A study published this year by the Information and Communication Technology Council (ICTC) reveals that Canada can expect more than 182,000 hirings by 2019 in the ICT sector. What lies behind this number?
Current situation
Since the latest technological revolution (internet, mobiles, analytics, the cloud, apps…), the world in general and the Canadian population in particular lives and works differently. The demand for skills are changing and upsetting the entire labour market. So there will be an estimated 182,000 new hires in ICT in Canada by 2019. This significant number takes into account growth in employment in this sector and the need to cope with 90,900 retirements. Of the 811,200 ICT professionals currently working in the Canadian market, young people are less represented than in other sectors of activity while there are more older employees. There is also still few women in the I.T sector.
Certain candidate profiles are very prominent
ICT employers are seeking highly qualified personnel, regardless of the field of activity (44% of ICT professionals are in information technology companies; 56% in other sectors such as health, finance, etc.). Tasks are becoming more and more automated, high level information processing and cognitive skills are highly sought. In addition, business aptitudes are also valued as are critical thinking, interpersonal communication, ability to learn and autonomy. The five greatest demands in the coming years relate to information system analysts and consultants, computer programmers and interactive media developers, computer and information systems managers, software engineers and designers and graphic designers and illustrators. Conversely, there will be lower demand for telecommunication managers and broadcasting technicians.
Hiring disparities by province
In its study, the Information and Communication Technology Council explains the distribution of 182,000 new hires by Canadian province. Ontario (76,300), Quebec (49,600), British Columbia (20,900) and Alberta (17,300) lead the pack, while Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Newfoundland and Labrador are each around 4,000 new hires (4,000, 3,900 and 3,800 respectively). The provinces of Nova Scotia (3,200), New Brunswick (2,200) and Prince Edward Island (1,200) bring up the rear.
Regardless of which scenario the Information and Communication Technology Council suggests (optimistic, pessimistic…), Canada is facing a shortage of specialized manpower in the ICT field. This shortage must be faced by taking short and long term measures, so that the country and its provinces remain competitive and continue to play an important international role.