Strengthening Human Resources in Agriculture

Transcription

1 Strengthening Human Resources in Agriculture Annual Report

2 For additional copies or to provide feedback on the Council s annual report, please contact: Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council Algoma Road, Ottawa, ON K1B 3W7 Telephone: Toll-free: Fax: info@cahrc-ccrha.ca The report may also be downloaded from All rights reserved. Reproduction of this publication in part or in whole, without written permission of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council, is prohibited. Photo of farmed mussels courtesy of Fisheries and Oceans Canada CAHRC.

3 Annual Report Strengthening Human Resources in Agriculture Annual Report

4 Message from the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Congratulations once again to the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council for the work you do for farmers and the entire primary agriculture sector. The Government of Canada is working hard to help farmers innovate and be competitive through Economic Action Plan 2012, the Growing Forward initiative, and other key Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada programs. We re working with the provinces, territories and industry to shape the next agriculture policy framework, focussing on investments in innovation, competiveness, market opportunities, adaptability and sustainability. Your achievements this past year complement these efforts. In particular, the completion of the Council s Agriculture Going Global workshops and training modules will ensure potential agriculture exporters are equipped with the resources they need to sell their product internationally. Global markets play an important role for Canada's agriculture and food sector, with many producers and processors exporting from 50 to 85 per cent of their production. I encourage farming entrepreneurs to review the Council s Going Global materials to increase their understanding of international trade and foreign markets. Like you, our goal is always to set the right conditions for farmers and processors to compete and succeed. I look forward to our continued collaboration and wish you another productive year. The Honourable Gerry Ritz, P.C., M.P.

5 Message from the Chair of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council Iconsider to be a turning point for our organization. We have made great strides to strengthen human resources in agriculture by adding customized solutions to the workforce. We have also built a solid reputation as the source for agriculture labour market information amongst industry, academic institutions, governments, and other organizations. These achievements are demonstrated throughout this annual report as we explain the research reports, human resource tools, and relevant training guides and programs that were completed over the past year. However, the Council is facing its own challenges. In July 2011, we learned that the Sector Council Program would no longer be in place after March 2013, and that our projects would be considered for funding through a grants and contributions program focused on: gathering and sharing labour market intelligence; and developing national occupational standards and related certification and/or accreditation initiatives. As the primary funder of our projects, as well as CAHRC office operations, the ending of the Sector Council Program is driving us to take a new approach to funding and the way we address agriculture s HR management needs in the future. In the same way that CAHRC has tackled the tough challenges facing agriculture, we are already on a course to respond and adjust to these new realities: by demonstrating leadership in our Board; by securing partnerships and alternative sources of funding; and by remaining relevant to farmers and our other stakeholders. Strong leadership includes the head of our Council s team. The past year has seen some changes in this regard. We were fortunate to have Christine Mercier assume the post of Executive Director at CAHRC for 10 months to provide us with continuity. Through Christine s guidance, the Council developed a number of meaningful products for the sector. We were also pleased to have Portia MacDonald-Dewhirst begin as our new Executive Director at the end of the fiscal year. Portia has a wealth of experience in strategic HR management consulting for the private and not-for-profit sectors. She has developed useful human resource tools, guides, training modules, and strategies for various sectors over the course of her career, including for other sector councils. Portia will continue the tradition of leading initiatives to ensure the agriculture industry is well supported in its human resource management needs. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE iii

6 This is the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council s fifth annual report. I am proud of the many achievements that we have made and the important steps that we have taken to secure partnerships with federal and provincial governments and organizations in the academic, private sector, and not-for-profit sectors. This includes completing the first project that was funded by one of our partners: the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association. On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to thank the management and staff of the Council for their dedication, commitment, and accomplishments. It has been a very successful year with many meaningful results. I would also like to thank a few representatives on our Board of Directors who departed this past year for their advice and contributions to our work: Ron Bonnett of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture (CFA); Corey Bacon of the Canadian Honey Council (CHC); and Shawna Ference of the Canadian Young Farmers Forum (CYFF). The Council relies strongly on the active support and leadership of its Board of Directors, and we welcome new representatives from these organizations to our Board: Humphrey Banack from the CFA; Grant Hicks from the CHC; and Jonathan Stockall from the CYFF. Leadership, partnership, and relevance these fundamental principles guided our organization over this year of transition, and they will continue to guide us for years to come. Thank you for your contributions to the success of CAHRC and our efforts to address the labour, human resource, skills development, and training issues of Canada s famers. Together, we will continue to accomplish our mission for the agriculture community. Mervin Wiseman iv CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

