SmartCity Blog

Pssst…Business Networking for Newcomers…Pass it on!

As Project Coordinator of the Halifax Connector Program, I work with many immigrants who have chosen Halifax as their home. I see firsthand, how newcomer professionals can bring a world of experience to our city and are a principal factor for Halifax’s growing labour shortage.

However, as many of us have experienced, finding a job in Halifax is not always an easy battle. In our welcoming city, it seems important to know a large network of business leaders. The saying, “It is not what you know, but who you know” sometimes rings true in Greater Halifax. 

The Partnership has been proactive with this approach and in July we launched the Connector Program to assist immigrants with expanding their networks. I help to put newcomer professionals directly in touch with Connectors - business owners and operators, managers, civil servants, community leaders…people like you. 

There are currently close to 100 Connectors who have agreed to meet with a newcomer professional and help to point them in the right direction. This is a referral process where after the meeting, Connectors are asked to provide the newcomer with 3 other contacts who they can also connect with. Finding employment will come, as their networks grow and they are exposed to employment opportunities.
 
By taking an hour or so of your time to meet with a newcomer, you will be making a world of difference for a new valued member of our community.
 
When the right opportunity exists, everyone benefits.

Contact me at cdean@greaterhalifax.com for more information on becoming a Halifax Connector or to participate in the program. 

Thanks,

Cindy

Cindy Dean is Project Coordinator for the Halifax Connector Program, a Greater Halifax Partnership Initiative. Program partners are the Nova Scotia Office of Immigration, The Maytree Foundation and the J.W. McConnell Family Foundation. 

A Tale of Two Cities

By Fred Morley

It was the best of times. It was the worst of times. Depends who you believe.

Last week was a busy week for those that rank the economic performance of cities.  First the CFIB "Communities in Boom": Canada’s Top Entrepreneurial Cities and now the Bruce Erskine article in Friday’s Herald citing the Canadian Bank  CIBC Metropolitan Economic Activity Index. 

First of all, it’s great that people are talking about cities and in particular Halifax.  Cities are important.  All of Nova Scotia’s net new growth in economic activity and population will come from Halifax and surrounding counties.   More and more, we are all recognizing this is not a bad thing or a good thing; it’s just the way things are.  It’s the way the world works now.  Last year, for the first time, the majority of the world’s population and its economic activity was in cities.  Canada’s population is already 80% urban.  Nova Scotia is entering that world. 

Back to the city rankings. Halifax has weathered the recession very well so far.  We have created more jobs in the last 12 months than any city in the country. 

More than Toronto. 

More than Olympics crazed Vancouver. 

More than the current hotbeds of Saskatoon, Regina and St. John’s. 

So when CFIB ranks Halifax 70th of 96 cities and towns I admit that I don’t get it.  In contrast, CIBC's survey of Canada’s 26 largest cities ranks us 5th in terms of economic vitality.  It begs the question - Halifax…do we have a problem or not?  Well, yes and no.  CFIB research is not entirely balanced and it comes from comparing cities that don’t have a lot in common.  Not quite comparing apples and oranges but more like comparing oranges and clementines.  After all, comparing number 3 ranked Joliette (pop 40,000) and number 90 ranked Toronto (pop 2.5 million) may mask a somewhat different scale of civic challenges in these two cities.  However it would be wrong to ignore concerns raised around ease of doing business.  In many respects, those of us in the bigger centres likely have something to learn from our smaller cousins.

From and economist’s perspective CIBC’s work is more relevant.  In this survey, Halifax does very well on employment creation..no surprise given our diverse economy.  More surprising is that almost 85% of our jobs are full time…indicating a break from the past.  Indeed, both Saint John and St. John’s proportion of full time work is over 80% as well and all three are in the top 6 cities in the country for full time workers.  So much for that myth of only seasonal part-time workers in Atlantic Canada.

The second interesting development is the recovery in population growth in Halifax.  Halifax has bounced back strongly from a pretty poor showing in the last census in 2006…a time when too many people we knew were heading west.  Well, now they’re heading back.

When we compare cities, it’s best to stick to hard measures.  Every meaningful measure of the Halifax economy points to a strong performance over the last year relative to other cities.  In a future that is about people and where they want to live, our appeal to young professionals as outlined in “Next Cities”  where we also ranked 5th, is a confidence boost.   However, smart cities don’t take anything for granted.  They don’t ignore problems they fix them. 

So, it isn’t the best of times, because the world is in recession and Halifax is part of that world.  But it isn’t the worst of times because Halifax is more than holding its own, leading the pack in employment growth and near the front in most meaningful economic indicators.

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities

English novelist (1812 - 1870)

Fred Morley is the Executive Vice President and Chief Economist (and aspiring English novelist) at the Greater Halifax Partnership.

