Apply for funding for the Skills for Success Program – Research and Innovation Stream: Closed

Application period

You could apply between January 26, 2022 and March 9, 2022 3:00 PM Eastern Time.

Funding decisions will be made by late Fall 2022.

Description of the funding

The objective of this Call for Proposals under the Skills for Success (SFS) program is to fund organizations that will help Canadians at all skill levels improve their foundational and transferable skills to better prepare for, get and keep a job, and adapt and succeed at work.

Projects funded under this Call for Proposals will allow the SFS Program to:

• respond to current skills and labour market issues; and
• enable the broad adoption and uptake of the Skills for Success Model

Please note that there are 2 funding streams under this Call for Proposals

• the Training and Tools Stream, and
• the Research and Innovation Stream

This funding page outlines the eligibility requirements only for the Research and Innovation Stream.

Visit the Training and Tools Stream webpage to find more information on how to apply.

Under the Research and Innovation Stream of this Call for Proposals, projects that will be funded must focus on:

• conducting research to support the skills development of adults

Eligible organizations under the Research and Innovation Stream could apply for funding of up to $7.5 million per project.

All projects under the Research and Innovation Stream must end by March 31, 2024.

Objective

The objective of the Research and Innovation Stream of this Call for Proposals under the Skills for Success Program is to fund projects that:

• Support research and innovative projects to identify better ways of helping persons prepare for, return to or keep employment and be productive participants in the labour force

Eligibility

To apply, you must have met all the following eligibility criteria.

Eligible applicants

Your organization must have been 1 of the following:

• Not-for-profit organization
• For-profit organization (provided that the nature and intent of the activity is non-commercial, not intended to generate profit, and supports program priorities and objectives)
• Labour union
• Research organization, Think tank, Academic Institution
• Indigenous organization including:
  1. band council
  2. tribal council
  3. self-government entity
• Provincial and territorial government, institution, agency and Crown Corporation

Eligible projects

Your project must have met all of the following criteria:

• duration of the project must not exceed March 31, 2024
• scope of the project must be either national in scope or regional in scope:
  1. National in scope, meaning the research will address a labour market issue that is present in multiple jurisdictions (province/territory), including online
  2. Regional in scope, meaning that the research will address a labour market issue that is present in one jurisdiction (province/territory) and has the potential to address the same or similar skills and labour market issues in other parts of the country
• request no more than $7.5 million per project
• focus on supporting research and innovative projects to identify better ways of helping persons:
  • prepare for, return to or keep employment, and
  • be productive participants in the labour force
• enable the broad adoption and uptake of the Skills for Success Model by including a dissemination strategy to share project results with organizations and employers

How we assess your application

We will review your application in 3 steps listed below.

1. screening for eligibility against the mandatory eligibility requirements and using the responses to questions 3 to 9, 53 to 56, 60 to 67 in the applicant guide
2. assessing how the project meets the program objectives and using the responses to questions throughout the Applicant Guide and the Budget Detail Template
3. additional funding considerations may be taken into account

Screening for eligibility

We will be screening for eligibility based on all 4 considerations below.

1. the application is received by the deadline
2. the organization is eligible as listed under Eligible Applicants
3. the application package is complete, including:
   • all mandatory information (questions in the PDF Application form [Q3 to 9, 22 and 49] Applicant Guide)
   • completed Budget Detail Template and Part 3 of the Application Form
   • completed attestation (part 4 of the application form)
4. project activities are eligible

Project Assessment

Organization’s capacity

• Describe in detail how your organization has the relevant experience to deliver this project

Project objectives

• Describe how the project supports research and innovative projects to identify better ways of helping persons prepare for, return to or keep employment and be productive participants in the labour force
• Describe how the project addresses a labour market issue that is present in multiple jurisdictions or has the potential to address the same or similar skills and labour market issues in other parts of the country

Project activities

• Describe how the organization will support research and innovative projects to identify better ways of helping persons prepare for, return to or keep employment and be productive participants in the labour force
• Provide clear and relevant description of the project activities
• Provide clear and feasible timelines to complete the project activities

Project results

• Describe the expected results of your project. They must be:
  • specific
  • concrete, and
  • measurable
• Describe how you plan to gather, measure and report on results achieved by your project

Project costs

• Provide a brief and clear justification of how you intend to use the money
• Demonstrate that the costs are reasonable, detailed and support the project activities

Additional funding considerations

We reserve the right to assess the projects comparatively and collectively. Priority will be given to proposed projects that meet one or more of the following criteria:

• Respond to the needs of at least 1 of the following under-represented groups in the labour market:
  • women
  • persons with disabilities
  • Indigenous people
  • members of official language minority communities
  • newcomers, and
  • racialized groups

Based on the number of project applications received, we intend to allocate about:

• 50% of the program’s funding will support under-represented groups; and of this:
  • 10% of this funding will specifically be used to support persons with disabilities; and
  • 20% to support racialized Canadians

Steps to apply

1. Gather your supporting documents and information

2. Decide how to apply (online, email or mail)

Gather your supporting documents and information

• Completed application form
• Budget Detail Template

Decide how to apply

After you’ve applied

We will review your application and decide if you will receive funding.