7 Table of Contents VISION, MISSION AND ACTION PLAN... 1 ACCOMPLISHMENTS... 2 Employment... 2 Skills and Training... 5 HR Solutions... 8 Communications Governance FINANCIAL STATEMENTS MESSAGE FROM THE EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR INSTITUTIONAL STRUCTURE Board of Directors Organization Chart THE COUNCIL S MODEL STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE v

8 Vision, Mission and Action Plan The vision of the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council is a qualified and motivated workforce that is sufficient to sustain profitable agriculture in Canada. To achieve this goal, the Council has a mission to research, develop, and communicate solutions to the human resource requirements of the Canadian agriculture sector. The Council s mission is guided by five activity areas: Identifying Employment solutions to build Canada s agriculture labour force; Advancing the Skills and Training of employers and employees; Increasing Awareness of agriculture s HR issues and CAHRC s initiatives; Ensuring CAHRC is Representative, Responsive, Connected and Results-Based; and Operating CAHRC in a Fiscally Responsible manner. The first two activity areas are increasingly being combined to help connect Skilled and Trained Workers with the Employment Needs of Canada s primary agriculture sector. Operate CAHRC in a Fiscally Responsible manner Ensure CAHRC is Representative, Responsive, Connected and Results-Based Increase Awareness of agriculture s HR issues and CAHRC s initiatives Identify Employment solutions to build Canada s agriculture labour force Advance the Skills and Training of employers and employees Connect Skilled and Trained Workers with the Employment Needs of Canada s primary agriculture sector The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council s annual report is a summary of the work undertaken and completed by the Council over the past year in each of these activity areas. The report also contains the results of CAHRC s financial audit. 1 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

9 Accomplishments Identifying Employment solutions to build Canada s agriculture labour force The sustainability of Canada s agriculture sector is dependent on an adequate supply of qualified workers. Providing farmers with the human resource tools they need to manage on-farm employees, including the selection and retention of their workers, is an important solution to current labour challenges. Defining the occupational standards and essential skills required of agriculture workers is another critical element to supporting employers, as it provides them, as well as potential employees, with an understanding of the skills and knowledge required for specific jobs in primary agriculture. The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council has been working to create an HR toolkit that responds to the unique recruitment, retention, and training needs of agriculture employers. The Council has also been working to fully understand the occupations of the agriculture workforce by profiling specific on-farm occupations, including the essential skills and competencies of workers, in two areas: manager in primary agriculture; and agricultural occupational health and safety specialist. In , CAHRC made significant progress on its Agricultural HR Toolkit project. This initiative was undertaken to develop customized, practical human resource tools for agriculture employers based on existing HR management tools used in Canada and elsewhere around the world. It also involves building an understanding of the tools required by farmers to ensure that they adopt sound human resource management practices when managing employees such as recruiting and selecting workers, and creating training and retention strategies. Over the past year, extensive research was completed to review and collect information on present-day agriculture HR tools, such as: human resource planning techniques; recruitment, selection, and hiring strategies; employee engagement and retention approaches; and resources used to hire, or to facilitate the hiring of, foreign workers. This information was then assessed against the human resource needs identified by agriculture producers in previous Council projects to determine any gaps in the available HR tools. Key stakeholder informants were also interviewed to determine their views on the skills and knowledge needed by producers in agriculture HR management. Based on the research, analysis, and stakeholder interviews, a draft toolkit was developed for farmers to validate and test in the field. In February 2012, the first focus group was held in Moose Jaw with seven agriculture producers and two provincial Ministry of Agriculture representatives. Other focus groups and one-on-one telephone interviews will be conducted in to ensure comprehensive field testing of the draft toolkit by farmers across Canada and in various agricultural commodities. Based on the feedback received during testing, the Council will adjust and finalize the toolkit, and promote its availability to agriculture producers. The Agricultural HR Toolkit project directly responds to the requests of agriculture employers for HR materials to help them recruit and retain workers as identified during the Council s 2009 Labour Market Information on Recruitment and Retention project. Employer competence in human resource management was also uncovered in CAHRC s New Markets and Future Skills in Agriculture initiative as a key driver for success in new markets. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 2

