Micro-credentials are increasingly regarded as a potential way to meet the challenge of training our workforce for a fast-changing economy and the changes wrought by technical innovation, precarious jobs, global competition, climate change, and the pandemic. But will employers recognize and reward micro-credentials as a validation of workforce skills? Employer investment in Canada’s workforce development has declined in recent decades, falling by 40% from the 1990s to the early 2010s. Micro-credentials may be a route for industry to change course, driving more employer investment in workers’ skills through efficient, flexible, targeted and cost-effective training. Ultimately, the success of micro-credentials will need to go beyond the courses or institutions offering them, but will need to result in tangible rewards and recognition from industry and employers. Join Tricia Williams of the Future Skills Centre, who will share how we’re investing in employer-engagement in micro credentials, and assessing the results for workers and workplaces, drawing on examples from sectors such as mining and aerospace.
