How restructuring the post-secondary ecosystem will help Canada meet its economic ambitions

John Stackhouse, senior vice-president at the office of the CEO at RBC, and Jackie Pichette, director of skills policy for RBC Thought Leadership, discuss Canada's post-secondary education crisis and its implications for economic competitiveness. They argue that while Canada faces historic nation-building investments in sectors like defence, AI, and energy, universities and colleges are scaling down due to funding constraints and policy neglect, creating a dangerous disconnect between national ambitions and institutional capacity. The discussion explores how post-secondary institutions must shift toward competency-based education, stronger industry partnerships, and greater focus on practical skills training to support Canada's productivity challenges and strategic economic priorities. This episode is presented in partnership with RBC Thought Leadership. The Hub is Canada's fastest growing independent digital news outlet. Subscribe to The Hub's podcast feed to get all our best content: https://tinyurl.com/3a7zpd7e (Apple) https://tinyurl.com/y8akmfn7 (Spotify) Watch a video version on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@TheHubCanada Want more Hub? Get a FREE 3-month trial membership on us: https://thehub.ca/free-trial/ Follow The Hub on X: https://x.com/thehubcanada?lang=en CREDITS: Elia Gross - Producer & Editor Sean Speer - Host Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.