GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY I dustry Sapshot Growth Patter The geospatial techology idustry is defied as a iformatio techology field of practice that acquires, maages, iterprets, itegrates, displays, aalyzes, or otherwise uses data focusig o the geographic, temporal, ad spatial cotext It also icludes developmet ad life-cycle maagemet of iformatio techology tools to support the above (Geospatial Workforce Developmet Ceter, Uiversity of Souther Mississippi) The progressively complex ad acceleratig pace of chage i the geospatial techology idustry offers dramatic possibilities for meetig the icreasigly sophisticated geospatial iformatio demads of govermet, private idustry, scietists, ad the public (U S Geological Survey) The worldwide market for geospatial techologies has eormous potetial Estimated at $5 billio i 2001, the market is projected to have aual reveues of $30 billio by 2005 (Geospatial Workforce Developmet Ceter, Uiversity of Souther Mississippi) The architecture ad egieerig occupatios group, which icludes surveyors, cartographers, photogrammetrists, ad surveyig techicias, is 1 of the top 10 occupatioal groups projected to have the fastest growth i employmet betwee 2002 ad 2012 Employmet i architecture ad egieerig occupatios is expected to grow by 220,000, led by a 22% icrease i ladscape architects (U S Bureau of Labor Statistics) Icreasig demad for readily available, cosistet, accurate, complete, ad curret geographic iformatio ad the widespread availability ad use of advaced techologies offer great job opportuities for people with may differet talets ad educatioal backgrouds (U S Geological Survey ad U S Bureau of Labor Statistics)

2 O ccupatioal Outlook Careers i geospatial techology disciplies are available i may segmets of commercial, public, govermet, ad academic commuities O*NET, the Occupatioal Iformatio Network, has idetified several occupatios that may require geospatial competecies, icludig: cartographers, photogrammetrists, surveyors, civil drafters, electrical drafters, mechaical drafters, ad techicias i aerospace egieerig, civil egieerig, electrical egieerig, evirometal egieerig, idustrial egieerig, mechaical egieerig, surveyig, mappig, soil coservatioists, rage maagers, foresters, geological data techicias, ad geological sample test techicias Other occupatios listed by the America Society for Photogrammetry ad Remote Sesig iclude geographers, physical scietists, computer scietists, geographical iformatio systems (GIS), aalysts, database admiistrators, ad remote sesig scietists Note: These occupatios are far broader i employmet scope tha just for the geospatial techology idustry, i e, geospatial techology-related positios are subsets of these occupatioal categories This is ot a comprehesive list of occupatios Please refer to the U S Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupatioal Employmet Statistics at www bls gov/oes/home htm for more geospatial techology occupatioal iformatio

3 T ypes of Jobs Created Skill Sets: (Source: The Imagig ad Geospatial Iformatio Society) College preparatory courses that emphasize the scieces are suggested for idividuals iterested i pursuig careers i photogrammetry, remote sesig, ad GIS May 2-year academic ad techical istitutios offer educatio ad traiig i photogrammetry, remote sesig ad GIS, ad related fields Associate degree ad certificate programs i GIS, surveyig, photogrammetry, ad similar curricula provide a soud foudatio for work experiece or for trasfer to other academic istitutios for further educatio For idividuals who do ot wish to pursue a advaced degree, there is a substatial demad for techicias i geospatial iformatio techology It is highly recommeded that ay idividual wishig to pursue a career i photogrammetry, remote sesig, ad GIS participate i a itership program to obtai hads-o experiece as part of their preparatio for employmet Like may rapidly advacig high-tech fields, cotiuig educatio i photogrammetry, remote sesig, ad GIS is ecessary to keep curret as a professioal W orkforce Issues The overarchig geospatial techology idustry workforce issues are: skills, competecies ad traiig, image ad outreach, ad recruitmet ad retetio The followig workforce issues have bee gathered directly from idustry stakeholders: The idustry remais focused o 4-year ad advaced degrees However, to meet idustry growth requiremets, ad requiremets withi the applicatios area i particular, employers eed to examie alteratives to the traditioal pipelie These alteratives iclude traiig provided by techical ad commuity colleges The fastest emergig occupatios withi the geospatial techology idustry require techical skills; however, the idustry does ot have eough traiig models or curricula to develop the ecessary pipelie of skilled workers The idustry eeds to defie the occupatioal characteristics outside of the 4-year ad advaced degree levels for idividuals iterested i eterig the field, especially withi the applicatios area Those iterested i eterig the field must also recogize that employers seek employees who possess soft skills as well as techical skills There is a eed to create flexible traiig programs with differet deploymet approaches ad to map skills ad competecies to various applicatios ad user eeds The public is ot aware of the ecessary skill sets ad competecies eeded to prepare for the diverse career opportuities available withi the geospatial techology idustry There is a eed for better idustry promotio ad improved image that could be addressed by developig a idustry defiitio, usig the work already performed by The Uiversity of Souther Mississippi as a startig poit

