Call for Proposals in CareerTech
Expression of Interest (EOI) submissions closed.
Advancing workforce development through digital innovation.
CareerTech solutions, including EdTech, bridge the gap in preparing workers to enter and thrive in high-growth careers while helping companies fill and hire critical positions. As part of our priority in building a highly skilled and connected Canada, this call for proposals is aimed at accelerating the development of these digital tools and technologies that support job–placement and career growth for Canadian workers and jobseekers.
DIGITAL is co-investing up to $10M from Canada’s Global Innovation Cluster program to result in at least $20M of new investment in CareerTech solutions that leverage technologies (such as AI, IoT, XR, Blockchain, Quantum Computing) to address global workforce development challenges.
These investments will help Canadian companies find the diverse talent they need to succeed, scale and widen their impact while gaining market adoption of CareerTech solutions both within Canada and internationally. Concurrently, more Canadians will be able to access critical learning and job-placement supports and opportunities. Projects in this stream will bridge the gap between industry requirements and workforce capabilities, ensuring a robust and adaptive economy ready to meet the challenges of the future.
Areas of interest for proposed tools and technologies within the CareerTech call for proposals include and may contain a combination of:
Labour Market Information
Using, triaging and deriving insights from Labour Market Information to allow for accurate and evolutive insights into in-demand jobs and skills.
Skills Assessments
Helping learners identify their strengths and opportunities for growth through skills assessments and competency frameworks, guiding them on the best pathway to acquire the skills needed for the job market.
Skills-Based Training
Skill or competency-based training that accurately target the evolving needs of industries, enabling individuals to continuously adapt and learn new skills required by a fast-changing work environment.
Credentials
Developing and/or delivering consistent, quality credentialing with high portability and relevance for learners and employers alike.
Job Placement
Helping people land, retain, or advance their careers, supported by employers adopting skills-based practices in both hiring and career development initiatives. This can include work-integrated learning placements, apprenticeships, wrap-arounds and job-matching supports.
Proposed projects are to:
- Result in the commercialization, proliferation and adoption of new and innovative Canadian-owned CareerTech solutions aligned with or complementary to the Areas of Interest cited above.
- Have a projected completion date by December 31, 2027. There is no minimum or maximum project size, although funds are subject to availability and will be competitively distributed across projects that demonstrate high potential and evaluation against the goals of the call.
- Support the scaling of high potential, growth oriented Canadian CareerTech companies, support employers in bridging the talent gap, and support workers and job-seekers in their career growth.
- Advance equity, diversity, and inclusion by increasing participation and support for underrepresented groups.
- Be enabled by an industry-led consortium of at least three organizations comprised of a potential customer (such as an employer); a research or post-secondary academic institution; and an employment or community organization. One of the project partners must be a CareerTech company. Projects may be a combination of one or more of the following:
- Follow-on opportunities to support the commercialization, adoption and propagation of career technology solutions that were developed with prior investment from DIGITAL;
- Early commercialization and adoption of existing Canadian-owned career technology solutions in new target markets (i.e., international expansion, adjacent markets);
- Improvements or new developments to address verified product/market fit gaps for the purposes of commercialization and adoption of the career technology solution, or;
- Creation of new consortia and networks to support proliferation and impact of the career technology solution.
- Meet the other eligibility requirements and have a high scoring against the Evaluation Criteria cited in the Program Guide below.
CareerTech Program & Co-Investment Guidelines
- PROGRAM GUIDE (EN)
- DOWNLOAD THE CAREERTECH PROGRAM GUIDE (v2 - EN)
- CO-INVESTMENT GUIDELINES (EN)
- DOWNLOAD THE CO-INVESTMENT GUIDELINES (v2 - EN)
- PROGRAM GUIDE (FR)
- DOWNLOAD THE CAREERTECH PROGRAM GUIDE (v2 - FR)
- CO-INVESTMENT GUIDELINES (FR)
- DOWNLOAD THE CO-INVESTMENT GUIDELINES (v2 - FR)
We emphasize a collaborative approach to innovation where groups of complementary organizations work together to build strong and impactful solutions to big problems. As such, proposed projects are expected to have solid alignment with our Areas of Interest and the right mix of organizational capabilities to meet our program objectives of innovation, commercialization and benefits to Canada.
After reviewing the above co-investment and program guidelines, you may submit your project concept through the link to the right. Only qualified applicants will be invited to submit an Full Project Proposal (FPP).
Expression of Interest (EOI) submissions closed.
Upon request, we are available to help potential applicants further understand the objectives of this call for proposals and the eligibility criteria for a proposed project. Please email our team at DigitalLearningLab@digitalsupercluster.ca