This fully funded, full-time online program will provide participants with instruction, certificates, mentorship, employment coaching, work experience, and job placement support delivered over 26 weeks, from June to December 2022. When complete, participants will be in a position to seek employment with a variety of tourism experience providers. The timing is ideal for employment at a ski resort or winter service provider.
The program is ideal for individuals who are either:
Entering the hospitality sector, bringing skills from past experience in other sectors or industries.
Current hospitality professionals seeking to build on a hospitality management career by further developing skills, knowledge, and industry connections.
The Hospitality Professional Program includes two parts: a 17-week training program followed by a 9-week work experience and mentorship program.
Commencing June 20 through to October 4, 2022, participants will gain practical skills and specialized knowledge through a blend of live online learning sessions and self-led online industry certificates.
From October 17 to December 16, 2022, participants will get hands-on hospitality experience through the work placement and mentorship.
Applications for the Hospitality Professional Program are open until May 22. Enrollment is limited.
Feel free to share this opportunity with potential employees of the Thompson Okanagan hospitality industry, particularly professionals looking to expand their career into full-time employment, such as a supervisory role.
We have provided sample content to easily spread the word through bulletins, email newsletters, website listings, and social media:
Symphony Tourism Services (STS), a subsidiary of the Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA), and Boundary Country Tourism are seeking to hire a Boundary Country Local Project and Stakeholder Engagement Specialist. This is part-time, casual contract position has flexible schedule with 5 to 28 hours a week.
Do you live in Boundary Country? Do you know it and love it and want to see it succeed as a tourism destination? Do you have experience in tourism or a network in the region? We want to hear from you!
As the tourism industry navigates the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the British Columbia Regional Tourism Secretariat (BCRTS) and the regions, including Thompson Okanagan Tourism Association (TOTA), have produced reports with recent and ongoing regional market research to support tourism professionals in making business decisions.
To expand on this research, the BCRTS partnered with Symphony Tourism Services, a subsidiary of TOTA, to deliver training programs on how to analyze the data and ensure you are using your marketing efforts in the most effective and efficient way possible.
The webinar will result in a better understanding of the customer segments, social values, and travel patterns of people visiting and living in your area for you to then better market to them.
By learning how to interpret and utilize this market research, you will be able to better design marketing strategies that will target the right audience at the appropriate time of year for your business or organization.
This interactive webinar will introduce market research reports available to inform tourism businesses, including:
On May 12, learn how to integrate research into your marketing plan with this 3-hr interactive, online workshop for up to 20 participants in the Thompson Okanagan region. The engaging and collaborative workshop is intended to guide tourism operators in answering questions regarding their business and ideal customer/target markets.
Participants will build a better understanding of how to apply the data to implement marketing strategies through insights and data gathered from the Weekly Tracker, Monthly Visitor Highlights, EQ & Prizm Profile for the Thompson Okanagan region.
Tourism operators will leave the workshop knowing how to identify their ideal customer, tailor their message, and implement practical actions for reaching those customers.
The Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA)’s annual 2022 Mental Health Week is May 2-8, 2022. This social change campaign aims to shift attitudes and perceptions about mental health.
The 2022 theme is the importance of empathy, a learnable skill that is fundamental to successful relationships at home and in the workplace. Empathy is the ability to understand how someone feels because you can imagine what it is like to be them and understanding why they may be feeling what they’re feeling. When someone is struggling, people tend to offer solutions—or judgment—when what is needed most is empathy.
Resources
CMHA’s website, MentalHealthWeek.ca, offers practical advice, articles, and information to help you #GetReal about how to really help.
Kelowna International Airport welcomed Lynx Air this week, after launching in March 2022. Lynx is currently operating two flights a week from Kelowna to each of Calgary and Vancouver, with fares as low as $39* to and from Kelowna.
As of June 29, Lynx will increase its service to Calgary to three flights per week, taking the airline's total flights in and out of Kelowna to 10 flights and 1,890 seats per week.
To commemorate Lynx's growing presence in Kelowna, the airline has launched a limited-time seat sale and is offering up to 50 per cent off all base fares to and from Kelowna. The sale will end on May 4 at 10:59 PT.
For details and to reserve discounted seats, please visit FlyLynx.com.
