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Context matters in rural workforce development: 7 important facts

June 9, 2020By
While each rural community is unique, common challenges and opportunities exist, including labour shortages and rising senior care needs

Ray Bollman

author headshotThe defining challenge of rural workforce development derives from the size of the community and the distance to a large centre. This differentiates rural workforce development from generic workforce development. However, rural is not the same everywhere – as they say, “When you see one rural community, you have seen one rural community.”

This article addresses the implications of rurality and specific influences on workforce development in rural Canada, such as labour shortages and the growing Indigenous population.

1. The degree of rurality matters

Every rural workforce policy or program must first consider the two dimensions of rurality:

  • What is the size of your community? and
  • What is the distance to a larger community? (Reimer and Bollman (2010), Bollman and Reimer (2018), Bollman and Reimer (2019) (See Figure 1).

The policy and practice of workforce development will differ depending on these rurality dimensions. While people living in rural areas understand the advantages and disadvantages of these characteristics, workforce policy analysts may not intuitively appreciate the implications.

In the upper panel of Figure 2, we show the target clientele for rural workforce development in terms of the number of communities at each intersection of the dimensions of rural (ie, size of community and distance to a large community). The lower panel shows the target clientele in terms of the number of residents in each type of community for rural workforce development efforts across the rurality dimensions.

What is rurality?

We identify two spatial dimensions of rurality:

  1. Density (population size of a locality); and
  2. Distance-to-density

These are the two spatial dimensions shown in Figure 1 where any given locality could be located at any combination of “density” and “distance-to-density.” The location of a community in the grid of Figure 1 determines the spatial constraints (and advantages) of the given community. [See Reimer and Bollman (2010), Bollman and Reimer (2018) and Bollman and Reimer (2019)]

1. The degree of rurality matters

Every rural workforce policy or program must first consider the two dimensions of rurality:

  • What is the size of your community? and
  • What is the distance to a larger community? (Reimer and Bollman (2010), Bollman and Reimer (2018), Bollman and Reimer (2019) (See Figure 1).

The policy and practice of workforce development will differ depending on these rurality dimensions. While people living in rural areas understand the advantages and disadvantages of these characteristics, workforce policy analysts may not intuitively appreciate the implications.

In the upper panel of Figure 2, we show the target clientele for rural workforce development in terms of the number of communities at each intersection of the dimensions of rural (ie, size of community and distance to a large community). The lower panel shows the target clientele in terms of the number of residents in each type of community for rural workforce development efforts across the rurality dimensions.

Figure 1: The two dimensions of rurality: density and distance to density
Figure 1

Figure 2: Distribution of communities by density and distance to density
Figure 2

2. Rural Canada is growing

The fact that rural Canada is growing is important to our understanding of rural workforce development  (Mendelson and Bollman (1998); Bollman and Clemenson (2008); Bollman (2012); Bollman (2017) (Figure 3). However, it is not growing as fast as urban Canada and thus the share of the population residing in rural areas is declining. Also, rural Canada is not growing everywhere – specifically, the rural population is growing near cities, in cottage country and in the North due to higher fertility rates among Indigenous women (Figure 4).

Chart: Canada's population in non-metro census divisions
Figure 3

Map: Number of census periods with population growth
Figure 4

3. Labour market shortages are everywhere

Rural workforce development has recently entered an era where there are fewer potential labour market entrants than potential retirees from the labour market. In the early 1970s, there were 250 potential entrants per 100 potential retirees across urban and rural areas (Figure 5). Now, in rural Canada, we see about 70 potential entrants for every 100 potential retirees (compared to 85 potential entrants in the urban labour market) (Figure 6). This implies labour shortages everywhere. As noted on the cover page of Bollman (2014), the rural development objective has switched from “create jobs” to “create people.”

Thus, individuals pursuing policy and programs may have a different personal experience of entering the labour market compared to the current entrants to the (rural) workforce. Understanding the data – rather than relying on personal experience – can help ensure workforce development initiatives are relevant for today.

Chart: Potential labour market shortage up to 2029
Figure 5

Graph: Demographic replacement of the working-age population
Figure 6

4. Immigrants are the source for growing the rural workforce

A quick review of demographic data show that:

  1. In rural Canada, the number of births barely outpace the number of deaths (Figure 7) and in many parts of rural Canada, there are more deaths than births in each year;
  2. Migration into rural Canada from elsewhere in Canada has been negative but is now a small positive contribution to rural population growth (Figure 8); and
  3. International immigration into rural Canada is now a small positive contribution to population growth (Figure 9).

Given the fact that deaths are outpacing births and that attracting a Canadian citizen to move to your community is a loss for another area, immigration can be a powerful source to grow the rural workforce.

Natural balance (births minus deaths)
Figure 7

Migration contributing to population growth
Figure 8

International immigration and population growth
Figure 9

5. Indigenous young adults represent an increasing share of potential rural workforce entrants

Another feature of the rural workforce is that Indigenous people represent an increasing share of entrants to the rural workforce. At present, about 16% of potential rural labour market entrants in Canada report an Aboriginal Identity (Figure 10). This varies considerably across rural Canada. For instance, in rural Manitoba, about 40% of potential labour market entrants report an Aboriginal identity (Figure 11). Manitoba’s rural workforce will decline without the participation of Indigenous peoples. Successful Indigenous workforce development initiatives will define successful rural development in Manitoba, and other areas, going forward. 

Canadians under 15 reporting an Aboriginal identity
Figure 10

Non-metro residents of Manitoba reporting an Aboriginal identity
Figure 11

6. High-school non-completion rates

It is often assumed that high school drop-out rates are higher in rural areas. However, for non-Indigenous youth, high school non-completion rates are the same across the urban-rural spectrum (Figure 12). For Indigenous students, non-completion rates are higher in urban areas compared with non-Indigenous students, and much higher in rural areas. Thus, the “common knowledge” that high-school completion rates are higher in rural areas is due to a higher share of Indigenous students in rural areas and higher high school non-completion rates among Indigenous students. The same situation existed 15 years ago (Figure 13).

Dropout rates in rural Canada
Figure 12

Both the federal and the provincial educational systems have failed Indigenous youth (Angus, 2017). In my opinion, the (potential) entry of Indigenous youth into the rural labour market represents the major challenge for policy development and program delivery for rural workforce development for two reasons:

  • Their demographic impact represents the sole source for maintaining the size of the rural market (in many jurisdictions); and
  • Their lower high-school completion rates may be expected to constrain their options in the labour market.
Comparing dropout rates between aboriginal and non-aboriginal youth
Figure 13

7. Senior care needs are rising

Finally, one occupation with an expanding demand in rural and urban communities is senior care. In Canada, the number of individuals ages 80-89 and ages 90+ is expected to double over the next 20 years (Figures 14 and 15). Individuals in the latter age group will require a higher level of residential care. Rural communities have an opportunity to build residences for seniors, both for local seniors and for seniors outside of their community. Workforce development needs to actively engage in this opportunity.

