Challenge Factory

Most organizations measure workforce success by what they spend on people.

Few measure whether those investments are working together to deliver impact.

That’s the gap CERIC set out to address.

And the national initiative they spearheaded, brought to life by Challenge Factory, changed how career development is understood across Canada.

Here’s what that work produced:

🔍 𝟲𝟮 𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 that can now be referenced in policy forums across the country.

🔍 𝟭𝟯 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗲𝗰𝗼𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗶𝗹𝗲𝘀, making the invisible infrastructure of career development visible for the first time.

🔍 𝟱,𝟬𝟬𝟬+ 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 equipped with practical tools through the bilingual Retain and Gain playbook series.

What emerged wasn’t just data. It was a blueprint.

And the insight that connects all of it?

Career development isn’t a program. It’s the infrastructure that determines whether your workforce investments compound or evaporate.

This is exactly why CERIC hosted a webinar recently, with Lisa Taylor and Carli Fink, where they discussed: 𝘞𝘩𝘺 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘋𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘭𝘰𝘱𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘍𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘖𝘳𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘴 𝘞𝘪𝘵𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘐𝘯𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘳𝘦. Designed for HR and career development professionals, the question it answers matters at every level of leadership.

Link below to watch the replay:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8uJdf_vkwg

13,000+ employees.
Global missions and offices across Canada.

One big question:

𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘣𝘶𝘪𝘭𝘥 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵 𝘴𝘺𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬𝘴 𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴𝘤𝘢𝘭𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘥𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨𝘧𝘶𝘭 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘢𝘤𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘥𝘶𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘮𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘦𝘴?

That’s the challenge a department from the Federal Government of Canada brought to us at Challenge Factory.

And the answer wasn’t a program. It was infrastructure.

We conducted a department-wide review, assessed their career guidance maturity, and developed a full vision and roadmap, including structure, services, phased implementation, and frameworks for cost and ROI.

The work went all the way to the Deputy Minister, a signal that career development had moved from HR function to government priority.

Because here’s what we know:

𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘃𝗶𝗱𝘂𝗮𝗹𝘀.
𝗖𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿 𝗱𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗹𝗼𝗽𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗱𝘃𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.

When career infrastructure is built with the same rigour as operational strategy, the return isn’t just engagement. It’s organizational capability–a system that can carry a workforce of thousands through change, across borders, and into the future.

💬 Is career development treated as a service or as infrastructure inside your organization?

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https://challengefactory.ca/

People who’ve followed Challenge Factory for years often tell us:

“𝘐 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰 𝘪𝘮𝘱𝘰𝘳𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘢𝘯’𝘵 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘦𝘹𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘭𝘺 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘥𝘰.”

We hear this more than you’d think.

Because what we do doesn't fit neatly into one category.

We’re not a training company.
We’re not a recruiting firm.
We’re not a traditional HR consultancy.

Here’s how we describe it:

𝗪𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗮𝗴𝗻𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝗯𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.

In practice, that looks different for every client:

🌟 𝗚𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗔𝗳𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗿𝘀 𝗖𝗮𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗮: we built architecture for a Career Support Unit serving 13,000+ employees across global missions

🌟 𝗦𝗘 𝗛𝗲𝗮𝗹𝘁𝗵: we redesigned onboarding as the first chapter of a long-term workforce strategy, not an HR checklist

🌟 𝗠𝗰𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗨𝗻𝗶𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗶𝘁𝘆: we built infrastructure so leadership careers aligned with institutional strategy, and so the culture could hold through sustained disruption

🌟 𝗦𝗮𝘂𝗱𝗶 𝗔𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗮: we developed a national framework positioning career development as economic infrastructure

Different industries. Different scales. Different challenges.

But the same underlying pattern emerges every time:
The problem isn’t the people.
It’s the system connecting them.

We call this a Broken Talent Escalator®: the structural breakdowns that prevent career growth and talent mobility over time.

It shows up in every sector, at every scale, more often than most organizations realize. And it’s always diagnosable before becoming a crisis.

Diagnosing it is where we start. Designing the workforce infrastructure to restore it is the work.

💬 Does this resonate with a challenge you’re navigating right now? Share this with someone who needs to hear it, or DM us directly.

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https://challengefactory.ca/

Many organizations treat onboarding as an HR process.

A checklist.
A first week.
A 30-day check-in.

