Geospatial Technology Industry Thoughtleader Workforce Roundtable

1
Geospatial Technology IndustryThought-leader
Workforce Roundtable
January 27, 2006 Washington, DC
2
Online Feedback MechanismSummary Overview
3
General Summary

• The content and design of the online feedback
  mechanism was informed by the discussion at the
  first Thought-leader roundtable event (October 6,
  2005).
• The online feedback mechanism can be found by
  visiting
• http//www.aag.org/roundtable/feedback/feedback.ht
  ml
• A copy can be found in your packet

4
(No Transcript)
5
General Summary

• Divided into 6 sections, total of 24 questions
• Basic Information
• Defining the Geospatial Technology Industry
• Geospatial Market Segmentation
• Geospatial Workforce Need
• Geospatial Workforce Roles Competencies
• Meeting the Geospatial Workforce Need
• Optional Personal Information

6

• Distributed to
• All participants of the First Roundtable Event
• All invitees to the Second Roundtable Event
• AAG GIS Science Specialty Group members (1,921
  members)
• GITA Board of Directors, Industry Trends Analysis
  Group, Education Committee (500 members)

7
A Glance at the Responses

• As of January 20, 2006
• Received a total of 90 responses of which 80 are
  from U.S. respondents
• Our program today is guided by the analyses and
  summaries of the U.S. responses received as of
  January 20, 2006.

8
(No Transcript)
9
Todays Goals

• Refining the results of the online feedback
  mechanism
• Many possible ontologies, or ways of defining and
  categorizing an industry
• We need to keep in mind the goals and constraints
  of this project
• We are particularly interested in helping
  potential employees who are seeking employment in
  the industry, and employers who are seeking
  employees.

10

• Thank you for attending this roundtable workshop
• and
• sharing your experience and expertise.

11
Detail Summary

• Session 1 Defining the Geospatial Technology
  Industry
• Session 2 Geospatial Market Segmentation
• Session 3 Geospatial Workforce Need
• Session 4 Geospatial Workforce Roles and
  Competencies
• Session 5 Meeting the Geospatial Workforce Need

12
Session 1Defining the Geospatial Technology
Industry

• This session relates to Questions 3 and 4 of the
  Feedback Mechanism.
• Respondents are asked to select 1 of 4 commonly
  used definitions with which they most agree (Q3)
  They are then asked to provide suggestions to
  improve the definition chosen (Q4).

13
(No Transcript)
14
Definition 1 (39)

• The geospatial technology industry is an
  information technology field of practice that
  acquires, manages, interprets, integrates,
  displays, analyzes, or otherwise uses data
  focusing on the geographic, temporal, and spatial
  context. It also includes the development and
  life-cycle management of information technology
  tools to support the above.

15
Summary of comments

• Strong interest in combining elements from
  various definitions
• Remove the term information technology field of
  practice
• Incorporate the term geographic technology in
  conjunction with geospatial
• Strong desire to have a short concise
  definition
• Add list of technologies similar to those used in
  definition 2

16

• Add distribution, dissemination, archive,
  storage, enterprise integration
• Emphasize the enabling nature of the technology
  (in decision making, operations management, and
  business performance improvement)
• Emphasize principles, knowledge, science,
  concepts, research, and methods behind the
  technology
• Role of the academia/higher education (in
  research and education of the science that builds
  the technology).

17
Definition 1 The geospatial technology industry
is an information technology field of practice
that acquires, manages, interprets, integrates,
displays, analyzes, or otherwise uses data
focusing on the geographic, temporal, and spatial
context. It also includes the development and
life-cycle management of information technology
tools to support the above.

• Goal
• To refine the definition for the
  geospatial/geographic technologies industry.
• Questions
• What ideas, principles, and concepts from
  definition 2, 3, and 4 might be integrated into
  definition 1?
• What would you add to or remove from this
  definition to improve it?

18
Task Add Remove

• Add to
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.

• Remove from
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.

19
Session 2Geospatial Market Segmentation

• This session relates to Questions 5 and 6 of the
  Feedback Mechanism.
• Respondents are asked to select 1 of 3 methods to
  categorize the geospatial/geographic technologies
  industry (Q5) They are then asked to provide
  suggestions to improve the categorization method
  chosen (Q6).

