The pandemic, and indeed the major disruptions that came before, brought to the fore the importance of having an effective labour market entry and re-entry system. Canada lacks both a national framework for this system and the heavy lifting is often done by career and employment practitioners from myriad sub-sectors (from post-secondary to community) which lack a stable and unified identity.

CERIC is issuing this Request for Proposal (RFP) to undertake research about the changing role and identity of career developers as defined or shaped by the external forces of the changing nature of work and the evolving definition of what a career is.  The purpose is to identify factors that define and conversely limit identity making of career developers, the roles they see themselves playing through this identity and through the interplay of macro socio-economic external factors. We are interested in understanding how these factors and changes are going to drive the evolution of role and identity of the career development field as well as the skillsets and competencies they will need to navigate these changes. Additionally, CERIC has a special interest in understanding the value placed on and demand for the work of career professionals in Canada through this RFP.

This RFP invites interested researchers to submit a detailed proposal that will enable CERIC to select the research/consulting team that it determines is best suited to complete the project according to the enclosed criteria.

CERIC’s interest in this project is three-fold:

1. To develop an understanding of the macro factors that are redefining the changing workplace and career paths

  • A summary of existing work on how technology, social change and global issues are changing the workplace and career paths
  • Evolving definitions of the workplace and value of work
  • The impact of these factors on the changes to the concept of careers in the future, how traditional on-ramps into careers are being challenged or displaced by new notions of learning required to launch into new careers

2. To understand the role and identity of career developers

  • An understanding of the barriers and facilitators to forming an identity as career developers
  • An understanding of the current and future experience of career developers in their roles and how anticipated changes in the work environment will influence them
  • Comparison between the past, current and future understandings of the role and identities
  • Assessment of the professional development needs of career developers and factors that limit access to learning and skills development required for the coming world of work

3. To understand what services clients/students need and how career services need to adapt to meet these changing needs

  • A summary of evolving service modes and methods
  • An understanding of emergent competencies required by future-ready career developers
  • An assessment of gaps in skills required by career development professionals to meet the future needs of their clients

Deadlines for this RFP are as follows:

  • Request for Proposals Released: October 19, 2022
  • Intent to Submit: November 23, 2022 (submit name & contact info to riz@ceric.ca)
  • Proposal Deadline: December 21, 2022
  • Award of Contract: March 31, 2023
  • Project Initiation: May 1, 2023

To learn more about the Scope of Work, Target Audience, Deliverables, Budget and Duration, and Eligibility Requirements, please download the RFP. For any inquiries, please contact CERIC Executive Director Riz Ibrahim at riz@ceric.ca.