Phil is the Director of Global Partnerships at Career Cruising, which provides career exploration and planning resources to over 20,000 schools, libraries and employment centres. As the author of CHOICES in the late 1970s, Phil was an early pioneer of computer-based career exploration and planning. He also co-authored Blueprint for Life/Work Designs and co-created The Real Game Series. His programs have helped millions of students transition from school to success. Phil’s chapter in the Career Development Practice in Canada textbook is “Career Development: Key to Economic Development.” Topics covered in the podcast include: Workforce skills gaps and why our current processes to match people with jobs and meaningful careers remain so inefficient Connecting curriculum at the K-12 level to careers Drop-out rates and why the majority of students in Canada do not pursue post-secondary education Are we producing graduates that lack essential employability or soft skills? Why so many adults go through their entire working lives without ever making fully intentional career choices The responsibility that employers have for training in the labour market Implications of demographic changes for Canada: Baby Boomer retirements, a smaller cohort of Millennials entering the workforce, immigration levels that won’t meet labour market demands and Canada’s growing Aboriginal youth population The “One-Percent Difference” and the social and economic costs of poor career development How can we know the jobs of the future and what skills will be in demand The new career management paradigm and the role of career development professionals within it