TechImpact co-hosted IT Workforce Innovation with our partners WorkingNB/PETL on May 26 at Kingswood Lodge in Fredericton, and the day exceeded our expectations. The room was at capacity, the conversations were candid, and the energy was exactly what this moment calls for. Thank you to the WorkingNB/PETL team for making it happen alongside us, and to every industry leader, post-secondary partner, ecosystem organization, and TechImpact member who showed up ready to dig in.
Here's what we heard.
Industry told us what they actually need
We opened with an industry panel featuring Tony Sheehan (Northbound Advisory), Brian Dunphy (Cvent), and Chris Frame (Mariner). AI has changed how their teams work, fundamentally and fast. Teams are smaller, more generalist, and expected to move faster than ever. But what they're looking for in new talent hasn't changed as much as you might think: curiosity, communication, and a self-starter who doesn't wait to be told what to learn next.
Junior talent is far from written off. Panelists told us that junior team members are showing up with a fearlessness around AI tools that's inspiring their more senior colleagues. The mentorship still matters, but the creativity is flowing both ways.
Their message to post-secondary was consistent: keep the fundamentals strong, embed more soft skills, and prepare students to be generalists. You still need people who know what good looks like, because someone has to catch it when AI goes sideways.
Mark Patterson challenged us to look at the bigger picture
After the industry panel, Mark Patterson, Executive Director of Magnet at Toronto Metropolitan University, reframed everything we'd heard. His read on where we are nationally: we've moved from a post-COVID scarcity mindset into something deeper, what he called a precarity mindset. When foundations feel like they're shaking, organizations get defensive and risk-averse. That's a real problem, because this moment demands the opposite.
His challenge was direct: innovation without adoption is just potential. We can talk about AI all we want, but if we're not building the people, processes, and foundations to actually use it, we're standing still. Digital transformation isn't about buying tools. It's about doing the hard foundational work first.
He also pushed us on identity. We've built a culture that ties people's sense of self to a job title or a specific skill set. When those shift, people feel lost. What we need is a foundation rooted in hope and a growth mindset: not blind optimism, but a genuine belief that we can learn, adapt, and keep contributing through change. Without that foundation, even great skills become brittle.
His asks for New Brunswick were practical: tighter feedback loops between industry and education, AI fluency at every level of leadership, a long-term strategy around sovereign compute, and less time admiring the problem. He reminded us that New Brunswick has a track record of coming together when the stakes are high. We're the right size to move quickly. Now we have to choose to.
Post-secondary is navigating real pressure, and they're moving
Luigi Benedicenti (UNB), Jodi Stringer (NBCC), and Marie-France Bérubé (CCNB) closed the day, and we want to be clear: these institutions are dealing with significant headwinds. IRCC changes, tighter budgets, and curriculum cycles that weren't designed to keep pace with monthly AI developments. And they're still moving.
NBCC has delivered a 45-hour AI course to over 25 instructors with a waitlist growing, and is working to make AI literacy a first-term experience for all students. UNB is building on fundamentals so graduates can adapt to whatever comes next. CCNB has restructured programs around competency-based learning with soft skills embedded throughout. When students do get into the workforce, they're delivering. We heard from employers that co-op students were taking AI 70% of the way and applying real technical judgment for the rest, sometimes outpacing more experienced colleagues.
Their ask to industry was simple and fair: talk to us more, and more often. Annual advisory meetings aren't enough anymore, and building those connections is something we're committed to supporting.
What we're taking away
The through-line from the whole day: AI won't understand your business problems for you. You still need curious people who ask good questions, know what good looks like, and are willing to keep learning. New Brunswick has the relationships, the institutions, and the right size to act on this faster than most places. We left feeling like the conversation is shifting from awareness to action. We'll be sharing more about what comes next. Stay tuned!