New Year. New World. New Skills.

Last year, our Global CEO made an announcement about new program called “New World, New Skills”. This program will focus on upskilling as there is a growing mismatch between people’s existing skills and the new skills demanded by the digital economy.

Globally, the PwC network will invest $3 billion over the next four years in upskilling — primarily in training PwC staff, but also in developing and sharing technologies to support clients and communities. A firm-wide upskilling program has already been rolled out in the US and this has already expanded to the member firms.

"Your Tomorrow" is how we are investing to create the PwC of the future. It’s a bold step towards answering the expectations of the market so we can provide the value our clients want, and we do it more digitally. Last week, we achieved a significant milestone towards it - the first cohort of PwC Canada’s Digital Accelerators (DAs) met in Orlando for Liftoff.

Hosted by our Digital Accelerator Leader Ryan Couvrette and Chief Innovation Officer Chris Dulny, the immersive digital training program is all about equipping our Digital Accelerators with the technological capabilities to reimagine the possible, challenge the status quo and change the way we work. Here are some of my observations from the Liftoff event.

We are learning as one: It was amazing to see 130 of our Digital Accelerators come from different parts of the firm to attend the Liftoff. These bright, motivated individuals represented our different lines of service (Consulting, Deals, Tax, Assurance, Internal firm services). As they interacted and networked, I was impressed by the sense of community that was developed over the last few days. Learning groups, buddies, mentors were set up. It was wonderful to see how we are breaking the silos within the firm and learning together as a firm.

Fun way of learning and development: The firm will roll out different programs that meet the particular needs, from skills academies to digital fitness apps and leadership development. The DAs will learn special skills in data analytics, robotics process automation, machine learning and artificial intelligence for use in their work. What’s most interesting is how this training is developed and delivered. I was super impressed with the Escape Room trainings that were delivered at Orlando. With all the components of gamification (badges, points, leaderboards), the firm is redefining how learning programs are structured and delivered.

Leadership support for the Upskilling program: We are all aware that any transformation program cannot succeed without the leadership believing in it. We are fortunate to have leaders at the firm who have reiterated their commitment to the initiative. Members of our Executive Leadership Team attend the launch, participated in the sessions and answered any questions that the Digital Accelerators had. Quite clearly, the firm is relaying the message that no one will be left behind in this digital upskilling journey as long as they are willing to participate in it.

For the participants, the one word that echoed most during the last few days was “ambiguity”. However, each of our Digital Accelerators saw this ambiguity as an opportunity to chart their own path. That's what makes this program super exciting. As the program unfolds, we are counting on the bright, smart individuals to help drive a digital-first mindset across the firm and to deliver client value. I can’t wait to see the magic that they will create. Here's wishing them the very best.