10 Near the end of , the Council began a new project to develop a National Occupational Standard and Essential Skills Profile for the occupation of Manager in Primary Agriculture. This occupational standard will correspond to three new occupations described in the National Occupational Classification 2011: Manager in Agriculture (0821); Manager in Horticulture (0822); and Manager in Aquaculture (0823). An occupational standard defines the scope of a specific work position and the knowledge and skills individuals must possess to demonstrate their competence in the occupation. An occupational standard is thus a valuable industry reference or benchmarking tool that may be used to support the development or revision of: training programs and learning tools; certification programs; criteria for prior learning assessment and recognition; and criteria to assist in the selection, training, and management of employees. The development of the national occupational standard and essential skills profile for the manager position in primary agriculture will involve the participation of industry in the national occupational analysis and standards development workshop. A broad group of industry stakeholders will also participate in the review and validation. How will the project results be used in the future? Primary agriculture employers and prospective on-farm managers will have the information they need about the skills and knowledge required to be a primary agriculture manager. This will facilitate the hiring of qualified managers and will inform the career choices made by on-farm workers interested in assuming a management position. Why is this project relevant to agriculture today? National occupational standards facilitate worker mobility and build employer confidence in the competence of newly hired employees. These standards also inform academic and training institutions when they are developing or revising learning programs and tools, including certification and credentialing programs. 3 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

11 In , CAHRC was contracted by the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association to manage the development of a National Occupational Standard and Essential Skills profile for the Agricultural Occupational Health and Safety Specialist. To complete this initiative, the Council formed an industry advisory group to guide the project s progress and to bring industry perspective to the project s outcomes. Stakeholders were then notified of the Council s intent to develop a national occupational standard for this profession to ensure that a similar initiative was not presently underway or had not be undertaken in the past. The notice of intent was widely distributed to stakeholders, in addition to being posted on the CAHRC and Canadian Agricultural Safety Association websites. A National Occupational Analysis was conducted over two days in December 2011 with eight subject matter experts from: the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association, Cargill Canada, and Keystone Agricultural Producers in Manitoba; the Workers Compensation Board in Prince Edward Island; CS New Frontiers in Quebec; WorkSafe British Columbia; Oxford Frozen Foods in Nova Scotia; and the Nova Scotia Government. During the first day, participants defined the scope of the occupation, established general areas of competencies, and defined tasks and essential skills. On the second day, participants determined the subtasks, skills, and knowledge specific to each task identified on the previous day. The results of the analysis session were incorporated into the first draft of the occupational standard and circulated to the participants for further review and comment. A full stakeholder review and validation of the draft standard was then conducted using a validation survey and the national occupational analysis. Stakeholders included individuals who currently work or have worked as an agricultural occupational health and safety specialist, or have been involved in training, supervising or inspecting occupational health and safety practices on the farm. To complete the survey, participants named the five most important tasks and the five least important tasks identified in the national occupational analysis, as well as the best place to learn how to perform each task: on the job from experienced mentors; on the job self-taught; information training through short courses and/or workshops; or formal training at college or university. Survey respondents were also asked to provide the province and numbers of years they had worked in agricultural occupational health and safety, as well as their contact information. Using the validation survey results received from one American and 22 Canadian stakeholders, the national occupational standard and essential skills profile for this position was finalized. The Council submitted the final standard to the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association on March 9, Since its launch in November 2010, the Council has maintained an online database of national, regional, and provincial not-for-profit and publicly funded farm organizations and commodity groups. Known as agriguide.ca, the database is searchable by association type and agriculture commodity and each search result contains a short description of the organization and full contact information. A print copy of Agriguide: the Directory of Canadian Agriculture Associations may also be purchased from the CAHRC e-store. In , CAHRC contacted all of the associations listed in the directory to determine how these organizations could best help the Council retain up-to-date information. As a result, unique login features were created for agriguide.ca to allow individual organizations to update and maintain their information profile in the future. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 4