Destination BC, together with strategic industry advisory groups, and ITBC are in the midst of developing new brand strategies for the various Iconic routes and places across the province. The Invest in Iconics Strategy for British Columbia is focused on creating globally compelling brands for routes and places across the province that will help disperse visitors as well as help BC stand out amongst the vast array of travel choices around the world. Place Branding will present the province in a new way to create storylines about destinations that will ignite the imaginations of travellers for years to come.
The Government of Canada recently renovated and expanded the YYF Penticton Airport terminal building, including new airline check-in counters, car rental kiosks, washrooms, and a visitor’s information booth. The upgraded facility also includes an expanded arrivals hall, security screening area and departure gates. The airport is also seeking a business for the upgraded food service area.
As part of the renovations, YYF added new signage, digital displays, and artwork throughout the terminal, including Visit South Okanagan posters for the South Okanagan destination community.
Glohaven Community Hub, a Thompson Okanagan software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform empowering tourism communities with innovative and sustainable destination management solutions, has announced a partnership with the Indigenous Tourism Association of Canada (ITAC) to amplify the voices of Indigenous-owned tourism businesses and to provide consumers with the opportunity to demonstrate economic reconciliation by consciously shopping for and supporting the unique products and experiences of Indigenous creators.
On April 21, the Kelowna Hotel Motel Association held its 2021 Heart of Hospitality Awards virtually. The awards were started in 2017 as a way to recognize industry professionals who "have gone above and beyond to provide exceptional experiences to Kelowna and area visitors."
Tourism Kelowna presented the "Spirit of Kelowna" award to this year's winner, Bobby Bissessar, Director of Sales & Marketing at The Cove Lakeside Resort. The "Spirit of Kelowna" award is presented to an individual who demonstrates the spirit of Kelowna's brand promise and the destination ambassador values of collaboration, excellence, pride, innovation, and integrity. Congrats Bobby!
The BC Economic Development Association (BCEDA) and FortisBC announced the winners of the 2022 BC Economic Development Awards, which recognizes BCEDA members for outstanding work in supporting their local economies, and making a meaningful difference in their communities. For over 30 years, the BCEDA has given these awards to individuals and groups who have dedicated their time to community-based economic development.
Thompson Okanagan winners include:
Economic Reconciliation Award (community less than 20,000 population): Neskonlith Indian Band for Chase Harper Collaborative Community Management Plan (CCMP)
Economic Development Marketing Innovation Award (community less than 20,000 population): Village of Ashcroft for Experience Ashcroft Pocket Guide
Congratulations to the 2022 BC Economic Development Award winners!
ITAC is hiring for a Director of Partnerships to join its growing team. Reporting to the president and CEO, this position is responsible for supporting relationships, partnerships, as well as developing and implementing programs across Canada to establish and grow regional Indigenous tourism associations.
The Director of Partnerships will oversee corporate communications, internal market research, international projects, and memberships. The Director of Partnerships will also work with and support the Executive Management team, including the president and CEO, as it relates to partnerships.
The Province is proposing a new regulation to reduce single-use and plastic waste by limiting or banning the use of certain single-use items. The regulation will complement and expand on the actions taken by B.C. municipalities and the federal government to tackle plastic waste and pollution.
The survey also seeks your input on other actions to reduce plastic waste, address materials that are difficult to reuse or recycle, and keep what we do use working for us for longer. Engagement timelines: April 22 to June 21, 2022.
The BC Hospitality Foundation invites you to join this year’s #HospitalityHustle. to help unite British Columbians to raise awareness for the Foundation, promote healthy lifestyle choices, and have some fun. Participants are encouraged to set a personal fitness goal, share their progress on social media, and tag #HospitalityHustle to connect with other participants. Each participant contributes to the Foundation’s “collective” progress map to help reach the goal of completing the route around BC three times. Individuals can also choose to fundraise for the Foundation - funds support industry colleagues facing financial crisis due to illness.
The latest report on the Canadian Tourism Labour Market has been released and reflects the status of employment in the sector for the month of March 2022. Overall, tourism employment experienced an uptick as the sector builds momentum toward recovery in the coming months; however, growth is hindered by employment losses in the accommodations industry and a higher than anticipated unemployment rate in transportation. When considering the robust tourism labour force pre-pandemic (2,117,700 workers in March 2019), it is clear that labour shortages remain across the country and throughout the tourism industries. Through other indicators such as the tourism unemployment rate which held strong in March, there is hope that momentum is building toward sector recovery.
