Intercultural Digital Hospitality Skills Accelerator Project
Upskilling hospitality workers, diversifying the workforce and increasing business competitiveness.
Project Overview
Updated March 25, 2026.
The Problem
British Columbia’s hospitality industry is highly competitive and constantly evolving with a growing demand for workers with digital skills post the COVID-19 pandemic. Upskilling existing hospitality workers, as well as addressing the need to diversify the industry’s workforce, is critical to its ongoing competitiveness.
How We Are Solving It
Led by the Surrey Board of Trade, this program provides foundational and functional digital skills training to under-represented and racialized individuals seeking employment opportunities or transitioning to employment in the digital hospitality industry. Participants in B.C.’s Metro Vancouver/Coast, Fraser Valley, Thompson-Okanagan and Vancouver Island regions are able to obtain skills through intercultural digital hospitality training followed by supported work experiences.
The program seeks to address workforce challenges in the hospitality industry while improving digital skills of workers, diversifying the workforce and increasing business competitiveness through the following areas of focus:
- Fostering intercultural understanding by providing opportunities for workers from diverse backgrounds to learn from each other, share experiences and develop greater cultural awareness.
- Upskilling workers in digital technologies and tools to increase employability and support career growth.
- Supporting diversity in the industry and employment of underrepresented groups, specifically immigrants, women, Indigenous peoples and visible minorities.
- Enhancing business competitiveness by improving digital capabilities and competencies in digital marketing, e-commerce and customer relationship management.
- Creating a self-sustaining ecosystem that can continue to support the development of digital skills in the hospitality industry.
The Result
DIGITAL’s co-investment supported the development and delivery of a program that combined hospitality training with foundational digital skills, helping underrepresented individuals access employment opportunities in British Columbia’s evolving hospitality sector.
Beginning in 2023, the initiative provided training to over 120 participants across the Metro Vancouver/Coast, Fraser Valley, Thompson–Okanagan, and Vancouver Island regions, with just under 100 participants successfully graduating. Following program completion, 80% of graduates secured employment or continued their education and training, demonstrating strong outcomes in connecting participants with career pathways in the hospitality and service economy.
The program was designed to address both workforce shortages and the sector’s increasing reliance on digital tools by integrating digital literacy, employment readiness training, and hands-on practicum experience. Wraparound supports were provided to reduce barriers to participation and improve access for individuals facing challenges entering the workforce.
The initiative expanded in 2025 to reach nearly 200 additional participants across six regions in British Columbia, including the Kootenay, Metro Vancouver/Coast, Fraser Valley, Thompson–Okanagan, Vancouver Island, and Prince George regions. The program focused on equipping newcomers, Indigenous participants, women, and visible minorities with digital and intercultural competencies increasingly required in the hospitality sector.
Delivered across both urban and rural communities, the project improved equitable access to digital upskilling opportunities in smaller labour markets while helping employers address persistent workforce shortages. Within six months of program completion, more than 50% of participants secured employment, contributing to workforce recovery in a sector significantly impacted by pandemic-related disruptions.
Through collaboration with more than 30 hiring organizations and 75 community and employer partners, the initiative strengthened connections between employers, training providers, and community organizations. By equipping participants with practical digital and workplace skills while supporting inclusive hiring pathways, the project helped build a more resilient, diverse, and digitally capable hospitality workforce in British Columbia.
Project Lead
Project Partners
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"BC’s hospitality industry is highly competitive and constantly evolving with a growing demand for workers with digital skills post-pandemic. Upskilling existing hospitality workers, as well as addressing the need to diversify the industry’s workforce, is critical to its ongoing competitiveness.”
President & CEO, Surrey Board of Trade -
“Supporting equity and diversity within Canada’s technology sector is crucial to our country’s continued growth and prosperity. We’re proud to support organizations like the Surrey Board of Trade in improving the digital skills of hospitality workers, diversifying the workforce and increasing business competitiveness in these regions.”
Director, Digital Learning Lab at DIGITAL -
"Western Community College is committed to reshaping communities through fast-tracking digital hospitality skills training and cultivating digital proficiency in the hospitality industry."
President, Western Community College