4 H What is the High Growth Job Traiig Iitiative? The Presidet s High Growth Job Traiig Iitiative, as implemeted by the U S Departmet of Labor s Employmet ad Traiig Admiistratio, is desiged to provide atioal leadership for a demad-drive workforce system that esures o worker is left behid It is a strategic effort to prepare workers to take advatage of ew ad icreasig job opportuities i high growth/high demad ad ecoomically vital idustries ad sectors of the America ecoomy The iitiative is desiged to esure that worker traiig ad career developmet resources i the public workforce system are targeted to helpig workers gai the skills ad competecies they eed to obtai jobs ad build successful careers i these idustries The foudatio of this iitiative is parterships that iclude the public workforce system, busiess ad idustry, educatio ad traiig providers, ad ecoomic developmet workig together to develop solutios to the workforce challeges facig these idustries ad to develop maximum access for America workers to gai the competecies they eed to get good jobs i these idustries igh Growth Job Traiig Iitiative I its efforts to meet the workforce demads of the 21st cetury ecoomy, the U S Departmet of Labor s Employmet ad Traiig Admiistratio (ETA) is coductig forums with various targeted high growth idustries The Executive Forums are opportuities for seior idustry executives to commuicate the critical workforce issues facig their idustry The Workforce Solutios Forums are opportuities for idustry leaders, employers, educators, public ad private workforce professioals, ad ecoomic developmet orgaizatios to work together to idetify a rage of actual ad potetial solutios that, if implemeted, could address their idustry s workforce eeds Geospatial Techology Idustry Executive Forum ETA coducted the Geospatial Techology Idustry Executive Forum i Colorado Sprigs, Colorado, o April 10, 2003 Executives from the followig orgaizatios atteded the Executive Forum: Aerospace Idustries Ass Aalytical Graphics, Ic Ball Aerospace & Techologies Corporatio Boeig Autometric Califoria Space Authority, Ic DigitalGlobe Eastma Kodak Harris Corporatio Lockheed Marti Natioal Aeroautics ad Space Admiistratio (NASA) Raytheo Compay Resource 21, LLC RSI Sesor Systems, Ic Space Foudatio Spatial Techologies Idustry Associatio U S Departmet of Commerce Geospatial Techology Idustry Workforce Solutios Forum To follow up, the ETA ad public workforce system represetatives met with 30 executives, huma resources professioals, commuity college directors, ad idustry orgaizatio officials represetig more tha 18 compaies, orgaizatios, colleges, workforce professioals, ad govermet agecy colleagues o July 24 ad 25, 2003, i Washigto, D C The purpose of the forum was to discuss the geospatial techology idustry s workforce eeds ad opportuities for the idustry to parter with ETA The followig are the geospatial techology compaies ad orgaizatios represeted at this Workforce Solutios Forum: 3001, Ic EarthData Fulto Motgomery Commuity College Joes Couty Juior College NASA Ceter for Distace Learig NASA Earth Sciece Applicatios Navigatio Techologies ORBIMAGE Questerra, LLC Raytheo Compay Research Systems, Ic Resource 21, LLC Sesor Systems, Ic The Aerospace Idustries Ass The Califoria Space Authority The Harris Corporatio The Istitute for the Applicatio of Geospatial Techology The Natioal Imagery ad Mappig Agecy The Natioal Oceaic & Atmospheric Admiistratio The Space Foudatio The Spatial Techologies Idustry Associatio The U S Departmet of Commerce The Uiv of Souther Mississippi Workplace Ic