Projected population 80-89 for Canada to 2036
Figure 14

Projected population 90+ for Canada to 2036
Figure 15

To conclude

Rural is not all the same. Understanding the distinct features of rural communities will inform successful policy development and program delivery in rural workforce development. The rurality dimensions of community size and the distance of the community to a large centre defines the specific constraints (and opportunities) for workforce development in any given locality. What is the role of immigration, Indigenous workforce inclusion or demographic shifts? Rural workforce development must recognize the impact of these trends and others to develop solutions that resonate in the local context. 

Ray Bollman has retired from Statistics Canada, where he was the founding editor of Statistics Canada’s Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletins. Since retiring, he has been writing the series of bulletins titled Focus on Rural Ontario for the Rural Ontario Institute and has authored a report for the Federation of Canada Municipalities titled Rural Canada 2013: An Update – A statement of the current structure and trends in Rural Canada. Presently, he is a Research Affiliate with the Rural Development Institute, Brandon University and a Research Affiliate with The Leslie Harris Centre of Regional Policy and Development, Memorial University of Newfoundland.

References

Alasia, Alessandro. (2004) “Mapping the Socio-economic Diversity of Rural Canada.” Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin Vol. 5, No. 2 (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE). (http://www5.statcan.gc.ca/olc-cel/olc.action?objId=21-006-X&objType=2&lang=en&limit=0).

Alasia, Alessandro, Ray D. Bollman, John Parkins and Bill Reimer. (2008) An Index of Community Vulnerability: Conceptual Framework and an Application to Population and Employment Change. (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Agriculture and Rural Working Paper no. 88, Catalogue no. 21-601-MIE) (www.statcan.ca/cgi-bin/downpub/listpub.cgi?catno=21-601-MIE).

Alasia, Alessandro. (2010) “Population Change Across Canadian Communities: The Role of Sector Restructuring, Agglomeration, Diversification and Human Capital.” Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin Vol. 8, No. 4 (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE). (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/bsolc/olc-cel/olc-cel?catno=21-006-X&CHROPG=1&lang=eng)

Angus, Charlie (2017) Children of the Broken Treaty (Regina: University of Regina Press, second edition).

Bernard, André. (2008) “Immigrants in the hinterlands.” Perspectives on labour and income. (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 75-0001, January), pp. 5 to 14.

Beshiri, Roland and Emily Alfred. (2002) “Immigrants in Rural Canada.” Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin Vol. 4, No. 2 (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE) (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/bsolc/olc-cel/olc-cel?catno=21-006-X&CHROPG=1&lang=eng).

Beshiri, Roland. (2004) “Immigrants in Rural Canada: 2001 Update.” Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin Vol. 5, No. 4 (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE) (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/bsolc/olc-cel/olc-cel?catno=21-006-X&CHROPG=1&lang=eng).

Beshiri, Roland and Ray D. Bollman. (2005) Immigrants in Rural Canada. Presentation to the 2005 Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation – Rural Development Institute National Rural Think Tank (https://www.brandonu.ca/rdi/wp-content/blogs.dir/116/files/2015/09/Immigrants_in_Rural_Canada.pdf).

Beshiri, Roland and Jiaosheng He. (2009) “Immigrants in Rural Canada: 2006.” Rural and Small Town Canada Analysis Bulletin Vol. 8, No. 2 (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Catalogue no. 21-006-XIE) (http://www.statcan.gc.ca/bsolc/olc-cel/olc-cel?catno=21-006-X&CHROPG=1&lang=eng).

Bollman, Ray D., Roland Beshiri and Heather Clemenson. (2007) “Immigrants in Rural Canada.” In Bill Reimer (ed.) Our Diverse Cities No. 3 (Summer), pp. 9 – 15.

Bollman, Ray D. and Heather A. Clemenson (2008) Structure and Change in Canada’s Rural Demography: An Update to 2006 with Provincial Detail (Ottawa: Statistics Canada, Agriculture and Rural Working Paper No. 90, Catalogue no. 21-601-MIE) (http://publications.gc.ca/collections/collection_2008/statcan/21-601-M/21-601-m2008090-eng.pdf).

Bollman, Ray D. (2012) Canada’s rural population is growing: A rural demography update to 2011 (Guelph: Rural Ontario Institute) (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/file.aspx?id=231b5f1a-a7ca-4ddf-b69e-4034a35de640).

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) “Factsheet: Location of Immigrant Arrivals in 2012.” Pathways to Prosperity Bulletin (London, Ontario: University of Western Ontario, Pan-Canadian Project on “Pathways to Prosperity: Promoting Welcoming Communities in Canada”, May, pp. 2-4). (http://p2pcanada.ca/library/factsheet-location-of-immigrant-arrivals-in-2012).

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) “Factsheet: Immigrants – Where are They Living Now?” Pathways to Prosperity Bulletin (London, Ontario: University of Western Ontario, Pan-Canadian Project on “Pathways to Prosperity: Promoting Welcoming Communities in Canada”, October, pp. 6-9).(http://p2pcanada.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/eBulletin-October-2013.pdf)

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) “Immigrant arrivals in 2012.” Focus on Rural Ontario (Vol. 1, No. 6, July) (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/uploads/userfiles/files/Focus%20on%20Rural%20Ontario%20-%20Overview%20of%20rural%20ON%20geography.pdf

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) “Where are immigrants residing now?” Focus on Rural Ontario (Vol. 1, No. 7, July) (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/uploads/userfiles/files/Focus%20on%20Rural%20Ontario%20-%20Overview%20of%20rural%20ON%20geography.pdf

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) “Aboriginal identity population.” Focus on Rural Ontario (Vol. 1, No. 9, July) (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/uploads/userfiles/files/Focus%20on%20Rural%20Ontario%20-%20Overview%20of%20rural%20ON%20geography.pdf).

Bollman, Ray D. (2013) Canada’s rural labour market and the role of immigrants. Presentation to the Annual Rural Policy Conference of the Canadian Rural Revitalisation Foundation, October 24 to 26, Thunder Bay, Ontario. Available at http://www.crrf.ca/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/B3-Rural-Immigration-Migration-Presenter-Ray-Bollman.pdf.

Bollman, Ray D. and William Ashton. (2014) Aboriginal Population (Brandon: Brandon University, Rural Development Institute FactSheet) FactSheets at (http://www.brandonu.ca/rdi/25th/).

Bollman, Ray D. and William Ashton. (2014) Immigrant Arrivals (Brandon: Brandon University, Rural Development Institute FactSheet) FactSheets at (http://www.brandonu.ca/rdi/25th/).

