October 19, 2017 | A report released today by Startup Canada, the national rallying community and voice for Canadian entrepreneurs, explores the importance of next-generation skills and technologies in the advancement of Canadian small businesses. The report reveals that 73 per cent of small business owners (SBOs) list digital skills among their top three priorities. Additionally, 29 per cent of Canadian SBOs do not believe the current workforce possesses the right digital skills to help start and grow their companies.
DIGITAL SKILLS GAP OUTLINED AS TOP CONCERN
One of the largest challenges facing Canadian SBOs today is the presence of a digital skills gap. The report found that in order to remain competitive and increase revenue, SBOs need higher digital skills amongst their employees. With rapid change of technology, many SBOs are seeing themselves fall behind on the newest digital trends. The top five skills SBOs indicated needing to improve are: digital marketing, social media, data analytics, programming, web development and web design skills.
IMPROVED DIGITAL EDUCATION IS TOP RECOMMENDATION
According to a report by released by the World Economic Forum, by 2020, more than one-third of the desired core skill-sets of most occupations will be comprised of skills that are not yet considered crucial to the job market today. The two problems outlined in the report are the ongoing divide between the study of Humanities and Sciences in post secondary institutions as well as the divide between theory and applied hands-on training.
The Startup Canada report found these educational divides are contributing to a digital skills gap, making it difficult for SBOs to find qualified employees. It recommends that businesses work closely alongside government and educational institutions to implement a 21st century curriculum that will better prepare the SBOs of the future with the necessary skillsets to build successful companies.
QUOTES
“Digital literacy is so important in the success of small and medium sized enterprises, said Victoria Lennox, CEO and Co-Founder of Startup Canada. “We need to make sure that the next generation of workers are properly equipped with the necessary skills and education in order for Canada to remain a global competitor.”
“Mid-to-advanced level competencies in digital skills is lacking,” said an SBO working in the Information Technology sector. “There is lots of base knowledge in our work force but very little real expertise and real-world application experience of those skills. School is not enough, we need people who have tried new technologies before in a real-world environment.”
“The way customers buy services are evolving [and] any company in our industry that does not acquire basic social media, communication and digital production skills is fated to stagnate at best,” said an SBO identifying himself as working in the Resources sector.
Find quotes from entrepreneurs within the report here.
For more information, contact:
Lindsay Bright
Communications, Marketing and Digital Production Administrator, Startup Canada
Lindsay.Bright@StartupCan.ca
613-791-1743
About the Research
To better understand the digital skills gap present in Canadian small business owners, Startup Canada, the national rallying community and voice for Canadian entrepreneurs engaged over 400 SBOs to conduct a study outlining the importance of next generation skills and technologies in the advancement of Canadian owned small businesses. The third in a four part series, this report highlights the current technological skills gap present in the Canadian workforce and outlines what next-generation skills SBOs need to adopt in order to remain competitive in today’s digital global economy.