5 Geospatial Techology Idustry Workforce Solutios Forum (cotiued) O March 9, 2004, the ETA coducted a Geospatial Techology Idustry Workforce Solutios Forum i Washigto, D C, with more tha 90 participats represetig idustry, educatio, ecoomic developmet, ad the workforce system The purpose of the forum was to develop iovative model solutios that address the critical workforce issues already idetified ad validated by the stakeholders at previous forums (For a complete list of forum attedees, please cotact the BRG ) Backgroud & Next Steps ETA has addressed the workforce issues of the geospatial techology idustry from a atioal perspective by coductig a Executive Forum with the geospatial techology idustry to gather relevat iformatio from key idustry leaders This forum provided ETA ad the public workforce system with the opportuity to gai further uderstadig of the overall critical workforce eeds of the idustry After meetig with idustry leaders, ETA developed ad solidified strategic alliaces with busiess, educatio, ad workforce leaders who are focused o the workforce issues cofrotig the idustry through a Workforce Solutios Forum ETA egaged leaders i idustry, educatio, ad the workforce system i developig iovative approaches to address their eeds ETA will parter with employers ad educatio providers to develop ad model skills traiig solutios atioally that ca be replicated ad sustaied throughout the state ad local public workforce system These approaches will help esure that workers have the right skills for the right jobs at the right time T he ETA I Actio Uiversity of Souther Mississippi (USM) Geospatial Techicia Appreticeship Project (GTAP) Challege The geospatial techology idustry is a emergig high growth sector of the U S ecoomy that is expected to reach more tha $21 billio i reveue over the ext few years Geospatial techologies iclude remote sesig, GIS, ad global positioig systems (GPS) techologies There is a immediate ad aticipated eed to fill tes of thousads of positios i geospatial techology ad related fields Addressig the Challege ETA s $1 5 millio grat to USM will support the establishmet of appreticeship stadards for geospatial techicias USM ad its idustry parters will develop state-of-the-art traiig models ad materials to egage the potetial geospatial techology workforce, implemet iovative o-the-job ad classroom traiig delivery methodologies, ad develop detailed exploratio ad mappig of career ladders ad lattices i the idustry USM will also develop a geospatial techology traiig, techical assistace, ad capacity-buildig compoet for federal, state, ad local workforce system parters to esure that the critical demad for techicias is met throughout the coutry Sustaiable Impact USM s GTAP pilot represets a timely, demad-drive respose to the workforce eeds of a emergig ad rapidly evolvig idustry USM s parterships with NASA, Lockheed Marti, ad regioal ecoomic developmet ad techology orgaizatios esure that the project will cotiue to be drive by the idustry ad guided by the idustry s developig workforce eeds USM s focus o capacitybuildig ad techical assistace for the public workforce system will esure that the successful models developed i the GTAP pilot will be widely dissemiated, replicated, ad sustaied through the Oe Stop Career Ceter ifrastructure For the most up-to-date iformatio o ETA ivestmets i workforce solutios for the geospatial techology idustry, go to www doleta gov

GEOSPATIAL TECHNOLOGY A dditioal Resources Olie Tools CareerOeStop (www CareerOeStop org) The CareerOeStop is a resource for busiesses ad job seekers It cotais liks to America s Job Bak, America s Service Locator, ad America s Career IfoNet www careervoyages gov www doleta gov www doleta gov/atels_bat www oetceter org Other Tools Toll-Free Help Lie 1-877-US2-JOBS (1-877-872-5627) 1-877-889-5627 (TTY) The Toll-Free Help Lie provides up-to-date iformatio about the full rage of workforce services for workers ad busiesses as well as aswers to employmet ad traiig questios N atioal Programs Appreticeship Appreticeship is curretly workig with the geospatial techology idustry to desig a appreticeship program with academic curriculum for the occupatio of geospatial techicia This program will ecompass skill developmet i the fields of remote sesig, GIS, ad GPS techologies C otact the BRG For more iformatio o the activities ad services of the ETA s Busiess Relatios Group (BRG), please cotact: Updated May 2004 U S Departmet of Labor Employmet ad Traiig Admiistratio Busiess Relatios Group 200 Costitutio Aveue, NW Room N-4643 Washigto, DC 20210 (202) 693-3949 busiessrelatios@dol gov