12 Advancing the Skills and Training of employers and employees To remain competitive in today s economy, Canada s agriculture workforce must have the right skills and know-how to do their jobs. This involves providing farmers with the learning materials they need to prepare their operations for new marketing and production opportunities and to train their workers for the tasks required in diverse agriculture occupations. It also means promoting a culture of ongoing learning within the agriculture sector. The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council has been developing training resources for agriculture producers who may be interested in exporting their products. The Council has also been working to understand the knowledge, skills, and abilities required of farmers who may be considering the production of on-farm energy. In addition, CAHRC has been expanding its on-the-job training tools for the ornamental sector using interactive and mobile technologies. In , the Council completed its Agriculture Going Global project. This initiative entailed developing learning materials and other resources to help potential agriculture exporters ready their operations and product for international markets. It was completed by CAHRC in partnership with the Forum for International Trade Training. Four training modules featuring sector-specific examples of agriculture products being marketed internationally were created as a result of this project. Each training module includes a reference guide, trainer PowerPoint presentation, and trainer manual, which are presented as three-hour workshops covering the following topics: Opportunity Identification: to help farmers assess market opportunities internationally; An Introduction to International Marketing: to discuss ways for producers to manage the flow of goods in the most efficient manner; Getting Your Product to Market: to help farmers discover the principles of marketing and the issues related to marketing and selling products or services overseas; and An Introduction to International Trade Finance: to ensure producers learn about key elements of trade finance such as export costing, payment methods, and risk insurance. The Council also prepared a comprehensive information package featuring website resource links and contact information for people and organizations with expertise in the above-noted topic areas as a supplement to the training modules. The primary agriculture industry played a key role in the development of the training workshop tools by testing the materials and providing constructive feedback used to improve and finalize the materials. More than 40 industry representatives participated in one of four stakeholder sessions held in Abbotsford, Regina, Guelph, and Truro in CAHRC also consulted industry and other key organizations in order to identify partnership opportunities to facilitate the delivery of the Going Global training materials to agriculture entrepreneurs. This included provincial and local economic development agencies, universities, and colleges who already offer courses in international market development, as well as provincial governments and producer/commodity organizations. To promote the workshops and encourage organizations to host a training session, the Council devoted a section of their website for agriculture exporters and produced a promotional video trailer. CAHRC also announced the availability of the workshops by issuing a news release to agricultural trade and Canadian community newspapers and posting Facebook and Twitter messages to inform the Council s social media followers. The Agriculture Going Global workshops will help farmers make crucial exporting decisions, avoid common pitfalls, and increase their understanding of international trade and foreign markets. Each three-hour workshop may easily be delivered during a conference breakout session, in-house training seminar or other industry event. The 5 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

13 workshops are also designed for use by a range of trainers, including export service providers, educational institutions, industry associations, and private companies. CAHRC intends to use the results of this project over the long term to initiate a network that connects agriculture producers interested in exporting to international markets with experts who can facilitate access to current export information. * * * * * * In , the Council completed its On-the-job Training Tools for the Ornamental Sector, Phase II Workplace Video project, which shows employers how to use the job instruction method to teach new and experienced workers how to complete work tasks on-site. The 10-minute video and mobile application focus on the tasks outlined in the Council s On-the-job Reference Guide for Landscape Horticulturists. These easy-to-use tools are intended to instruct employers on how to use the learn by doing approach when teaching workers new skills and tasks. The tools also provide employers in the ornamental sector with a safe and standardized approach to training. CAHRC produced 500 DVDs containing the English and French versions of the videos and the On-the-job Training for Landscape Horticulturists Reference Guide on installing and maintaining hardscape and softscape. The DVDs were available for purchase from the Council s e-store on February 1, The mobile apps are also available for download from itunes and Google Play (android market). To promote the use of the training videos and the on-the-job training method, CAHRC produced a 30-second trailer for its website, tweeted the news on its Twitter account, and posted a message on its Facebook page. The Council also sent a letter to provincial landscaping associations requesting that they post the trailer to promote the training videos. * * * * * * Near the end of , the Council began a new project to create Competency Profiles for Energy Subsector Businesses. Specifically, CAHRC is seeking to establish competency profiles outlining the skills and knowledge required of farmers who produce green energy on their farms, such as biogas/biodigesters, ethanol, biodiesel, and biomass production systems. The project will include the development of self-assessment tools that enable farmers to evaluate their competencies in this area, as well as fact sheets to publicize key competencies related to on-farm energy production systems and a comprehensive report featuring aggregate data to measure the proficiency of the sector as it pertains to on-farm energy systems. The Competency Profiles for Energy Subsector Businesses project builds on the results of the Council s New Markets and Future Skills in Agriculture project (completed in 2010), which identified the competencies required of farmers in three emerging market areas, including on-farm and off-farm energy production. How will the project results be used in the future? Primary agriculture employers will have the tools they need to evaluate their capacity to integrate and maintain on-farm energy production systems. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 6