We expect to make funding decisions in late Fall 2022.

Contact us

If you have questions, email us at: EDSC.CPR-SFS.ESDC@servicecanada.gc.ca.

Information sessions

We held information sessions on February 8, 2022. You could participate online or by teleconference.

Glossary

Accessible formats

Accessible formats are also called alternate formats. These are ways of presenting printed, written, or visual material so that people who do not read print can access it. People who do not read print may:

• be blind or visually impaired
• have a learning disability that affects reading
• have a physical disability and be unable to hold or turn pages

Some examples are:

• Braille
• large print
• accessible web content using screen readers, software programs that read aloud text on the screen of a computer or mobile device

Collaboration or involvement with employers

This may include consultation, direction, and provision of advice on business needs, performance standards, as well as skills and training gaps. Training providers collaborate with employers to gain a better understanding of what employers expect workers to do to be better prepared to meet on-the-job skills demands.

This helps them design and develop training activities to support individuals to improve their foundational and transferable skills aligned to employers’ on-the-job expectations. Note, staffing agencies are not considered as employers.

Data Collection and Tracking Strategy or Project Management Information System

A data collection and tracking strategy or project management information system (PMIS) serves to track project results. It is an administrative database that project staff can create and maintain to keep track of program activities and progress. In its simplest form, it can be an Excel spreadsheet documenting and recording the completion of program activities as well as program achievements. For Training and Tools Stream projects, this involves:

• keeping track of users’ or participants’ basic demographic information, and
• recording completion of program activities as well as their achievements

Data Reporting

Project recipients are required to collect and track program activities, progress and achievements, and report this information annually to the Program. This includes reporting which elements of the project activities were successful and lessons learned to inform future skills training practices. For Training and Tools Stream projects, this includes the aggregated user/participant demographic information specified below as well as their completion and achievements.

Demographic Information

Demographic information examples include:

• age
• gender
• race
• ethnicity
• marital status
• income
• education, and
• employment

For the purpose of the Training and Tools Stream, project recipients need to collect and report annually to the Program, the following aggregated demographic data:

• age
• gender
• ethnicity
• Indigenous population group
• newcomer
• member of an Official Language Minority Community
• persons with a disability

Aggregate data refers to the compilation of data on individuals into a summary report and must exclude any personal information.

Dissemination Strategy

A dissemination strategy aims to spread knowledge and share results of promising practices on a wide scale. This can be done:

• within or across geographic locations
• across the adult skills training field with various players
  • service delivery organizations
  • training institutions, and
  • labour/unions
• within employer networks or other networks of end-users

Project recipients may develop promotional materials, such as:

• infographics
• videos, and
• capsules

This is to share project information through various avenues for example:

• conferences
• webinars, and
• meetings

For example:

Organization ABC designed a new workplace training model to improve customer service. The training model was tested in workplaces across the country and the results disseminated to industry stakeholders through social media.

Organization DEF developed a self-assessment tool for the new skills (creativity and innovation, adaptability) to help practitioners identify individuals’ training needs. The tool was shared at conferences bringing together practitioners from across Canada.

Diversity

Refers to the practice or quality of including or involving people from:

• a range of different social and ethnic backgrounds, and
• of different genders, sexual orientations, etc

Evaluation strategy

Involves collecting information about how well the project activities are progressing to meet the project objective. This could include elements of the project that were successful and lessons learned to take corrective action when required. An evaluation strategy also informs future skills training and practices.

Foundational and transferable skills

Refers to skills that are the building blocks needed to develop other skills, including occupation-specific skills. They are also important for effective social interaction. These are included in the Skills for Success Model. They are applicable, to different extents, to all occupations in the Canadian labour market and learning and life contexts.