Bollman, Ray D. (2014) “Factsheet: Location of Immigrant Arrivals in 2013.” Pathways to Prosperity Bulletin (London, Ontario: University of Western Ontario, Pan-Canadian Project on “Pathways to Prosperity: Promoting Welcoming Communities in Canada”, May, pp. 8-12). (http://p2pcanada.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2014/05/eBulletin-May-2014.pdf)

Bollman, Ray D. (2014) Rural Canada 2013: An Update — A statement of the current structure and trends in Rural Canada. Paper prepared for the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. (http://crrf.ca/rural-canada-2013-an-update/)

Bollman, Ray D. (2015) “Factsheet: Hot Spots of Recent Immigrant Arrivals at the Community Level in Canada.” Pathways to Prosperity Bulletin (London, Ontario: University of Western Ontario, Pan-Canadian Project on “Pathways to Prosperity: Promoting Welcoming Communities in Canada”, January, pp.10-12). (http://p2pcanada.ca/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/2015/01/eBulletin-January-2015.pdf).

Bollman, Ray D. (2016) Maps of sub-provincial demographic levels and trends annually to 2015 (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/uploads/userfiles/files/Maps%20of%20Sub-provincial%20Demography%20to%20July%202015%20-%20Updated%20Feb%202016%20-%201.pdf)

Bollman, Ray D. (2017) Rural Demographic Update: 2016 (Guelph: Rural Ontario Institute) (http://www.ruralontarioinstitute.ca/file.aspx?id=26acac18-6d6e-4fc5-8be6-c16d326305fe).

Bollman, Ray D. and Bill Reimer. (2018) The dimensions of rurality: Implications for classifying inhabitants as ‘rural’, implications for rural policy and implications for rural indicators. Paper presented to the 30th International Conference of Agricultural Economists, July 28 to August 2, Vancouver (https://ageconsearch.umn.edu/record/277251/files/1467.pdf).

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Reimagining tomorrow’s agriculture to attract and retain youth

June 9, 2020By
Canada’s farming sector needs an image shift to halt the exodus of young people

 Abdul-Rahim Abdulai

What led you into farming? This question anchored my research to understand what motivates people to farm in Newfoundland (Abdulai, 2018). “Agriculture was always in the blood, a family tradition many folks embraced,” said one farmer while lamenting the demise of farming in Newfoundland. “My parents owned a garden centre when I was a child, and I grew up in that sort of business,” said another vegetable farmer. For many, entering farming was all about “growing up to farm the family land.”

The experiences from Newfoundland are not unique; agriculture historically benefitted from a consistent supply of labour from within “family farm” units. In 2011, family farms constituted over 92% of Canada’s farms (Statistics Canada, 2013). These farms are not managed by a commune, co-operative or a non-family corporation, and are more likely to be passed from generation to generation (Knezevic, Bronson & Clément, 2020). The farm family always was a “factory” ready to produce the next generation of agriculture enthusiasts – people who will end up in farming or agriculture-related careers (Cummins, 2009). However, my research in Newfoundland points to a decline in this vital survival trait of agriculture.

Farm population exodus: The tale of two farmers

I found that our social environment motivates and shapes individual decisions, including our career paths (Dodd, 2011; Hamill, 2012). Early life experiences and socialization influence our personal decisions and choices, ultimately guiding our professional trajectories. Notably, personal ties, advice (from parents and friends) and the beliefs one is exposed to about different professions influence the career decisions of young people. Agriculture is no exception to this. My research, however, revealed some nuances in how the family can affect career pathways in farm families:

Farmer 1: “I am a farmer. I discourage my children [from farming]. I have two kids; my daughter is a physiotherapist, and my son works in a consultant company. I did everything to discourage them from this way of life [on the farm]. I can’t imagine what I would have done, why I would have encouraged them.”

Farmer 2: “So, I was a firm believer that when I had kids, and I had a farm, they will stay. Once they became old enough, everybody pulled away, everybody moved … But you know, they didn’t want – once they graduated with some college or whatever – they didn’t come back to the farm or something like that.”

These quotes describe tales of two farm families: One farmer who had a passion for keeping the farm in the family, and another who encouraged his children to pursue careers outside agriculture. Yet, the outcomes of both tales were the same: the departure of the young from the farm. For both families,  their inability to retain their children in the sector was down to perceptions of farming being hard work, stressful and less profitable.

The exodus of young people partly defines the declining farming population in Newfoundland and Canada and contributes to persistent labour challenges in the industry. According to Statistics Canada, Newfoundland’s and Canada’s farmer populations are aging. Concurrently, the number of farmers who are under 35 years old in Canada has declined by over 70% since 1991 (Qualman, Akram-Lodhi, Desmarais & Srinivasan, 2018). Likewise, the number of farm operators declined by about 35% between 2001 and 2016 (Statistics Canada, 2017). What drives the exodus may vary, but the image of farming as a challenging, unprofitable profession discourages even those who grew up around agriculture. The industry suffers from an image issue, which drives young people away.

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Re-discovering agriculture to motivate the younger generation

While farming is hard work, there is more to the agriculture industry than what is known to most youth.

Technological changes are reshaping farm work and career opportunities. Last year, RBC released the Farmer 4.0 report (RBC, 2019), which described the farmers of tomorrow as innovative, highly skilled, data-driven and diverse. These transformations are very much on the way, and the farm community can help bolster the talent pipeline by shifting the image of the industry to be more forward-looking. Sharing the diverse opportunities available in farming can counter misconceptions that farming is a dated or old profession. This may attract new people to the agricultural industry while also encouraging young people to consider the future of the farm.

Likewise, school and agricultural institutions must swiftly develop and/or alter programs to reflect new skill demands. Courses that incorporate new farming skills and needs would allow youth to understand the diverse opportunities the sector can offer and how they can shape the future of agriculture.

Finally, youth, especially those from agricultural households, could play a pivotal role. Since they have opportunities to experience and experiment in the sector, leveraging the power of the digital world to explore new experiences of farming could help them learn skills that they are excited to bring to the industry. More internal youth engagement will attract outsiders to help overcome current labour and skill challenges in Canadian agriculture.

Abdul-Rahim Abdulai is a PhD candidate at the Department of Geography, Environment and Geomatics at the University of Guelph, and affiliated with the Arrell Food Institute. Abdulai’s interest is in the future of agriculture, through workforce development and digital technological advancements. His research asks questions on the motivational dimensions of attracting and retaining people in agricultural workforce, as well as how to respond to changing skill requirements triggered by emerging digital agricultural technologies.

References

 Abdulai, A. (2018). Motivating the future farmers? Understanding farmer attraction and retention policy interventions in Newfoundland and Labrador’s agriculture. (Master’s thesis, Memorial University). research.library.mun.ca/13375/

Cummins, H. (2009). Rural children’s perceptions of life on the land in Southwestern Ontario. The Canadian Geographer, 53(1), 63–83.

