Introduction
Lack of awareness about new technology and misunderstandings about its uses is an obstacle to technological advancement in Thunder Bay. What this means for the city is that it must provide more information about new technology to its citizens and businesses.
However, if Thunder Bay wants to take advantage of technological advancements, it must be more strategic about how it utilizes technology.
The following are 5 ways Thunder Bay can build its human capital to better use technology:
1 - Issue: The workforce training is not keeping up with the pace of technological change. Thunder Bay is struggling to provide its citizens with the skills required for new technology.
1 - Implication: What this means is that training must be provided to all workers in Thunder Bay, not just tech workers.
1 - Recommendation: Provide training to all workers in Thunder Bay. Training must of course be provided to tech workers because they are the ones responsible for introducing new technology into the community.
2 - Issue: Employees are not receiving the training that is required for new technology.
2 - Implication: If Thunder Bay wants its citizens to adopt new technology, it must make sure employees are up to date.
2 - Recommendation: Provide ongoing training for employees to help them keep pace with technological change. Provide training to all workers regardless of the field that they work in.
3 - Issue: Companies are not hiring enough skilled workers.
3 - Implication: The population is aging and the unemployment rate is rising.
3 - Recommendation: Continue to invest in training/education programs
4 - Issue: The City is lagging in attracting young talent to its workforce. How can this issue be resolved?
4 - Implication: The youth are moving away from the area and in-migration is insufficient. Also, Thunder Bay is lacking skilled young workers. The City must do more to attract young talents to the area.
4 - Recommendation: The City needs to focus more on youth-oriented career centers and training programs. It should promote fast internet services and affordable housing to young people looking to settle in the City.
5 - Issue: Thunder Bay is not leveraging technology to attract talent.
5 - Implication: The City must continue to develop an attractive image for young talent as well as make the City's capacity for technology accessible.
5 - Recommendation: This could be done by making the city's usage of technology more transparent and making it easier to access.
Conclusion
The city cannot expect citizens and businesses to accept new technology if it has not invested in providing public education about what digital technology can do for people in Thunder Bay.
The lack of awareness about new technology leads to a lack of understanding in general, which leads to a lack of accessibility and thus, a hindrance for technological advancement.
If Thunder Bay wants to take advantage of technological advancements, it must be more strategic about how it utilizes technology.
The main problem is that the council and the citizens in Thunder Bay are not aware of how much they can use technology to benefit the City.
The solution is to make it easier for people to be aware of the advantages that technology can provide and to make technology accessible.
Nonetheless, the City needs to continue to invest in its citizens and businesses so that they can remain competitive.