Silicon Halton Meetup #30 

Are We Creating the Next Generation of IT Professionals and Leaders?
Did you know for every seven engineering and IT job opportunities there's only one post secondary graduate qualified to do the job?
Aging demographics combined with the lack of interest in tech related careers among today's youth in the Toronto region poses problems and opportunities for Silicon Halton members.
Come listen, learn and engage with key leaders and advisors of the ground breaking IT labour market study: RESEARCH & INNOVATION JOBS, Opportunities and challenges in the Toronto Region Labour Market by the Toronto Region Research Alliance.
In this session, the TRRA's Leyden Fonte will share this study's key findings and what it means for Toronto's business and IT labour markets.
Rita Fundner of the Canadian Coalition for Tomorrow's ICT Skills will then speak to the importance of integrating business and IT knowledge and skill-sets to meet the regional, and indeed, the global economy's requirements for business growth. Specifically they will address:
- Where are the market opportunities for tech companies and career opportunities tech professionals
- What should we be doing to prepare ourselves, our companies and our industry?
- What should we be thinking of and advocating to our youth about the potential technology represents to them professionally and personally?
Presenters
Leyden M. Fonte is a seasoned researcher and project manager for business intelligence. With several executive and research awards, and dozens of publications and reports, she is now adviser for several Canadian organizations. Her most recent project 'Research & Innovation Jobs' created new ways to analyze labour markets' gaps and opportunities, with direct economic implications. Its findings have been welcomed by local government, businesses and academia, sparking a national debate in the Canadian press and radio.
Rita Fundner is the Managing Director of the Canadian Coalition for Tomorrow's ICT Skills (CCICT). Rita brings with her 30 years of public and private sector expertise in IT and human resources. She has led large scale change initiatives in project and program management for the Ontario Public Service, and was a founding member of Toronto's first IT security communication practice for the major Canadian banks.
Labels: burlington, Georgetown, halton hills, halton region, milton, oakville, Silicon Halton, siliconhalton
Event Organizer: Chris Herbert (CMO of Mi6. Mi6 creates B2B social networks & communities that build reputations, generate results and make markets.)