14 Why is this project relevant to agriculture today? Farmers continually seek out new markets to expand and enhance their businesses and increase profits. The demand for green energy, combined with the carbon costs of using non-renewable energy, have resulted in a growing interest for manufacturing energy on the farm. The results of this project will ensure agriculture producers have the right skills and knowledge to produce on-farm energy. In , the Council continued to update and populate its bilingual database of agriculture learning programs and courses offered by education institutions and training providers across Canada. This effort yields positive results, as interest in agritalent.ca has increased every year since it was launched in June For example,: More than 5,300 unique visitors were recorded in , increasing from just under 5,000 unique visitors in , and 3,815 in ; More than 25% of visitors return to the site; Close to 41,000 pages were viewed, up by 5,000 from last year s total; Between five and six pages were visited by the average browser, with the average time spent on the site about three minutes and 20 seconds; and Visits continue to be made throughout the year, with a slight increase recorded around the month of June. The 2011 summer/fall edition of Cloverleaf Country promoted the unique features of agritalent.ca to young Canadians considering their postsecondary school options to prepare for a career in (Western Canada s agriculture community) also tweeted about this unique Council directory. 7 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

15 Connecting Skilled and Trained Workers with the Employment Needs of Canada s primary agriculture sector Advancing the skills and training of agriculture employers and employees is a key employment solution that is serving to build Canada s agriculture labour force. The combination of these two activity areas continues to take employment solutions to the next level by connecting skilled and trained workers with the human resource needs of primary agriculture across Canada. This evolution is reflected in several of the Council s projects, which were either completed or underway over the past fiscal year. In , the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council finished its Agricultural Leadership project. This initiative validated the agriculture leadership competencies identified in a previously completed CAHRC project and led the development of an online leadership assessment tool for farmers wishing to assess their agriculture leadership skills. Farmers with sound leadership competencies are better equipped to manage increasingly complex operations. These competencies include: creating and communicating a vision; developing strategic plans and setting goals and priorities; building effective teams; delegating to others; providing opportunities for others to lead and empowering them to achieve desired results; mentoring employees; and applying situational leadership. Expressed in the words of the industry, leaders in agriculture: Have passion for quality of life: Leaders share a deeper purpose for farming. Money is a means to an end not the end. Are visionary: Leadership is about turning possibilities into realities. Adapt to changing conditions: Leaders know that change is necessary and manage it. Are champions for the farming industry: Influencing the forces that impact the agriculture industry is a tireless effort for leaders. Build positive relationships: Leaders build relationships that are the lifeblood of the future of farming in Canada. Manage the business for results: Leaders know how and when to manage. Manage people for results: Engaging a younger, more diverse workforce is the leader s biggest challenge in the future. Are goal driven: What gets measured gets done. Are innovative: The concept of leadership is to be in front of the herd; innovation gets you there. Are life-long learners: Good leaders know what they don t know and go find out. These competencies were validated by a group of 30 farmers, and then used to develop an online leadership self-assessment tool, which was pilot tested by the same farmers. Following testing, the agrileadership tool was finalized and posted on the Council s website. To encourage maximum use of agrileadership, a logo was developed using the design style of CAHRC s agritalent.ca and agriguide.ca logos, and placed prominently on the Council s website. An advertisement was also developed and posted on the What s new? page in May 2011, and the link was widely circulated to stakeholders to increase exposure to the tool. This effort resulted in the completion of 68 assessments in English and one in French by June. In July, the Council placed a banner advertisement on the Weather Network s Farmzone.com, to extend its reach to the many farmers who visit this site to get weather and weather-related information. As a result, at least 80 browsers visited the agrileadership site directly from Farmzone.com between July 1 and 27. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 8

16 The agrileadership tool takes approximately 25 minutes to complete and, upon completion, it provides instant results on the user s leadership strengths and areas for improvement. The tool also provides a customized index of regional training options for the user, which is taken directly from CAHRC s agritalent.ca. Data gathered through agrileadership is being used by the Council to establish trends regarding the leadership strengths and weaknesses among agriculture producers. Leadership programs on agritalent.ca are also being assessed and compared to the assessment tool s usage data to identify any training gaps that may need to be filled. CAHRC will continue to monitor agrileadership usage in order to inform the development of new leadership and human resource management tools in future projects. * * * * * * In , the Council finished its National On-Farm Work Experience Feasibility Study project. This study examined the viability of a work experience program in terms of addressing the training needs of potential on-farm employees and helping farmers hire workers from different regions of their province or elsewhere in Canada. Three potential national on-farm work experience programs were considered during the study: a stand-alone program managed by participating provinces and farm organizations; a program delivered in conjunction with education institutions as part of curriculum; and a program delivered in conjunction with worker placement agencies or immigrant non-governmental organizations. A literature review was first undertaken to gather information on similar work programs as they relate to agriculture and other key industries and sectors. Select provincial farm organizations, commodity groups, and other relevant organizations as well as workers and/or students currently employed in the sector were then surveyed by telephone to determine their interest in, and support for, a national work experience program. Among the conclusions drawn from these exercises: stakeholders expressed a need for programs that would increase the supply of skilled and unskilled agriculture workers; employers are interested in hosting participants in an on-farm work experience program; and the primary objective of an on-farm work experience program should be to raise awareness about the opportunities in agriculture in order to attract additional workers to the industry. Based on these and other findings, the Council outlined a preliminary design for a national on-farm work experience program. The points considered included: program objectives; types of delivery organizations; staffing; target participant groups; types of skills; types of organizations or farms; duration; and models, among other framework variables. Preliminary information was also collected on the administrative structure and associated costs, including the participant fees associated with an on-farm work experience program. The feasibility study is being used by CAHRC to explore potential partnerships with producers, the educational community, agricultural associations, and other stakeholders. For example, in March 2012, the Council met representatives of the Green Certificate Program (including a coordinator, trainer, and student enrolled in the program) to learn about the challenges and successes of this popular provincial work experience program, and to discuss various options relating to the structure of a future program. 9 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

