services) and develop strong cluster support for these sectors at a regional level
 Position Canada as a global trading hub committed to global trade (contrasting with Fortress America)
 Increase and strengthen workforce participation and workforce learning

6. FUTURE-SKILLS LAB
“We recommend the formation of a FutureSkills Lab—a non-profit, non-political body designed to promote
and enable next-generation skills development. The FutureSkills Lab would support and co-fund innovative
approaches to skill development; identify and disseminate new sources of information about required
sector and industry skills, as well as the broader labour market; help define clear national objectives for skill-
building; and promote the exchange of knowledge with government agencies and private sector
institutions active in this field. The goal of this new entity would not be to replace existing institutions but to
better enable them to perform by bridging information gaps in the marketplace and providing a neutral
clearing house for critical insights and best practices. ”

7. HERE’S WHAT THEY SEE..
 Pilot projects aimed at looking at new skills developments and new ways of delivering them – P3’s for
skills
 Incentives for learning investments by firms and individuals
 Strengthening skills information – intelligence on what skills are needed where and what skills are
emerging

8. FUTURE SKILLS PROCESS MAP

9. THANKS!
murgatroydstephen@gmail.com