The purpose of the tourism training fund is to fund short-term training to provide skills for someone to get a job in the NWT Tourism industry, or improve the skills of those already in the industry, which will ultimately provide the NWT with a better trained tourism labour force.

The Tourism Training Fund is application based and individuals and businesses in any sector of the tourism industry can apply (except the aviation industry).

These areas are the priorities of the fund:
• Hunting, fishing, outdoor adventure, and interpretation services and sectors.
• Hospitality and guest services in the accommodations sector training.

Detailed guidelines and an application for the Tourism Training Fund are available below:
• Tourism Training Fund Application Form
• Tourism Training Fund Guidelines

Sector specific training is available based on a tourism training needs assessment of the tourism industry that was conducted in the summer of 2011.

The Youth Mentorship Program is aimed at tourism operators and businesses creating workplace experiences and training for youth interested in the tourism industry.

The Tourism Business Mentorship Program provides tourism businesses with the opportunity to work with experienced tourism industry businesses (Mentors) who are willing to share their expertise and knowledge.

Tourism Awareness materials currently include a Tourism Awareness Kit and a Student Tourism Career Awareness Kit.

This presentation ranges from an hour to an hour and a half depending on audience input and participation. It dispels common myths about careers in the tourism industry and sheds light on the different types of careers within tourism in the NWT. Profiles on a Travel Writer/Photographer, an Outfitter, a Marketing Manager, a Culture and Heritage Interpreter, a Tour Guide and a Tourism Researcher cover the ups and downs of each career as well as the type of education required. Possible schools and courses are also listed for each career type. The presentation also provides a link to an online quiz to find out if tourism is the right career for you and a slideshow.

National Occupational Standards are manuals that describe the knowledge, skills and attitudes necessary to be considered competent in an occupation. These standards have real-world applicability in the tourism sector, because they were developed by tourism professionals themselves in collaboration with leading tourism organizations in the country. Click here for more information.

emerit Professional Certification Fact Sheets contain information about certification requirements for various tourism occupations. The fact sheet for an occupation will provide a description of the job, performance evaluation, knowledge exam, sample questions, and information about prerequisite courses/training required for certification. Click here for more information.

For employers and professionals in the Canadian tourism sector, emerit is the most recognized training and certification brand. emerit has been developed by the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC) in collaboration with tourism industry professionals. Click here for more information.

This series of manuals was developed by human resource specialists and tourism professionals. They provide practical tools and resources for anyone with human resource (HR) duties in the tourism industry. This information will help you develop a forward-thinking and tactical approach for handling resource allocations, recruitment and internal policies.

Performance First manuals are available in each of the regional offices. This resource is also available on CD and in French through emerit, where they refer to it as the HR Toolkit. Click here for more information.

emerit Business Builders is a series of manuals that includes practical tourism business management information, tools, resources and templates. Ideal for entrepreneurs, owners and operators of small tourism businesses, this kit explores the basics of business planning, development and management.

The Business Builders manuals are available in each of the regional offices. This resource is also available on CD and in French through emerit. Click here for more information.

NorthernMost Host is a one-day customer service workshop designed to help frontline staff to understand customer expectations, communicate more effectively, deal with challenging customers, increase sales, and act as ambassadors for their business, community and territory.

The purpose of the Welcome to the Northwest Territories workshop is to provide training for individuals who work in the tourism industry. The 3-4 hour course includes information on the value of the tourism industry to the NWT's economy; how many visitors come to the NWT and what they see and do; an overview of the NWT and its communities - their history, attractions and traditions; how to give a warm welcome and communicate with visitors; how to deal effectively with visitor's needs and complaints; and the importance of customer service to your place of business, your community and the NWT.

Japanese Service Expectations is a one-day workshop that helps front-line employees understand Japanese visitors, their culture and their customer service expectations. Participants learn what the Japanese expect in the way of customer service, including how to properly address visitors, key words and phrases in the Japanese language and other cultural awareness skills to better serve the NWT's important and growing Japanese market.

The Department of Industry, Tourism and Investment hosted a two day fly fishing workshop for NWT tourism operators on September 14 and 15, 2010 in Yellowknife.

The objectives were to teach the tourism operators how to fly fish, the equipment needed, and how to teach their guests to fly fish. The instructor, Mr. Duane Radford, is an award-winning writer and photographer residing in Edmonton. He is an experienced fly-fisherman and has fly-fished extensively in the NWT, Nunavut and Yukon and has developed a skill set and gained invaluable knowledge over the past decade. He worked for the Fish and Wildlife Division in Alberta for 34 years until his retirement in 2001. He is a member of the Outdoor Writers of Canada, and the Alberta Fish and Game Association.

Information at the workshop was provided through a combination of classroom and outdoor sessions. The focus was on lake trout, northern pike and Arctic grayling. There are links below to the workshop agenda and PowerPoint presentations:

• Agenda (2010 pdf .2M)

• Lake Trout (2010 pdf 4.0M)

• Arctic Grayling (2010 pdf 4.3M)

• Northern Pike (2010 pdf 5.2M)

If you work in the tourism industry, or are a student enrolled in a tourism program, you may be interested in the Tourism Industry Identification Program (TIP).Through this program administered by the Tourism Industry Association of Canada, you can apply for enrolment and will be issued a TIP Card. Click here for more information.

The CTC is a national marketing organization. Their vision is compelling the world to explore Canada. Click here for more information.

Founded in 1930 to encourage the development of tourism in Canada, TIAC serves today as the national private-sector advocate for this $70.6 billion industry, representing the interests of the tourism business community nation-wide. Click here for more information.

NWTT is the designated Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) working on behalf of the NWT Tourism Industry. Responsible to over 200 tourism business members, NWTT promotes pan-territorial tourism, industry education and the marketing of all sectors of tourism in the NWT – locally, nationally and internationally. Click here for more information.

The Yukon Tourism Education Council (YTEC) is an organization that addresses industry's need for a coordinating body to undertake the human resource issues facing the Tourism Industry in the Yukon, Northwest Territories and Nunavut. They provide training and education products to tourism and service businesses, in an effort to enhance the growth of a professional training culture in the industry, which leads to a stronger workforce. YTEC works in conjunction with the Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council. Click here for more information.

The Canadian Tourism Human Resource Council (CTHRC) is one of 29 national sector councils whose overall goal is to improve the quality of the Canadian labour force, and to assist businesses to be more flexible in meeting changing competitive demands. By bringing together corporate executives, owner-operators of smaller firms, employees, union leaders, educators and interested government representatives, Sector Councils provide a practical perspective on change. The CTHRC is a leader in temporary foreign workers, foreign credential recognition, and its comprehensive suite of training and certification resources marketed under the emerit Tourism Training Brand.