Dodd, J. (2011). Sustaining agriculture in NSW high schools-an assessment of the use of examples from alternative agriculture and investigation into the role of high school agriculture in meeting the future needs of the industry. Charles Sturt University. permaculturenews.org/files/JDoddDissertation.pdf

Hamill, W. G. (2012). The factors that contribute to young people’s attraction to, and retention in agricultural careers. (Master’s thesis, RMIT University). researchbank.rmit.edu.au/view/rmit:160392

Knezevic, I. Bronson, K. and Clément, C. (2020). What is (not) a family farm? fledgeresearch.ca/resources-results/food-growing-and-harvesting/what-is-not-a-family-farm/

Qualman, D., Akram-Lodhi, A. H., Desmarais, A. A., & Srinivasan, S. (2018). Forever young? The crisis of generational renewal on Canada’s farms. Canadian Food Studies/La Revue canadienne des études sur l’alimentation, 5(3), 100-127.

RBC (2019). Farmer 4.0. How the coming skills revolution can transform agriculture rbc.com/economics/economic-reports/pdf/other-reports/Farmer4_aug2019.pdf

Statistics Canada (2013). Chapter 1. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/95-640-x/2011001/p1/p1-01-eng.htm#I

Statistics Canada (2013). Number of families on unincorporated farms, classified by family type, major source of operator income and income classes in the year prior to the census. https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/t1/tbl1/en/tv.action?pid=3210019401

Statistics Canada. (2017). Total number of farms and farm operators. https://doi.org/10.25318/3210044001-eng

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Client Side: I had my career mapped out – until a new experience opened my eyes

June 9, 2020By
Faith Jensen had long planned to be a small-animal vet, but classes and work-integrated learning exposed exciting alternative pathways

Faith Jensen

In this Careering feature, jobseekers reflect on successes and struggles in their career development.

Growing up, I always knew I wanted to become a veterinarian. I never had to worry about choosing what I wanted to do in life during high school, unlike most of my peers. I told my friends, my teachers, my family and anyone who would listen that I wanted to be a veterinarian. It was a privilege that I never had anxiety or uncertainty about my passion. However, this certainty also left me closed off from considering other opportunities or possibilities for my future.

New possibilities

I grew up in the city with two dogs, so I always thought that I would become a small-animal veterinarian. To ensure that this was the right path for me, I volunteered at a small-animal pet clinic during high school. Through this experience, I cemented my belief that I would one day have my own small-animal pet clinic. I applied to the University of Alberta’s Faculty of Agricultural, Life and Environmental Sciences for a Bachelor of Science in Animal Health with a major in Companion and Performance Animals. I believed this would take me one step closer toward applying to veterinary school with an interest in small animals. Little did I know that was about to change.

During my first year of university, I was exposed to my first class of interest: Introduction to Animal Health Science. This class opened my eyes to other areas of veterinary medicine that I had never considered before. Suddenly I was learning about different diseases affecting cattle and horses – and finding myself surprisingly interested. In fact, I found myself more interested in livestock animal health than companion animal health for the first time in my life. Living in an urban setting, my only experience interacting with livestock was at a petting zoo as a child. This class would be the first of many to open me up to a new possibility: becoming a livestock veterinarian.

Over the course of four years, I began to learn more about the livestock industry and the many people and animals who are a part of it. In one of my favourite classes, we did a project where we had to “create” a pig farm operation as part of a group presentation. Working on this project, I learned about what it takes to run a farm and the importance of veterinarians in having a successful operation with healthy animals. In another class, I got to learn about the physiology of cattle and was surprised to learn how much it had sparked my interest. Slowly, I began to narrow down my career path to the possibility of being a cattle veterinarian. My only question was: Would I be able to handle it having never worked with cattle in my life?

Check out some of our past Client Side articles:

Charting my course

 Through my program, I learned about a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience with livestock – the Animal Science Mini-Internship Program run by one of my professors. This is a three-day work experience program held over fall and winter reading break that places students with various hosts throughout Alberta to gain more hands-on experience in the livestock industry. Applicants have to complete an online form expressing their interest and motivation to join the program and attend an interview to share which areas of the livestock industry in which they would like to gain more experience. Faculty members and Career Centre staff organize an orientation to prepare students for their placements in regard to interacting with their host, safety guidelines and any other questions students may have. Once students have completed the program, there is a reflection dinner where they can discuss their experiences, express areas of interest and talk about possible career paths the program has opened their eyes to.

In my first mini-internship, I worked at a horse boarding facility, where I soon learned that with proper instruction and practice I could learn how to interact with large animals safely and effectively. I gained confidence from this experience, realizing that I would be able to learn how to interact with livestock as a large-animal veterinarian. I proceeded to complete four more internships to further my experience. In one of my favourite internship experiences, I worked with a beef cattle veterinarian and was able to directly see what my career could look like. I was no longer afraid to chart this new career path; I was excited. This gave me confidence to open my mind to other career paths I would not have considered before.

In my last internship, I worked with a cow-calf producer and learned about the importance of cattle nutrition for the health of the animals in beef production. The producer I worked with helped create a software program called “CowBytes” that helps producers develop a nutritionally balanced diet for their cattle using the feed they have available. Through speaking with this producer, I realized I could have just as large an impact on cattle health as a nutritionist as I could as a veterinarian. Although I would still love to be a veterinarian, this experience exposed me to a new career path I never thought possible.

The rewards of pushing boundaries

 The biggest piece of advice I could give to anyone choosing a career path would be to put yourself in a position where you can be exposed to new opportunities as much as possible. By trying new classes and participating in programs such as the Animal Science Mini-Internship, I ventured on a journey to discovering my interests in cattle veterinary medicine and nutrition. Without pushing my comfort zone and exposing myself to these opportunities, I would not be where I am today. I encourage anyone to get out there and try new things in your career; you may never know what opportunity lies around the corner.

Faith Jensen is a fourth-year student at the University of Alberta taking a Bachelor of Science in Animal Health and dreaming of going to veterinary school at the University of Calgary. She works at a small-animal veterinary clinic and has two dogs at home, Bandit and Blue. When she is not at school or working, she spends her time volunteering with organizations such as WILDNorth and VIDA Volunteer.

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Cannabis legalization demands creative career services response in BC Interior

June 9, 2020By
In the ‘champagne region’ of marijuana cultivation, legal changes present opportunity for career professionals to connect with resilient but reticent jobseekers

Phil Sarsons

Rural and remote areas are anything but barren. They have a lot to offer, and they also face unique challenges. Though the natural beauty is often abundant, formal year-round employment is generally not. Some locations even retain a sense of being frontier-like, where the pace of life and the pressures of urbanization collide.

The Kootenay region, which comprises a significant portion of the Interior of British Columbia, certainly fits this mold. The geography is very diverse, and so are its peoples and their histories. This region is both rugged and quaint, inviting and rustic, yet not without affluence. It boasts about 120,000 residents (Work BC, n.d.), many of whom have developed resilience, resourcefulness and humility in an area that is off the beaten path and facing economic challenges.