While the Canada Recovery Hiring Program (CRHP) expires on May 7, 2022, the government will accept retroactive applications.
Intended to support recovery for businesses to hire employees or increase work hours of existing employees, the CRHP is a separate wage subsidy that runs parallel to the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program (THRP) wage and rent subsidies, which also expire on May 7.
Programs Eligibility Requirements:
The CRHP provides up to 50% wage subsidies for new employees or for existing employees who are working increased hours or earn a higher wage. Eligible employers must have a revenue loss of more than 10% to qualify.
The CRHP is a separate wage subsidy that runs parallel to the Tourism and Hospitality Recovery Program (THRP) wage and rent subsidies, which also expire on May 7.
Eligible employers can access either the CRHP or the THRP, but not both during the same period.
Eligible employers, who had an active payroll account as of March 2020 can access the CRHP.
The THRP subsidies require a minimum period-over-period revenue loss of at least 40% and some employers no longer meet the 40% revenue loss requirement to qualify for the THRP.
Unlike the THRP, applications to the CRHP can be made retroactively up to 180 days after the end of a period.
Applications to the CRHP are made through the same system as the THRP.
The B.C. Employer Training Grant program (ETG) supports skills training to address provincial labour market needs. The program is delivered by the Province of British Columbia and is funded by the Government of Canada through the Workforce Development Agreement (WDA).
The goal of the ETG is to help British Columbians access the skills training needed to adapt to the changing requirements of jobs and the labour market while encouraging employer involvement in the training of their employees.
Employers are eligible to receive up to $300,000 per fiscal year (April 1 – March 31). Reimbursement amounts vary between 60% and 100% depending on the training stream. If approved, employers are to pay for all costs in full and, after training has started, submit a reimbursement claim.
The Province of BC has restarted the Tourism Events Program accepting applications until May 31, 2022. While historically an annual program, it was paused in spring 2020 due to pandemic restrictions and guidelines limiting gatherings. The Tourism Events Program (the program) provides funding for up to 10% of the total event budget up to a maximum of $250,000 per event (minimum of $10,000). Funds can also cover a range of marketing expenses. Eligible events are those that are in B.C. between October 1, 2022, and September 30, 2023, accessible to the public, and are generally sporting, arts, or cultural events.
The go2HR team developed an industry toolkit with employer HR resources for the coming season. The toolkit has downloadable and customizable resources that can help in the following areas of HR:
Recruitment
Onboarding
On the Job
Departure
From recruitment best practices to sample interview questions, including templates to manage employee performance, this HR Toolkit is a great resource whether you are hiring your first employee and not sure where to start, or you are an experienced manager looking to update current HR practices, policies, or procedures.
go2HR has prepared a guide to help BC tourism and hospitality employers who are keen to assist Ukrainian newcomers through employment, for those who are interested, but not sure if they can or how to start.
Immigration Services Society of BC (ISSofBC) provides support services for immigrants and refugees to help them get settled, find careers, and learn all they need to know about living in Canada. ISSofBC provides settlement, education, and employment services to over 20,000 clients every year.
Approximately 20 students who recently completed the Global Tourism Diploma Program are looking for full and/or part-time employment in the industry, and many are available to start working immediately. For more information, contact Shelina Spilchen, Case Manager – Skills Training for Tourism at [email protected].
The latest report on the Canadian Tourism Labour Market has been released and reflects the status of employment in the sector for the month of March 2022.
Overall, tourism employment experienced an uptick as the sector builds momentum toward recovery in the coming months; however, growth is hindered by employment losses in the accommodations industry and a higher than anticipated unemployment rate in transportation.
When considering the robust tourism labour force pre-pandemic (2,117,700 workers in March 2019), it is clear that labour shortages remain across the country and throughout the tourism industries. Through other indicators such as the tourism unemployment rate which held strong in March, there is hope that momentum is building toward sector recovery.
Research data created by Environics Analytics to help the travel and tourism industry understand the impact of the worldwide COVID-19 pandemic as it relates to Domestic Overnight Visitors within Canada.
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