School of Business

Become a leader in your trade

Become a leader in your trade

In the next decade in Canada, remarkable prospects will open up for tradespeople with management training.

The Globe and Mail reports that Canada is facing a shortage of one million tradespeople by 2020. As a result, opportunities will abound for managers able to organize and lead productive teams of skilled workers.

If you are currently employed in a trade and would like to take the next step in your career, the Bachelor of Business Administration in Trades Management at UFV can prepare you to move from the shop floor to a manager’s office.

This innovative program combines bridging courses (such as business math, statistics, writing, and management techniques) with core business curriculum in the areas of human resources management, marketing, financial management, industrial relations, project management, research, strategic management, information systems, and management of innovation, as well as special topics in areas such as environmental sustainability.

When you graduate, you have acquired essential skills in all areas of business and leadership and are fully equipped to own, operate, or manage your own business or a group of employees.

Career Outlook for trades management

Currently in Canada, economists predict that a shortage of skilled trades workers may affect the country’s ability to compete in the global market. In fact, these shortages have recently triggered immigration reform to allow an influx of foreign workers to fill in vacancies.

Just as acute are shortages of supervisors to organize and manage teams and projects. Human Resources and Skills Development Canada reports a shortage of managers in construction, transportation, agriculture, logging and forestry, as well as mining, oil and gas. As a large cohort of older, skilled workers are entering retirement in the next decade, management and leadership positions are expected to open for trades workers with the right skills and credentials.