Gender-based Analysis Plus (GBA+)

We all have multiple characteristics that intersect and contribute to who we are. GBA+ considers many other identity factors such as:

• race
• ethnicity
• religion
• age, and
• mental or physical disability

GBA+ considers that interaction between these factors influences the way we might experience government policies and initiatives. Using GBA+ involves taking a gender- and diversity-sensitive approach to the development of policies, programs and services. Considering all intersecting identity factors as part of GBA+, not only sex and gender, is a Government of Canada commitment.

Gender Equality

Refers to providing access to opportunities that is unaffected by one’s gender identity, gender expression or sexual orientation.

Gender identity

Refers to a person’s internal and individual experience of gender. It is not necessarily visible to others and it may or may not align with what society expects based on assigned sex. A person’s relationship to their own gender is not always fixed and can change over time.

Inclusion/Inclusivity

Refers to fostering conditions in which all individuals in a given environment are valued, welcomed, respected and represented. These conditions support all individuals to participate fully and equally regardless of aspects of their identities that differ from the dominant norm. The work of creating inclusive environments must be an active and continuous process. In this program, inclusion is applied to the workplace.

Independent learners

Refers to individuals who are able to learn independently and navigate self-directed assessments and training resources on their own.

Indigenous people

Refer to those who self-identify and belong to any of these groups as defined in the Constitution Act, 1982, Section 35 (2):

• First Nations (North American Indian)
• Inuit, and
• Métis peoples of Canada

Members of official language minority communities

Refers to groups of people whose maternal or chosen official language is not the majority language in their province or territory – in other words, Anglophones in Quebec and Francophones outside of Quebec (Statistics Canada).

Micro-credentialing program

Mini-qualifications that demonstrate skills, knowledge, and/or experience in a given area or capability.

Online

Content available through the Internet. For example, online learning materials have content that make use of digital technologies. These may be interactive and come in various formats, such as videos, capsules, and gamification.

Newcomers

Also referred to as immigrants in some cases. Newcomers refers to Permanent Residents and Refugees. A permanent resident is someone who has been given permanent resident status by immigrating to Canada, but is not a Canadian citizen. Refugees are people who have fled their countries because of a well-founded fear of persecution and includes conventional refugees and refugee claimants.

Partners/Partnerships

Involves the participation of or collaboration between organizations. This can include legal partnerships or non-legal partnerships. Each organization may play a specific role in carrying out the activities of the project, for example delivering activities or advising on them. Put together, these contribute to the success of the project.

Persons with a disability

Refers to a person who self-identifies and is “limited in her daily activities according to a prescribed level of difficulty with particular tasks due to a long-term condition or health problem lasting, or expecting to last, for a specified period of time” (Statistics Canada).

Racialized groups

Refers to those who have been categorized or differentiated on the basis of a membership of a racial group. “Racial group” is defined using the Statistics Canada list of “visible minorities”. See the definition for “visible minority”.

Remote

Remote locations are defined as having a population:

• of less than 1,000 (core population), and
• where no, or very little, access to the services of the closest municipality with a population of 1,000 or more exists

Skills for Success Model

The Skills for Success model is for all Canadians who need to improve their foundational and transferable skills. The model responds to the needs of the current and future labour market.

Statistically relevant

Statistically relevant sample sizes produce reliable evidence to demonstrate the level of effectiveness, meaning there is less of a chance that the results of the project happened by coincidence. Although there is no specific number, statistically relevant sample size means that there is sufficient participation to be able to demonstrate the effectiveness of the approach, so that it can be replicated to produce objective and similar results.

Sustainability strategy

A sustainability strategy maps out the ways the project activities and/or partnerships will continue, in whole or in part, by the partners or other interested parties beyond the duration of the project. For example, Indigenous service providers in receipt of project funding may build their capacity to deliver effective training to Indigenous people. After the project has ended, the activities and partnerships will continue using their ongoing program funding.

Under-represented groups in the labour market

Refers to the following groups:

• Women
• Persons with disabilities
• Indigenous people
• Members of official language minority communities
• Newcomers
• Visible minorities, and
• Racialized groups

Visible minority groups

Refers to those who belong to a visible minority group as defined by the Employment Equity Act: "persons, other than Aboriginal [Indigenous] peoples, who are non-Caucasian in race or non-white in colour." More specifically, “visible minority” includes:

• South Asian
• Chinese
• Black
• Filipino
• Latin American
• Arab
• Southeast Asian
• West Asian
• Korean, Japanese
• visible minority not included elsewhere, and
• multiple visible minorities (Statistics Canada)

Wrap-around supports

Examples of wrap-around supports for participants include transportation, living allowance, reasonable childcare, accommodation costs to support persons with a disability, or other expenses related to specialized services, arrangements or equipment.