ICTC and CIPS Announce Partnership To Advance Workforce and Professionalism in Canada

  • Article

OTTAWA - November 2010 - The Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) and CIPS announced a strategic partnership to enhance workforce development and professionalism for the ICT sector across Canada.

ICTC is drawing from its ICT Competency Profiles framework to develop a national professional ICT career pathway program, I-ADVANCE©. This program will enable the ICT employers to validate and recognize the technical, business and interpersonal competencies that complement the professional experience of their ICT employees. Also, I-ADVANCE© will aim to facilitate the design of a career ladder for advancement and succession of the ICT workforce in their respective areas of interest.

"ICTC believes the partnership with CIPS will enhance the development and implementation of the certification program, and facilitate standardization for expanded recognition and professional development to meet the needs of the burgeoning Canadian ICT sector," says Paul D. Swinwood, President, ICTC.

CIPS is continuing to maintain and develop the infrastructure upon which a professionalism program is based, including the body of knowledge, standards of practice, examinations, training programs, code of ethics, discipline procedure, accreditation criteria, certification criteria and a skills career framework.  CIPS provides the only non-vendor specific professional IT designations in Canada, the I.S.P. introduced in 1989 and the internationally recognized ITCP designation in 2008.

"There is a great degree of potential synergy with both CIPS and ICTC working collaboratively. We both recognize the dangers in fragmenting the Canadian IT professionalism audience at such a critical point in its development," says Greg Lane, I.S.P., ITCP, and Chair of CIPS' Executive Council.

About ICTCThe Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC) is a not-for-profit council dedicated to creating a diverse, prepared and highly educated Canadian ICT industry and workforce. ICTC is a catalyst for change, pushing for innovations that will provide standards, labour market intelligence, career pathways and immigration initiatives for the Canadian ICT industry, educators and governments. For more information on ICTC visit www.ictc-ctic.ca .

About CIPSCIPS is the professional association for Information Technology (IT) practitioners in Canada. Founded in 1958, CIPS is a non-profit organization, and a co-founder of the United Nations-founded IFIP (International Federation for Information Processing) and the Institute for the Certification of Computer Professionals (ICCP). CIPS offers the only professional IT designation, I.S.P., that is recognized by law* in Canada and the ITCP which has been accredited by the International Professional Practice Program (IP3). For more information on CIPS, visit: www.cips.ca .
*The I.S.P. is legislated as a self-regulating designation in six provinces: British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Ontario, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick. Other provinces are working towards similar legislation through their provincial government.