In the West Kootenay, both clients’ resilience and the need for career practitioners to meet local needs were highlighted as the region started adapting to one of its latest challenges: cannabis legalization.

The times, they still are a changin’

The West Kootenay is home to many historically “exiled” cultures: the interned Japanese, Vietnam War draft dodgers and the Russian Doukhobors, as well as people seeking ways of life outside of the Canadian norm. With the comparatively recent addition of cannabis growers (residents refer to West Kootenay as the “champagne region” of Canadian cannabis) the regional culture continues to carry a non-conformist sentiment. As a result, delivering government-sponsored services in this remote and rural region has had its challenges.

This tension became very apparent as the new cannabis regulations prompted reactions ranging from dejection to fear to fierce optimism. Amid such transitions, populations that may have otherwise been reticent to engage with government-sponsored services found their way into my office.

I experienced an uptick of clients who had been cultivating marijuana prior to legalization disclosing their concerns about how legalization would affect their futures. Would their work survive this transition? Could their farms afford to align with the incoming standards and building codes required by regulation? Many clients expressed concerns that having cultivated cannabis would by default leave them behind on accessing EI-funded employment services, because they had not paid into it previously. While clients’ resilience and self-sufficiency had been serving them rather well prior to legalization, regulations have made various long-standing culture gaps very pronounced. In inadvertently being barred from accessing EI supports, long-time cannabis growers are emblematic of an isolation often experienced in this region – of being in a world they may otherwise feel too vulnerable to participate in, and of the feeling that capitulation into the status quo is not necessarily a feasible or reasonable thing to do.

Young smiling woman in a cannabis field checking plants and flowers, agriculture and nature concept
iStock
Client vulnerabilities great and small

Giving assurance of their privacy (as outlined in FOIPPA, BC’s Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act) was key in gaining their alliance. All the classic tools for career counselling then naturally came to the fore, beginning with conversations around values, and then skills and interests. The area does not lack for passionately minded individuals, and so an appeal to that energy helped establish trust. By recognizing the value of clients’ self-esteem, resilience and courage, we made our services more welcoming to them, giving clients the opportunity to assert their creativity within a dynamically changing landscape. Even the primary task of developing a resume and naming their skills helped clients understand how assertive and directed an individual can be while job searching.

It was not surprising that many of these clients expressed a desire for autonomy in their work. Developing avenues of self-employment that leveraged their abundance of creative energy and knowledge of various aspects of horticulture seemed key to their successes and survival.

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Conversations also revolved around how to best refocus their abilities toward different avenues of work – whether this would be in agriculture or if they would need to embark on an entirely new career path, or relocate to a larger urban centre. Though the intent of legalization has a welcoming feel around it, much of the net effect has been a kind of displacement. Many people have been unable to compete with the “big money” that has entered the space. Given that the employment landscape was comparably bleak to begin with, and because legalization has thus far interrupted an otherwise-thriving cannabis agricultural industry, WorkBC Services has been compelled to engage pro-actively to help improve outcomes of these jobseekers in the community by diversifying services.

“By recognizing the value of clients’ self-esteem, resilience and courage, we made our services more welcoming to them, giving clients the opportunity to assert their creativity within a dynamically changing landscape.”

Addressing the cultural barrier in remote settings

Our organization developed Liaison roles to further catalyze our work in the region to address situational and systemic barriers, and I saw an opportunity to give agency to these populations. The situation demanded a robust and creative response, and shifting toward liaison work was exactly what was needed. Liaisons are granted time to research their chosen area of specialty and leverage the banner of employment services to address systemic barriers. “Multi-Barrier Liaison – Rural Focus” was added to my title of Employment Counsellor, which helped me engage more deeply with residents in need to determine what employment services can do for them in the long term.

Career practitioners should not only embrace the frontier-like feeling of rural areas, but recognize the immense opportunity presented in becoming an advocate for remote and rural populations. In this instance, the West Kootenay holds an immense invitation to tune in to the unique value propositions of the clientele, and to support an industry of global significance. The West Kootenay never presents a dull moment in this regard, and in the years to come, the local cannabis industry may well present itself as responsive and as resilient as ever.

Phil Sarsons is an Employment Counsellor at the Nelson WorkBC office, Kootenay Career Development Society. He holds a Liaison position for rural and remote clients, with a focus on agriculture, and he has a BFA in acting, having retired from the professional theatre many years ago.

References

Work BC. (n.d.). Kootenay. workbc.ca/Labour-Market-Information/Regional-Profiles/Kootenay

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Infographic: COVID-19 and Canada’s post-secondary students

June 9, 2020By

View PDF here: COVID-19 and Canada’s post-secondary students

Plain text below image.

COVID-19 and Canada’s post-secondary students

Statistics Canada surveyed students in spring 2020, finding:

  • 75% of students had all of their courses moved online.
  • 26% had some courses postponed or delayed.
  • 11% were unable to complete a credential as planned.
  • Over one-third of students had a work placement cancelled or delayed. Students studying healthcare and services were more likely to report this.

Student employment changes:

  • 49% lost job prospects
  • 48% lost job or laid off
  • 26% had hours reduced

Proportion of respondents who are “very” or “extremely” concerned about:

  • 67% having no job prospects in the near future
  • 63% effect of pandemic on grades
  • 58% loss of jobs in the future
  • 54% having to take on more student debt
  • 51% difficulty paying tuition next term
  • 505 paying for accommodations next term

Sources

Statistics Canada. (2020). COVID-19 Pandemic: Academic impacts on postsecondary students in Canada. https://bit.ly/2XJKkEW

Statistics Canada. (2020). COVID-19 pandemic: Impacts on the work placements of postsecondary students in Canada. https://bit.ly/3etLafO

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How COVID-19 is affecting rural communities across Canada

June 9, 2020By
Travel and business restrictions related to the pandemic have hit some rural jobseekers and industries hard, but there is hope on the horizon

Lindsay Purchase

When Selkirk College Instructor Adela Tesarek Kincaid began working with BC communities to help them develop economic resilience plans last year, she had no way of knowing how urgently they would be needed some months later. Initially intended to help keep economies moving after natural disasters, the focus has now shifted to pandemic preparedness.

“I think we’ll be that much better prepared now and going into the future. So I think that’s definitely a strength and a good thing that came out of this,” says Tesarek Kincaid, who is also a Faculty Researcher at the College, located in the West Kootenay region of BC. Local communities drove the creation of the resilience plans with the support of staff and students from Selkirk and Simon Fraser University, alongside Community Futures Central Kootenay.