17 The Council s Agricultural Career Pathways project continued to progress in The project is developing a series of agriculture career profiles for 10 key on-farm occupations. A key deliverable of this project is an online interactive resource that visually depicts agriculture career pathways which are linked to agritalent.ca to enable students and new entrants to find the training required for the occupation in which they have interest. The project began with the development of draft career profiles using the occupational matrix from the Council s Identifying On-Farm Occupations project and based on a review of related literature. In June and September 2011, 35 subject matter experts across the 10 commodity groups were interviewed to ensure that information in the draft profiles was accurate and truly reflective of the occupations in each specific commodity. Based on their input, the profiles were revised and the online career pathway for each commodity was initiated. At the end of , 10 commodity career profiles outlining the various careers from entry level up to supervisors in primary production had been finalized. The draft online career path tool had also been uploaded to a test site to prepare for industry testing beginning in April This project will help create linkages between the needs of the labour market and the courses available from education institutions to ensure that the skills and knowledge of the agriculture workforce are aligned with industry s occupational expectations. Over the long term, the agriculture career pathways will help employers and employees manage career progression and future recruitment. It will also help current and future agriculture employees make informed choices on the types of skills and knowledge to acquire throughout a career. This includes students and foreign-trained workers considering a job in the on-farm sector. Primary agriculture producers may identify their leadership strengths and weaknesses using the Council s online self-assessment tool. Designed specifically for leaders in Canada s agriculture sector, agrileadership provides an opportunity for producers to examine their competencies in leading the farming industry, people, and themselves as well as their passion for driving such leadership. Leading People Leading Self Leading Farming Industry Passion Driven The results generated from agrileadership are individualized to each person who uses the tool. It is intended to provide insight to an agriculture leader about the areas where attitude, skills, and knowledge development may be pursued in the future. To facilitate this process, the self-assessment tool guides the user to agritalent.ca, the Council s database of learning programs offered across Canada. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 10

18 Increasing Awareness of agriculture s HR issues and CAHRC s initiatives Canada s primary agriculture sector is addressing a number of human resource challenges, including competition with other industry sectors to attract and retain skilled workers, dealing with an aging workforce, and combatting the misperceptions associated with some agriculture careers. The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council is responsible for increasing the profile of agriculture s HR considerations among industry, governments, and educational institutions. This includes raising awareness of CAHRC s activities and accomplishments in identifying employment solutions that are building agriculture s labour force and advancing the skills and training levels of agriculture employers and employees. The Council also plays a key role in promoting to youth and others the diverse occupation options available in primary agriculture. To fulfill these roles and responsibilities, the Council has been engaged in a Communications and Outreach project, as well as day-to-day communications and media relations activities. In , CAHRC completed the third and final phase of its Communications and Outreach project by improving the Council s online presence ( through the launch of a new website and increasing the use of CAHRC s social media accounts. This initiative entailed reviewing and redesigning the information architecture of the Council s initial website in order to incorporate its online tools, such as agritalent.ca and agriguide.ca, and to ensure adaptability to social media and future online tools, such as e newsletters and surveys. The design and integration of other online functionalities, such as e-commerce and bookmark and share, were also incorporated into the new website prior to its official launch on August 4, The Communications and Outreach project was a three-year initiative for the Council. During the first phase of the project, a five-year communications strategy was developed to lead the engagement and awareness-raising activities of CAHRC, and to provide an overarching communications and marketing framework to guide the promotion of all of the Council s projects. The Get Agricultured! video was also produced to showcase the importance of collaboration between education institutions and industry in providing agriculture labour solutions and the value of the Council in facilitating this collaboration. During the second phase of the project, a series of employment and skills development forums were held to assess the steps being taken nationally and regionally to address the shortage of skilled workers in agriculture. A summary of the forum proceedings, as well as a synopsis of the 35 presentations delivered at the events and an executive summary of findings common from one event to the next, were published in a report entitled Today s and Tomorrow s Farms: Employment and Skills Development. This report was then posted on the CAHRC website. 11 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

