News

CERIC will publish a non-profit edition of its popular Retain and Gain Playbook that addresses the challenges faced by charities and non-profits in attracting, retaining and engaging staff. Authored by Lisa Taylor of Challenge Factory, the bilingual publication, to be released this fall, will enhance capacity building across the non-profit sector, which employs close to two million Canadians. The project has the support of multiple “Knowledge Champion” partners, including The Counselling Foundation of Canada, The Lawson Foundation, The Muttart Foundation, Imagine Canada and the Ontario Nonprofit Network.

The first edition of the Playbook focused on small business and was released in early 2017. There was immediate interest from the non-profit sector to have a Playbook of its own that addressed the unique environment in which non-profits operate, in terms of funding mechanisms, community stakeholders and reliance on volunteers. At the same time, many non-profits and charities meet the criteria of being a small business, having fewer than 500 employees (and often fewer than 50), with the same limited time, resources and opportunities for “traditional” linear career advancement.

Written in an innovative “travel guide” format, the Retain and Gain: Career Management for Non-Profits and Charities Playbook is intended for executive directors and people managers to use as a practical career management tool with their employees. It will apply to both small grassroots non-profits from arts to health to human services as well as larger federated charities. The publication is being shaped based on interviews with managers across Canada where an emerging theme has been that they have never received training focused on how to manage or motivate teams and, yet, it is a significant part of their job.

The Playbook will feature strategies to engage full-time and part-time staff in ways that advance, develop and support thriving careers within the sector. The concise publication will include 40+ practical, low-cost tips, activities and actions that can be implemented in as little as 10-minutes a day. It will also feature several special sections exploring human resource issues of interest to non-profits, including precarious employment and gender-based career patterns.

Like all CERIC resources, this Playbook will be available for free download and also available for sale in hard copy as well as ebook formats.

A newly announced CERIC-funded project will map the career pathways and identify competencies of front-line workers in the settlement sector. Led by eCaliber Group and Calience Research and Consulting, the Settlement Services Workers Profile research project aims to better understand what front-line workers do, what steps they have taken to enter the settlement field, and what educational and work experiences have shaped their career paths.

Employment for newcomers is a significant challenge. The unemployment rate for newcomers to Canada hovers around 12%, nearly twice the national average and this does not consider the rate of underemployment. The settlement sector remains under pressure to effectively assist newcomers to actively participate in Canadian society, and to pursue meaningful lives and careers. This pressure will continue to increase in the coming years as the Canadian government works to achieve “the most ambitious immigration levels in recent Canadian history.”

Often, front-line workers in the settlement sector are the first point of contact for immigrants and refugees and play a critical role in the socioeconomic adaptation of newcomers. The research will consist of both primary and secondary research including interviews and focus groups with front-line workers and managers who work in the settlement field in urban and rural centres in Canada. The findings from this research ultimately aim to help settlement agencies respond more effectively to the changing needs of the settlement sector.

Research outcomes are expected by spring of 2019 and will help raise the profile of and generate insights into career pathways for front-line workers in the settlement field. Career counsellors can use these insights to help those who aspire to enter the settlement field make better informed career decisions. In addition, managers working in settlement agencies can draw on the findings to: better identify potential candidates; provide initial and ongoing training with greater effectiveness; ensure capacity is well nurtured; and define clearer, well-organized career pathways that will enable organizations and the individuals that serve them to develop and advance together.

CERIC provides funding and other support to develop innovative career development resources. Individuals and organizations are welcome to submit project proposals for career counselling-related research or learning projects. Project proposals can align with one of CERIC’s five priority funding areas or other identified areas of need.

The transformation to a gig economy is well underway with an increasing number of short-term positions and self-employed individuals. Are we prepared for a future of freelance work? CERIC’s latest literature search Gig Economy and Career Development explores what the gig economy means to the future world of work and how career professionals can support their clients in thriving in the gig economy.

Topics covered in the literature search include:

• The digital workforce in the gig economy
• Workers rights in the gig economy
• Research and policy implications for the gig economy
• Gig economy and millennials
• The impact of the gig economy on the gender income gap

There are 47 literature searches now available, including Career Development Theory and Career Management Models, Economic Benefits of Career Guidance, Parental Involvement in Career Development, Labour Market Trends, Mental Health Issues in the Workplace, and more.

Featuring comprehensive listings of key research and articles in career development, literature searches highlight critical points of current knowledge.

As a student, academic or practitioner in the field, literature searches are helpful if you are researching the latest thinking or proven best practices. They are also valuable if you are considering a submission to CERIC for project partnership funding in order to gain an overview of major work already done in your area of interest.

The Etta St John Wileman Award for Lifetime Achievement is designed to recognize and celebrate individuals who have devoted their lives to enhancing the field of career development. If you know a leader who has made a significant and sustained contribution to the field, complete the nomination form by June 30, 2018.

The award seeks to:

• Honour individuals who have established themselves as leaders within career development.
• Recognize trailblazers who combine being a mentor, educator, advisor, advocate and role model.
• Encourage people in Canada and around the world to celebrate those who have contributed so much to the career development profession.

Presented on a less than annual basis at the Cannexus National Career Development Conference in Ottawa, the award is given in the name of Etta St John Wileman. In the early 20th century, Wileman was a champion and crusader of career, work and workplace development in Canada.

Past recipients of the award have included Marilyn Van Norman, Denis Pelletier, Norman Amundson, Mildred Cahill, Bryan Hiebert, Donald Lawson and Michel Turcotte.