Unfortunately, there is no single blueprint for dealing with an unprecedented global pandemic, and Canada’s rural communities – each with their own strengths and challenges, unique demographic makeups and industries – will have to chart a path forward while the ground is still shifting beneath them. Here’s how rural areas and industries are being affected by COVID-19 across Canada, and what they believe will help them get through it.

Bridge over the Columbia River in Castlegar, BC.
Castlegar, BC. Some communities in the West Kootenay region have been working on resilience plans that have helped them navigate the pandemic’s challenges. (iStock)
At-risk industries

The lessons of previous economic recessions suggest that communities will experience the crisis differently, depending on how remote they are, their level of community capacity and their economic mix (Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation, 2020). However, it is expected that certain industries will be hit harder.

Tourism is one such industry. In 2016, one in 10 Canadian workers was employed in tourism, with nearly 20% of the sector located in rural areas (Tourism HR Canada, n.d.).

Philip Mondor, President and CEO, Tourism HR Canada, says that rural areas relying heavily on tourism may face a longer recovery period. “These were some of the first areas to be shuttered and they’re going to be some of the last to open and there’s lots of very sensible reasons for that,” he says. Communities – especially those with large proportions of vulnerable populations – may not have the resources to deal with a sizeable outbreak. Even as physical distancing and travel restrictions are loosened, rural communities may continue to be more cautious.

More COVID-19 coverage on CareerWise

This will also affect workers whose jobs are part of the broader tourism economy, Mondor says, such as a gas station attendant employed near a tourist hotspot. “People take for granted that some of the services they have are inherently there whether tourism is around or not. And indeed it’s not true.”

These challenges have started to bear out in the Yukon, which normally has a robust tourism sector but closed its borders to all non-essential travel in April.

“People in the service industry and the tourism industry are just being hit incredibly hard. I think that’s a really big challenge,” says Lana Selbee, Executive Director of Yukonstruct, a Whitehorse non-profit and hub that supports local makers and entrepreneurs.

The territory has plans to lift lift travel restrictions between Yukon and BC on July 1, but in the meantime, it’s looking to other solutions. Selbee says officials and the provincial tourism association are encouraging Yukoners to get out and explore – to be tourists in their own territory to support local businesses.

Caraquet Port - Fishing Boat, New Brunswick
In New Brunswick, closed borders have led to labour shortages for the fisheries sector. (iStock)

Across the country in New Brunswick, when the high tourism season would normally be getting under way, closed borders are expected to hurt students and seasonal workers. However, the effects of the pandemic have been more immediate in other sectors, says Charles LeBlanc, Manager, South East Region, Working NB.

The agriculture and fisheries sectors are experiencing a shortage of at least 1,200 workers, positions that would normally be filled by temporary foreign workers, Le Blanc says. Employers have raised wages in a bid to attract more domestic workers, while Working NB has created a new virtual job-matching platform to help boost recruitment.

In a province where 40% of agricultural workers are migrants, Ontario’s farmers are in a similar position (Statistics Canada a, 2020).

“I’m really worried about the farmers, really, really worried about them,” says Madelaine Currelly, CEO of the Community Training and Development Centre, which has locations in Peterborough and Cobourg, ON. “Some of them have been able to bring in international labour, which is what a lot of them have to do in order to survive, but the numbers are just not there where they used to be.”

Currelly is also concerned about the restaurants and shops of Cobourg’s downtown strip. She has spoken to employers who have had to lay off staff, while others have applied for federal funding to help them stay afloat. “It’s really important that the downtown is alive and well and thriving in order for the inhabitants to even have a place to go,” she says.

Cobourg, Ontario, Canada
The vitality of downtown Cobourg, ON, is essential to the town’s residents. (iStock)
Students and jobseekers

Despite labour shortages in some areas, Canada’s unemployment rate hit 13.7% in May (Statistics Canada b, 2020). This has presented a major challenge for post-secondary students relying on summer employment to pay tuition and meet program requirements. Over one-third of students have reported having a work placement cancelled or delayed, while 48% of students say they lost a job or were temporarily laid off. (Learn more about the impact of the pandemic on students in this issue’s infographic, “COVID-19 and Canada’s post-secondary students“)

While Tesarek Kincaid has continued to employ research assistants, other students have faced cancelled placements or been unable to find work. “What students have shared with me is that they’re having a hard time amidst all the uncertainty knowing where they’re going to be able to have or gain [work] opportunities,” she says. Some students – not so keen on online learning – aren’t sure whether they’ll register for the next term.

Working NB has been hearing from many students who are concerned that their inability to find work will disqualify them from financial supports for the upcoming year. LeBlanc says WorkingNB’s employment counsellors are being “bombarded” by questions that they don’t have the answers to yet; the federal government will have to provide guidance around the number of insurable hours required to qualify for different programs. “When you’re looking at the recovery of the pandemic, short-term if they have no jobs, well, long-term it means they’re not pursuing education or training, because they don’t have the money to pay for those programs,” he says.

While funding opportunities have emerged for students in response to the pandemic – most notably, the federal Canada Emergency Student Benefit –  it’s not yet clear how many students are falling through the cracks.

The long road ahead

The big question facing rural Canada right now is, what does recovery look like? In a recent report, the Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (2020) emphasized the importance of “adopting place-based approaches” to support recovery and resilience. In other words, what is needed to move forward could look different for every community.

Mondor, of Tourism HR Canada, agrees that a community lens will inform next steps. “The strategy to recover employment is not going to be sectoral, per se, it’s going to be more practically, in a very organic way, a community-led concern,” he says.

Skills and infrastructure development, including improved broadband access in rural areas, also have a role to play. Leblanc says equipping people with digital skills has become a critical need. “The unusual and unprecedented nature of the crisis means that it is not only the more educated but also the ones who are in jobs and occupations more amenable to remote work who fare better,” he says. LeBlanc would like to see the government offer digital skills training courses as well as subsidize internet access and computer costs for those who cannot afford the technology.

Northern lights over Whitehorse
Yukoners are being encouraged to be tourists in their own territory and support local businesses in cities such as Whitehorse. (iStock)

While the pandemic has undoubtedly brought many challenges to the forefront, opportunities have arisen as well. In the Yukon, with supply chains disrupted and industries hit hard, the focus has shifted to how to better support local businesses and entrepreneurs. “I think for us, it’s really just asking ourselves the question of how do we show up in a different way for our members and the broader community?” Selbee says.

This kind of reflection is emblematic of the local entrepreneurial spirit that gives Selbee hope for recovery. “Crisis often creates a lot more innovation,” she adds.

The road to recovery will be long and hard, with some communities facing more obstacles than others. However, it also evident that across rural Canada, determination and creativity are alive and well. These resources will help communities rebuild – and be prepared to withstand whatever disruptors the future will hold.

Lindsay Purchase is CERIC’s Lead, Content, Learning & Development. She is the Editor of CERIC’s tri-annual magazine, Careering, and the CareerWise website, along with the CareerWise Weekly newsletter. She is always happy to chat about article ideas: lindsay@ceric.ca.