19 The Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council s website has a fresh new look and updated information about all of our projects and resources. Visitors to the site will find it much easier to browse through CAHRC s projects, publications, and resources. They will also find it easier to access the growing number of sector-specific tools developed by the Council, such as agritalent.ca, agriguide.ca, and the agrileadership self-assessment tool. The home page even has tabs to quickly access some of these user tools. The Council s redesigned website has e-commerce capability to enable secure online purchases of publications and resources, such as the Agriguide: Directory of Canadian Agriculture Associations and the On-the-job Reference Guide for Landscape Horticulturists. In addition, the website has been streamlined to facilitate the addition of new features and services, including social media links, to reach an ever-widening stakeholder audience. In , the Council continued to perform day-to-day communications and media relations activities outlined in the five-year communications strategy adopted by CAHRC in These activities included: producing and distributing three editions of Field Notes to some 3,000 recipients; issuing to national and regional media outlets two news releases: one to announce the availability of the Going Global workshops and one to announce the On-the-job training videos and mobile apps for the ornamental sector; posting 22 features on the Council s Facebook page and 27 tweets from the Council s Twitter account to promote the results of CAHRC projects, announce the release of Field Notes editions, and highlight industry-related videos and news; promoting project video tutorials and video trailers on the Council s YouTube channel; writing, producing, and distributing the Council s fourth annual report to members of the CAHRC Board of Directors to share with their respective members; sending copies of the annual report with customized letters to the ministers and deputy ministers of Human Resources and Skills Development Canada and Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada and their provincial ministry equivalents, as well as to the clerks of two Parliamentary House Standing Committees and involved Members of Parliament; STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 12

20 holding CAHRC s annual employment and skills development forum in Charlottetown and attracting media coverage of the event; developing and implementing marketing and communications plans for each project; distributing to stakeholders a notice of intent to develop an occupational standard for the agricultural occupational health and safety specialist; creating and placing a banner advertisement on Farmzone.com to raise awareness and increase producer use of the agrileadership self-assessment tool; designing and distributing an agrileadership promotional postcard; creating rotating Did you know? features to present quick facts about Canada s agriculture employment and skills and training elements to website browsers; interacting with stakeholders by securing 39 followers on the CAHRC Twitter account and encouraging browsers to bookmark and share its website features; regularly updating the Council s website with project progress and newsletter features; fielding an estimated 300 incoming enquiries through its toll-free number and website Contact us feature to respond to questions about the agriculture labour market, the process by which temporary foreign workers enter Canada, and how foreign credentials in agriculture are recognized, among other issues; and reviewing and updating the communications work plan. * * * * * * In , CAHRC delivered 14 presentations across Canada to industry, educators, government officials, and other stakeholders on the results of its completed and current projects. The Council s Executive Director and other staff also participated in various stakeholder events, meetings, workshops, and conferences. These included: Agricultural Management Institute Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada meetings of officials, including Assistant Deputy Ministers Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada Federal Provincial Territorial Business Development Committee and its Canadian Horticulture Value Chain Round Table Labour Working Group Canadian Agricultural Safety Association Canadian Association of Diploma in Agriculture Programs Canadian Farm Business Management Council, including its annual general meeting Canadian Federation of Agriculture annual meeting Canadian Food Summit Canadian Ornamental Horticulture Alliance Farm Management Canada Food Processing Human Resource Council House of Commons Standing Committee on Human Resources, Skills and Social Development and the Status of Persons with Disabilities Keystone Agricultural Producers annual general meeting South Island Partnership s industry/education meeting Syngenta s My Crop School event The Alliance of Sector Councils, including its annual general meeting 13 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT

