New partnership equips underrepresented groups with skills to succeed in tech

Elevate has partnered with Ted Rogers School of Management’s Business Career Hub to develop and deliver micro-credential programs that provide skills training for talent from underrepresented communities.

Elevate is a non-profit powered by Canadians that builds and unites world-class innovators through tech training courses, entrepreneurship programs and industry-leading events at the intersection of technology, arts and social innovation.

In June 2021, the company received $6.15 million from the Government of Canada and the City of Toronto to help create Elevate Talent (external link, opens in new window) , a job training and work placement program designed to reskill and place individuals from underrepresented communities in the tech and innovation sectors. Elevate is partnering with community, learning and hiring organizations to deliver programming that supports and includes communities that have been disproportionately affected by the pandemic to ensure that the emerging tech industry reflects Canada's diverse society.

The Ted Rogers School was chosen as one of the partners for this initiative. Under this partnership, the school’s Business Career Hub (BCH) has been supporting the Elevate Talent team in developing and delivering the Digital Foundations Program and the Business Process Automation Program with Microsoft Power Apps. 

“The Business Career Hub is excited to partner with Elevate Talent,” says Graham Sogawa, Executive Director, BCH. “Bootcamps at the Ted Rogers School have helped more than 40,000 undergraduate students receive training and credentials on technology platforms coveted by the industry. This partnership provides participants with fast access to industry-relevant training.”

Partnership origins 

Ted Rogers School launched a pre-pilot of the Elevate Talent program a year ago. Before the program’s official launch, Elevate piloted their Salesforce for All course with the support of Ted Rogers School’s Advanced Digital and Professional Training (ADaPT) team (opens in new window)  (ADaPT is facilitated by the school’s Diversity Institute and TECHNATION, funded by the Government of Canada’s Future Skills Centre). Following the success of this pilot, the school partnered with the non-profit on their official launch to build out the Digital Foundations program, working with them to create the Microsoft Power Apps course. 

“The main goal of the partnership was to be able to provide career starters and upskillers from underrepresented groups with more opportunities for exposure to programming that would set them up for success in their careers,” says Kevin Barton, Senior Vice President at Elevate Talent.  “In addition, we were able to provide professional development opportunities for Ted Rogers School students by employing them as instructors and program designers for the courses.”

Elevate chose to partner with the Ted Rogers School because of its focus on diversity and inclusion within the school. “The school had already begun some strong work through the Diversity Institute and started applying that to career-focused programming in their Business Career Hub,” explains Barton. “The alignment was perfect for what we were trying to build through Elevate Talent.” 

Participants

Elevate Talent is a 90-day program that gives underrepresented talent access to the tech industry through certified training programs (external link, opens in new window) , one-to-one support and job placement opportunities. The program is designed for three types of participants:

• The “Upskiller”: Someone with technical skills that can benefit from retraining and building the soft skills for tech, like verbal and written communication. 
• The “Career Starter": Someone new to the tech field, who can benefit from learning technical skills and improving their soft skills to get their first step into the tech space.
• The "Newcomer" to Canada: Someone with digital and technical exposure, who can benefit from support in upskilling and building their confidence in the Canadian workforce. 

The program has received positive feedback so far. Chizoba Exeibe, who participated in the Elevate Talent program, says, “Most people feel that once they come to Canada, they have to do a degree. This [program] was something I could do in the short timeframe that would equip me with the skills I need to excel in the marketplace. I'm glad this came my way.”

Elevate Talent programs developed and delivered by BCH 

The Digital Foundations course teaches learners the fundamentals of key tools they would need to succeed in a digital career, including best practices in the Microsoft Office Suite, Google Suite and video-conferencing. This provides a foundation for anyone wanting to take one of the Elevate Talent training courses, and allows them to foster a more inclusive environment by giving everyone the tools they need to succeed right at the start of the program. The program is delivered by Ted Rogers Co-op students and offers six two-hour sessions over two weeks.

The Business Process Automation Program (renamed to Lean Process Improvement) teaches learners how to combine lean six sigma concepts with process automation. The Ted Rogers School built out the process automation component of the course with Elevate Talent, teaching learners how to digitize processes using Microsoft Power Apps. The program is taught by Ted Rogers School Bootcamp facilitators and offers four three-hour sessions over six weeks. The BCH distributes a co-branded digital credential to participants who successfully complete the program.

“With the rapid shift to online work, being able to efficiently manage business processes in a digital environment is an important skill for everyone to have in today's workforce,” says Barton. “Similarly, many companies are hiring continuous improvement managers and process improvement engineers to support the continuous improvement of business processes. This course helps to train people for job opportunities in these areas.”