References

Canadian Rural Revitalization Foundation (2020). Supporting rural economic recovery & resilience after COVID-19. Retrieved from http://crrf.ca/covid19/

Statistics Canada, a. (2020). The distribution of temporary foreign workers across industries in Canada. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/pub/45-28-0001/2020001/article/00028-eng.htm

Statistics Canada, b. (2020). Labour Force Survey, May 2020. Retrieved from https://www150.statcan.gc.ca/n1/daily-quotidien/200605/dq200605a-eng.htm?HPA=1

Tourism HR Canada. (n.d.). Tourism Facts. Retrieved from http://tourismhr.ca/labour-market-information/tourism-facts/

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Career Briefs

June 9, 2020By
CERIC to publish French edition of Career Theories and Models at Work

An international team of professors and doctoral students have been working on a project to translate the popular Career Theories publication into a French edition, which will be titled Théories et modèles orientés sur la carrière : des idées pour la pratique. All 43 chapters of the original book will be translated with the addition of a preface reflecting the conceptual and regulatory distinctions in career counselling practices among the Francophonie in Canada and around the world. Louis Cournoyer (University of Quebec at Montreal) is co-ordinating the French-language translation of the book, with the collaboration of Patricia Dionne (University of Sherbrooke) and Simon Viviers (Laval University). It is expected to be available for January 2021.

Learn more about the English edition of Career Theories and Models at Work at ceric.ca/theories

CCDF report highlights career development perspectives on COVID-19

In this analysis from the Canadian Career Development Foundation (CCDF), career professionals weigh in on how the pandemic has affected the field and offer recommendations to ensure the career development ecosystem is ready to respond to the significant demand that is anticipated during and post-pandemic. The report assesses the anticipated impact on:

  • Vulnerable individuals
  • Youth/young adults
  • Public employment services
  • How career/employment services are delivered
  • Career development professionals

Check out the report at ccdf.ca

CERIC issues Request for Proposals on value of career development within experiential learning

CERIC is seeking proposals from interested resource developers to gain a better understanding of the intersections between career development and experiential learning and determine how and where gaps can best be filled. In particular, CERIC’s interest in this project is to develop an easily accessible resource that supports building reflective practice for career development into an experiential learning program for anyone currently delivering or considering delivering such a program.

Deadlines for this RFP are as follows:

  • Intent to submit: June 12, 2020
  • Proposal deadline: August 6, 2020
  • Anticipated award of contract: October 15, 2020

Visit ceric.ca/rfp_experientiallearning to download the RFP

SRDC report explores youth career decision-making

A report prepared by the Social Research and Demonstration Corporation (SRDC) as part of a CERIC-supported research project aims to clarify when, where and how youth initiate and craft their career aspirations. SRDC has examined the existing literature to consider (a) the stages of youth decision-making and the key influences at each stage, (b) the role of career education in supporting post-secondary decisions, and (c) the kinds of career education resources available, taking into account the strengths and weaknesses of these sources. The research project is an empirical exploration of the long-term effects of career education interventions involving 7,000 Canadian youth in three provinces.

Read the report at ceric.ca/careereducationinyouth

Research examines parents’ role in career guidance

The Warwick Institute for Employment Research has released an international evidence report and a practice report titled The role of parents and carers in providing careers guidance and how they can be better supported. The research seeks to understand how parents and carers can be better supported by schools and colleges to feel more informed and confident with the career advice they give to their children. It includes a review of international evidence, practices and interventions, as well as interviews with practitioners and stakeholders to find out what is going on in practice. The overall aim is to identify interventions and activities that could be developed and piloted within schools and colleges.

Learn more at warwick.ac.uk

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Editor’s Note

June 9, 2020By

Flexible. Innovative. Resourceful. Creative.

This is how authors in this issue of Careering describe rural communities in Canada and the United States. While these attributes have always served rural areas well, they are especially valuable as we navigate the effects of COVID-19 on the economy and the workforce.

At CERIC, we have also had to be flexible, bringing our Spring-Summer magazine to you exclusively online – a temporary change in response to the circumstances. Planning for our Rural Workforce Development issue ­– a collaboration with the US-based National Career Development Association (NCDA)’s Career Developments magazine – was well under way by the time the coronavirus pandemic struck North America. However, the themes, successes and struggles our authors highlight from both sides of the border continue to resonate.

You will find case studies exploring how rural communities have employed creative solutions to address chronic labour shortages. Authors propose changes that are needed to ensure industries such as agriculture continue to be viable. They examine the challenges unequal broadband access poses to rural vitality as well as how to leverage online workshops to deliver career services to remote communities. This issue also looks to the future, examining trends in rural workforce development.

Right now, we need community more than ever. After reading this issue, I would encourage you to reach out to CERIC and your peers on social media. What articles did you enjoy? What did you disagree with? What do you think is the way forward for workforce development where you live? Tag us on Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn.

Take good care, and happy reading!

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10 Questions with David Blustein

June 9, 2020By

David L. Blustein is a Professor in the Department of Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology at Boston College. Blustein is the author of The Psychology of Working: A New Perspective for Career Development, Counseling, and Public Policy and a new book titled The Importance of Work in an Age of Uncertainty: The Eroding Experience of Work in America. He also has contributed numerous articles and book chapters – including a chapter in CERIC’s Career Theories and Models at Work: Ideas for Practice – on psychology of working theory, unemployment, career counselling, career development education, decent work, relationships and work, and other aspects of the role of work in people’s lives.

This article was also published in the Summer 2020 issue of the National Career Development Association’s Career Developments magazine.

In a sentence or two, describe why career development matters.

Career development matters because work is a vehicle to fulfill many of our dreams while also optimally meeting our needs for survival, power, relatedness, social contribution and self-determination.

Which book are you reading right now and why did you choose it?

I am reading Beaten Down, Worked Up: The Past, Present, and Future of American Labor by Steven Greenhouse, which can inform my efforts to advocate for effective workers’ organizations.

What was your first-ever job and what did you learn from it?

When I was 16, I worked selling and stocking shoes at a department store in Queens. My mother also worked in this store, and had to stand on her feet for many hours a day even into her late 50s. I deepened my compassion for the struggles of work during this job, which has been a lifelong lesson.

What do you do to relax and how does it help you?

I relax by walking, exercising, spending time with my family, reading and listening to music.

What do you think will be the biggest lasting change of the pandemic on work?

I think that this crisis has brought the fault lines in our work lives into a vivid sense of clarity.  As described in my recent book The Importance of Work in an Age of Uncertainty, the essence of work has changed, creating a sense of erosion in the workforce and within our inner lives. I hope that the biggest change is that our workers and public leaders will now insist on decent and dignified work for all.

What’s something you want to do in the next year that you’ve never done before?