21 Ensuring CAHRC is Representative, Responsive, Connected and Results-Based The Sector Council Program, as presently managed by Human Resources and Skills Development Canada (HRSDC), includes the provision of operational and project funding to sector councils until March 31, A contribution agreement between the Canadian Agricultural Human Resource Council and HRSDC thus continues to outline the uses of this funding until the contribution period ends. This includes managing day-to-day operations of the Council and ensuring CAHRC s strategic business plan and management and accountability framework demonstrate how the Council remains representative, responsive, connected, and results-based. The following is a summary of the Council s achievements in the four exemplary areas over : Representative Industry participation is the cornerstone of the Council. Direction and guidance for all of CAHRC s activities are provided by a large, nationally representative Board of Directors which includes leaders within and across various agriculture commodity groups. The Council s research, project work, and product development activities are also supported by national stakeholder participants to ensure quality, accurate, and relevant human resource and labour solutions. Stakeholders include employers, employees, youth, associations, education, and governments at regional, provincial, territorial, and national levels. In addition, CAHRC continues to inform agriculture-related organizations and government representatives through Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada s value chain round tables and other agriculture-related events. In , more than 500 individuals, organizations and commodity groups participated in Council surveys, focus groups, annual forum, project advisory groups, and other activities. In addition, CAHRC interacted with more than 550 national, regional, provincial, and territorial agriculture organizations to provide each with a unique user access code to enable these groups to maintain up-to-date contact information on agriguide.ca, the online database of Canadian agriculture associations. Responsive CAHRC was created to respond to industry s most pressing human resource challenges: aging and declining agriculture workforce; difficulty recruiting and retaining seasonal and full-time workers; increased competition for appropriately skilled labour; need for skills development and life-long learning to help farmers adjust to advanced technologies; and lack of awareness regarding agriculture career options and unfavourable image issues. All of the projects underway or completed by the Council in directly respond to one or more of these challenges. In particular, they seek to achieve progress in CAHRC s main activity areas: to identify employment solutions to build Canada s agriculture labour force; to advance the skills and training levels of agriculture employers and employees; and to increase awareness of agriculture s human resource issues and CAHRC s activities to resolve these issues. STRENGTHENING HUMAN RESOURCES IN AGRICULTURE 14

22 Connected CAHRC continues to network with educators, governments, members of the agriculture sector, individual farmers, and other groups that have expressed an interest in the Council s work: The Council is well connected to the learning system. A representative from the Canadian Association of Diplomas in Agriculture (CADAP) is an ex-officio member of the CAHRC Board of Directors. The Council also maintains a close working relationship with the Association of Canadian Community Colleges and several agriculture educational institutions are members of CAHRC project advisory groups. For example, the Manager of Recruitment at the Nova Scotia Agricultural College and the Community Liaison Co-ordinator at the University of Saskatchewan s College of Agriculture and Bioresources are both on the Council s Agriculture Career Pathways project advisory group. In , educators from the University of Guelph were also on the Council s advisory groups for the Communications and Outreach and the National On-Farm Work Experience Feasibility Study projects. The Council is well connected to federal government departments. HRSDC officials serve as observers to the CAHRC Board of Directors and provide guidance to the Council s project advisory groups. In , the Council met the Director of the Sector Council Program to discuss CAHRC projects and activities in general, including the participation of this Director in the Council s annual general meeting. Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) is another key federal government partner. AAFC provides opportunities for CAHRC to network with key agriculture groups through its industry-led committees and program consultation forums. For example, in , the Council met members of the AAFC Federal Provincial Territorial Business Development Committee to present on CAHRC and the work undertaken to address labour market and skills development issues important to the sector. In addition, Board Directors had an opportunity to present CAHRC achievements to AAFC Assistant Deputy Ministers. The Council continues to inform and connect with the provinces and territories, and there are partnerships in place with provincial ministries of agriculture. The Quebec agriculture sector council, AGRIcarrières, is an observer on the Board of Directors and a representative from the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture is currently on the Agricultural Career Pathways project advisory group. In , a representative from the Alberta Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development and a representative of the PEI Agriculture Sector Council were also respectively on the project advisory groups for the National On-Farm Work Program Feasibility Study project and the Communications and Outreach project. CAHRC continues to expand its networks with farm operators across Canada by engaging primary agriculture producers in forums, focus groups, surveys, interviews, and other interactive sessions. The Council also meets regularly with agriculture-related associations and organizations to pursue partnership opportunities. In , for example, the Council signed a contract with the Canadian Agricultural Safety Association to manage the development of a national occupational standard for an Agriculture Occupational Health and Safety Specialist. At the same time, CAHRC met representatives of the Agricultural Management Institute to discuss opportunities for projects relating to skills development tools designed for on-farm use and organization of workshops to promote these tools with producers. The Council also worked towards achieving a partnership with the Forum for International Trade to promote the Agriculture Going Global workshops. 15 CAHRC ANNUAL REPORT