But here’s what we’ve seen working with organizations navigating tight labour markets and high early-tenure turnover:

𝗢𝗻𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗴𝘂𝗶𝘀𝗲.

And often it’s the first visible sign of a Broken Talent Escalator®, where talent mobility starts to break down.

When onboarding is designed well, connected to job readiness, career progression, and long-term capability, it doesn’t just welcome people.

It anchors them.

SE Health asked Challenge Factory to redesign their orientation and onboarding from the ground up.

As the first chapter of a workforce strategy instead of a standalone process.

The shift:
❌ “How do we get people started?”
to
✅ “How do we build a system that carries people forward?”

When that question changes, everything changes:

✔ Early-tenure investment translates into retention
✔ Internal progression becomes possible
✔ Capability builds instead of cycling out

The work didn’t simplify onboarding.

It connected it to everything that comes after.

Is your onboarding process connected to your broader workforce strategy?

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https://challengefactory.ca/

“𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘥𝘰 𝘸𝘦 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘱 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘻𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘨𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘤𝘵𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘯𝘦𝘥?”

McMaster University brought this question to us.

What followed wasn’t a program. It was a partnership.

We worked alongside their senior academic leaders through:

🔹Evidence-based advisory
🔹Psychometric-informed recruitment
🔹Cross-faculty workshops

All designed to carry the institution through both good conditions and disruption, demographic change, and accelerating expectations.

Sound familiar?

Everything was anchored in one principle:
𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗽𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘀 𝗼𝗿𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝘆, 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘂𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁.

The result:

✔ Faster recruitment for hard-to-fill roles
✔ Stronger succession pipelines
✔ A leadership culture built to hold through sustained change

This is what workforce infrastructure looks like in practice.

Not a single intervention.

A system designed to carry an organization forward.

Where is the gap between leadership development and organizational strategy showing up in
your institution right now? 💬

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https://challengefactory.ca/

Is your organization talking about the AI elephant in the room?

A lot of AI conversations are focused on tools. 🔎

What should we adopt?
What can we automate?
What roles might change?

But employees are often wondering something more personal: Do I still have a future here?

That uncertainty matters.

Because when people can’t see where they fit in your organization’s future, they’ll start building that future somewhere else. AI can expand what people are capable of, but only when organizations have the systems to help people move, grow, and contribute in new ways.

That’s where career infrastructure matters.

It helps make internal pathways visible.
It supports better career conversations.
It keeps talent in motion.

💬 Questions for leaders:
Can your people see a future with you?
Do managers know how to talk about what’s changing?
Is AI being experienced as a possibility or as uncertainty?

If AI is on your agenda, workforce mobility needs to be there too.

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Workforce transformation isn’t a local challenge. It’s a global one.

And the organizations moving fastest aren’t waiting for certainty.
They’re building the infrastructure to navigate it.

We see this firsthand in our work:

🌟 Singapore — we partnered with local career guidance organizations to equip HR professionals with tools for inclusive, intergenerational, and AI-aware workforce planning.

🌟Saudi Arabia — we worked with the Human Resources Development Fund to position career guidance as national economic infrastructure, benchmarking 16 countries in the process.

Different markets. Different contexts.

The same underlying truth: Organizations that are ahead don’t have the most programs. They’re the ones that have built the systems to connect them.

Career infrastructure isn’t a local issue.

It’s a global leadership priority.

💬 Where is your organization feeling the pressure of global workforce change most right now?

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“This is bigger than we thought.”

We hear this often from leaders.

And they’re right.

The forces reshaping work: AI, demographics, shifting expectations, etc., are complex.

But here’s something we’ve learned working alongside leadership teams:

It’s a big deal.
And it’s no big deal.

Both can be true at the same time.

The complexity is real.
The stakes are high.

But what changes everything is workforce infrastructure: the structures and conditions that connect people, decisions, and strategy.

When organizations:
✔️Make the invisible visible
✔️Create clarity around what’s changing
✔️Build a path forward, step by step

Something shifts.

What used to feel overwhelming becomes manageable. Not simple. But possible to navigate.

And this is where HR and workforce leaders play a critical role.

Because, when leaders move from:

“This is overwhelming”
to
“We now know how to move forward,”

Momentum returns.

And momentum is what carries organizations through moments exactly like this.

💬 Reflection: Where could more structure create momentum in your organization right now?

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