Be a part of Vancouver's booming tech industry

By 2020 it is predicted that there will be 215,000 new tech jobs in Canada with 50,000 new jobs for BC alone.

The provincial government demonstrated its commitment to growing the local technology sector with $87 million of new funding for its BCTECH Strategy.

The funding will be delivered over a three year period. As the industry continues to quickly expand, global tech companies, keen to gain a foothold in Vancouver, are opening new offices as startups have begun to stake their claim on the city.

The pressing issue is not a shortage of jobs, but rather that there are not enough qualified workers to keep up with demand. Technology training is a growing market, with companies like BrainStation leading the charge to help Vancouverites enhance their digital skills.

BrainStation has trained more than 40,000 Canadians between their Toronto and Vancouver campuses, offering part-time courses, full-time programs, and workshops. Their courses, related to technology, design and business, are designed in collaboration with global technology leaders such as Slack, Google, Microsoft, and Hootsuite.

BrainStation will be unveiling their new 20,000 sq. ft campus later this month, located at 455 Granville Street, in the heart of downtown Vancouver.

BrainStation/BrainStation Vancouver

Jeff Rambharack, a product management educator at BrainStation, is excited to be teaching Vancouver’s future product managers. He thinks the role will grow in importance beyond the tech sector.

“Ten years ago, product management was mostly a software discipline. I see it everywhere now – technology, telecommunications, manufacturing, apparel, and service companies,” says Rambharack.

The cornerstone of product management is empathy – being able to understand what people need, why, what their motivations are, what frustrates them, and what delights them.

“You can teach the analytical parts of the role but the empathy part is a bit more innate. If you don’t deeply understand your customers needs, you’ll either waste resources building more features than needed for a problem, or you’ll build the wrong features and your competition will beat you.

“Curious people with diverse interests are great product managers because they are hungry to understand any problem they encounter. They think of really creative ways of solving things instead of staying inside the box.”

Product management, like every course offered by BrainStation, is a hands-on learning experience taught by industry leaders passionate about empowering Canadians to level up their digital skills.

BrainStation will be hosting an information session on May 16 where attendees can learn more about full-time and part-time programs.

Follow BrainStation on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, to find out more.

BrainStation information session

When: May 16th, 5 to 6 pm
Where: 410–1110 Hamilton Street
Price: Free, reserve your spot online