I would like to develop an integrative intervention for unemployed adults. I am hoping to develop a workshop curriculum that can be readily used by career counsellors, vocational psychologists and employment specialists.

If you had one piece of advice for jobseekers navigating COVID-19, what would it be?

I would suggest that jobseekers develop support groups of others who can provide active assistance in the hard process of looking for work and critically needed social support.

Which talent or superpower would you like to have and how would you use it?

I wish that I could use mediation skills more easily, both in my personal life and in day-to-day interactions.

What do you consider your greatest achievement and why?

For me, developing the psychology of working framework and theory is my greatest professional accomplishment. This initiative was a dream of mine back in the 1990s – to develop a perspective that would be inclusive, integrative and transformative. With the help of amazing colleagues, we have created a movement that is integral to our field and that is particularly needed during this crisis. Even more importantly, I feel that having a wonderful family of adult daughters and a caring and loving wife is the most precious achievement of my life.

What is one way we can leverage the power of career development right now?

I think that career development needs to embrace a transformative agenda that will be inclusive of all who work and who are aspiring for a decent job that provides sustainability in a humane and safe environment.

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Case Study: Employment fit and friction in a rural creative enterprise

June 9, 2020By
In this recurring Careering feature, career professionals share their real-life solutions to common problems in the field

John Thompson

Distance is a well-known source of friction in the economic transactions between rural and urban areas, and the extent of this distance goes some way to defining what we mean by rural (Reimer & Bollman, 2010). This obviously applies to transactions involving the transport of goods but can also apply to employment transactions. When people live far from their jobs, they have to deal with the friction of commuting every day. But distance is not the only challenge when it comes to employment, especially in a small town. The issue of fit can also be a source of friction.

Consider the case of Allan Avis Architects. Located in Goderich, ON (pop. 7,000), the firm has been in business since 1993. Four years ago, Allan Avis and his partner, Jason Morgan, decided that the firm needed to hire another licensed architect. In a more urban context, this could have been a fairly easy transaction to complete. The practice was thriving, had a great reputation and had done some very innovative design work. However, achieving their goal has taken them all of those four years. The explanation lies in the challenges of both fit and friction.

‘Fit’ is about more than the workplace

“Fit” is a metaphor with a long history in career development (Inkson, Dries, & Arnold, 2015). This metaphor describes the aim of matching characteristics of the person with corresponding characteristics of the working environment. This definition works well for our purposes here, as long as we are prepared to define the “working environment” more broadly that just the workplace. For Allan Avis Architects, a candidate needed to be able to make a smooth entry into both the workplace environment and the social environment of a small town. In their experience, it is the second of these requirements that was the greatest source of friction.

Living in a small town like Goderich can be difficult for people who are accustomed to the social anonymity of larger cities. Within weeks of arriving, a newcomer will find that people know who they are. They will also be confronted by the need to keep in mind the overlapping circles of social connection. Any person they meet in any context may be socially, commercially or familially related to any other person they meet. This creates a requirement to take no one for granted and to always be conscious of making a good impression.

Past Careering Case Studies

This sort of social pressure is not for everyone, particularly newcomers who are accustomed to more distance and anonymity in their dealings with others. If they don’t like this experience, they will find it hard to fit in with the culture of the town and their workplace.

People who grow up in small towns are more accustomed to operating in this social environment. Not everyone likes it though, and many move away. However, there are people who grow up in small towns, leave for education and training, and then find themselves wanting to return to small-town life to establish their careers. These folks have been called returners (Carr & Kefalas, 2009).

This sort of social pressure is not for everyone, particularly newcomers who are accustomed to more distance and anonymity in their dealings with others. If they don’t like this experience, they will find it hard to fit in with the culture of the town and their workplace.

Job posting with a twist

All these factors created a significant hiring challenge for Avis and Morgan. First, they needed to find a trained architect with good design skills and a creative, self-motivated approach to problem-solving. Second, they needed that person to be comfortable with the social norms of a small town and thus able to integrate with minimal discomfort (or social friction). The person they hoped to hire, Avis said, was someone “at peace with themselves,” who was ready to settle into the practice of architecture in this small-town environment. What they didn’t want was someone who saw their career as an effort to get across a “never-ending series of goal lines.”

The method Avis and Morgan settled on to find such a person was to advertise the position and invite applications – but with a twist. Rather than invite qualified applicants to submit evidence of architectural competence such as a portfolio of work, they first asked them to write a letter stating why they were attracted to living in a small town. This was an interesting approach. By directing their appeal to returners, they limited their pool of potential applicants. This limitation certainly made things more challenging for them. After hiring one person who left after six months because they were not able to obtain their professional qualifications, Avis and Morgan paused their search. But after a year, their need for talent started pressing again, and they began a new search using the same approach. It took some time, but once again they were able to attract and hire a fully certified architect for the firm who has fit in very well with their environment.

Conclusions

Much has been written over the past 40 years about the importance of culture in building successful enterprises. Peters & Waterman (1982) and Collins & Porras (1994) both stressed the importance of culture in the successful companies they studied. A strong culture has the effect of limiting one’s options. This sounds like the wrong path to success, but experience suggests otherwise. Something similar may be at work in the case of Allan Avis Architects. By choosing to base their practice in Goderich, with its distance from “city markets” (Jacobs, 1961) and its small-town social environment, they limited their options when it came to attracting and hiring creative talent. But another word for limiting one’s options is focus, and one thing we are learning these days is that ability to focus on one’s work and eliminate distractions (Newport, 2016) is a key determinant of success in any creative enterprise.

John Thompson is a career counsellor living in Goderich, ON. He holds a PhD in Human Development and Applied Psychology. Immediately prior to starting his encore career in career development, he was a freelance rural economic development researcher. He can be reached at Lifespan Employment Coaching and Counselling (lifespan-employment.ca).

References

Carr, P. and Kefalas, M. (2009). Hollowing out the middle: The rural brain drain and what it means for America. New York: Beacon Press.

Collins, J. & Porras, J. (1994). Built to last: Successful habits of visionary companies. New York, NY: HarperBusiness.

Inkson, K, Dries, N., and Arnold, J. (2015). Understanding careers. Second Edition. Los Angeles, CA: Sage Publications.

Jacobs, J. (1985). Cities and the wealth of nations: Principles of economic life. New York, NY: Vintage.

Newport, C. (2016). Deep work: Rules for focused success in a distracted world. New York: Grand Central Publishing.

Peters, T. & Waterman, R. (1982). In search of excellence: Lessons from America’s best run companies. New York, NY: Harper & Row.

Reimer, B. and Bollman, R.D. (2010). Understanding rural Canada: Implications for rural development policy and rural planning policy. In D. Douglas (Ed.) Rural planning and development in Canada, Toronto, ON: Nelson Education Ltd., pp. 10-52.

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