20
(No Transcript)
21
Geospatial Market Segmentation Summary of
Feedback

• Respondents are split evenly between Categories 1
  and 2
• Very few suggest Category 3
• As with the definition, many suggest a
  combination of methods for the categorization of
  the industry
• In addition, many argue that both Categories 1
  and 2 need further development

22

• Refocusing on
• The market segmentation process is aimed at
  designing an organizational scheme for the
  Geospatial Industry Workforce Information System
  (GIWIS) that will disseminate job/career related
  information (including job listings).

23

• Goal
• To refine categories of market segmentation
• Action
• Please weigh the two leading approaches in terms
  of which approach would be most useful to job
  seekers and employers. Select the approach which
  your table feels would be the most useful if only
  one approach can be used.

24
Task

• Method 1 Method 2
• Reasons
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.

25
Session 3 Geospatial Workforce Needs

• This session relates to Questions 7 and 8 of the
  Feedback Mechanism
• Respondents are asked whether BLS should update
  or add new SOCs to reflect the emergence of new
  or additional geospatial technology
  professions/jobs (Q7)
• They are then asked to list up to 3 job
  categories to be considered for addition (Q8).

26

• An overwhelming majority of respondents (91.43)
  believe that BLS should update or add new SOCs to
  reflect the emergence of new or additional
  technology professions/jobs.
• A table of all suggestions can be found in the
  summary report (pages 7-8).

27

• Criteria to keep in mind
• Whether or not the data is collectable
• Is this a title people would ever write on a
  Census form, or that an employer would use to
  describe their employees?
• Is the size of the occupation big enough to find
  a statistically significant number of these
  people in either a survey of households or
  business establishments?
• Is the occupation concentrated in certain
  industries?

28
(No Transcript)
29

• Goal
• To develop a list of job titles most used by
  those seeking employment and by those seeking
  employees.
• Question
• Please list the most important job titles you
  believe should be added.

30
Task

• In addition to those collected from the feedback
  mechanism,
• Additional job titles are
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.

31
Session 4 Geospatial Workforce Roles and
Competencies

• This session relates to Questions 9 through 11 of
  the Feedback Mechanism
• Respondent are asked to identify the roles (from
  a list of 12 roles defined by Gaudet et al) for
  which there are or will be shortages of skilled
  workers during the next 10 years (Q9) They are
  allowed to specify new roles in this question

32
Roles
33

• Goal 1
• To refine our understanding of which roles there
  are and will be shortages of skilled workers over
  the next 10 years.
• Questions
• How would you revise, modify and improve upon the
  8 roles survey participants identified as most
  important to the industry for the next 10 years?
• What other roles would you add to improve upon
  this list.

34
Technical Competencies

• Respondents are also asked if the following 13
  technical competencies adequately cover the full
  spectrum of geospatial technical competencies in
  their organizations (Q10) They are then asked to
  suggest additional technical competencies (Q11).

35

• 64.29 of the respondents think that these 13
  technical competencies DO NOT cover the full
  spectrum of geospatial technical competencies in
  their organizations adequately.

36

• Suggestions
• Operations Management
• Project Management
• Regional Competency
• Data capture technology
• Fundamental engineering skill
• Spatial Analytical Techniques, Mathematics,
  Statistics, and Measurement Sciences
• Database Management
• Presentation
• Computer Programming other IT Skills

37

• Other comments
• Many additional technical competencies are
  identified as other type of competencies
  according to Gaudet et al.
• Expand the discipline specific competencies such
  as geological environmental applications or
  remove them from technical competencies.

38

• Goal 2
• To identify additional technical competencies
  that will be required for the geospatial
  workforce of the future.
• Question
• What other areas would you add to the list of the
  13 technical competencies?

39
Task 1
Session 4 Geospatial Workforce Roles and
Competencies (Table Outcome)
Task 2

• Additional Roles
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.
• 6.

• Additional Technical Competencies
• 1.
• 2.
• 3.
• 4.
• 5.
• 6.

40
Session 5Meeting Geospatial Workforce Needs

• This session relates to Questions 12 through 14.
• Respondents are asked to identify up to three (3)
  academic disciplines which will be most important
  for preparing the geospatial workforce during the
  next 10 years (Q12) They are also asked to
  identify three (3) most important
  training/educational programs to the success of
  his/her organization (Q13) They are asked to
  list any additional mechanisms (Q14).

41
Academic Discipline
42
Educational Training Mechanisms
43

• Suggestions
• K-12 education
• Internships with industry
• Project management education
• Continuing education
• Geospatial courses within other professional
  degrees
• Association training and professional development

44

• Goal
• Identify additional educational/training
  mechanisms that are important to the field.
• Question
• Do the results of the survey miss any important
  educational and training mechanisms?