SmartBusiness – keeping and growing business in Greater Halifax

I am part of a team who is helping to maintain a strong and vibrant economy and we are making a difference, one business at a time.  Along with my fellow team members, Sandra and Robyn, we are Account Executives of the Partnership’s SmartBusiness initiative - Greater Halifax’s answer to business retention and expansion. We meet with businesses throughout the HRM. We listen carefully to employers, identify their opportunities or challenges and connect them to a team of experts in their industry. These experts are members of our Action Team who guides the business to a resolution - typically to help with new markets, new sources of funding and new talent. 

SmartBusiness is the backbone of the Partnership. Our success stories are examples of the difference we are making. Over 80% of businesses in Greater Halifax are small businesses (under 100 employees). This week, Oct 19-23 is Small Business Week. Below are some of the interesting events going on in Halifax to celebrate Small Business Week:   

•    4 Days ‘unconference’
•    CEED: Fresh Ideas
•    HRM Reverse Trade Show  
•    Blue Water Business Development
And many more…

SmartBusiness will be there, hope you will be too.

Thanks,

Wendy

Wendy Donaldson is an Account Executive with SmartBusiness, an award-winning program of Greater Halifax Partnership. Contact Wendy or fellow team members Sandra Wood and Robyn Webb to learn more about the results companies are seeing and how we can help your business.

I’m on the move…

 

 

Most of us have done this…packing boxes with the contents of our office as we get ready to leave our current employment to embark on new challenges.  Looking in my boxes I see evidence of 10 years of effort to make our city a better place to live, work and play.  But it’s not what is in the boxes that gives meaning to this chapter of my career, it is what I see outside of my window that proves to me how much our city has truly changed.

I see evidence of new construction in different parts of our city; many buildings already under construction, and others that have moved from the planning process to development.  Our city is set for visible change – from new office buildings and condos to new sports facilities and convention centres- Halifax continues to be the economic hub for the Atlantic region. 

People are working in growing industries like financial services, green energy and logistics, and more new jobs have been created in our city than in any other in the country.  While the recession is real in most parts of the country and world – we are seeing our unique version of it here – continued measured growth.

Our attitudes are shaping our destiny with confidence and ambition a plenty – people that visit here go away with the distinct feeling that this city has finally found it’s groove.  We have more students enrolled in post secondary institutions that we have ever had, and more of them are coming here from other places in Canada and beyond.

What I truly believe is the biggest change I have witnessed in the past 10 year is a clear sense of purpose and a renewed focus on what needs to be done to realize the promise that this Smart City has to offer.

But as I turn back to fill the last of my boxes I am struck by a range of emotions from sadness to excitement as I think about the future. 

I will be sorry to say goodbye to my Partnership teammates, knowing that on Monday morning we will be in the same city but in much different worlds.  I want to wish all of these wonderful people every success and continued happiness in carrying out the important work of the Partnership.

To all of the Partnership  private sector investors, our municipal, provincial and federal officials, l offer my heartfelt  thanks for your belief in our partnership approach to growing our economy and for your guidance, understanding and support provided to me during the past 10 years.

 

…Halifax – You’ve Made It…

 

Stephen Dempsey
President and CEO
Greater Halifax Partnership

 

FUSION Halifax- the perfect networking tool for young professionals

I had the opportunity of participating at FUSION Halifax's monthly social event last Thursday. Promoted as a networking event, I brought a friend along to check things out.

Mingling in the crowd, my friend and I quickly noticed that the event attracted young professionals living in Halifax. In two hours I took part in a great opportunity to meet new people. I quickly realized that networking was not as challenging as I had first imagined and found myself starting conversations with several other young professionals.

As a Public Relations student, I realize the importance of forming professional relationships. Networking is a crucial element in any type of career and FUSION Halifax facilitates what young people in the city need; a comfortable and inviting environment for meeting people. With several events taking place each month, FUSION Halifax will be of tremendous value as I begin my career adventure here in Halifax. 

FUSION Halifax can also expose young people to new environments. I had never entered the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia and was eager to view the work of the Sobey Award finalists. The curator of the exhibit, Sarah Fillmore, gave us a tour of the exhibit and made me realize that art had the potential of being exciting. 

FUSION Halifax grew out of a Greater Halifax Partnership initiative. Realizing the need to keep and retain our emerging talent, the Partnership engaged leading young professional expert Rebecca Ryan to survey the demographic and make recommendations. One of the key recommendations was the creation of a young professional networking group. FUSION Halifax has been growing ever since.  Young professionals in Greater Halifax are now building relationships in a comfortable environment. Joining the group is free. If you are interested in learning more about the networking group or want to sign-up, visit their website at fusionhalifax.ca. Check out their upcoming events and get involved!

-Natalie Cormier is a senior Public Relations student at Mount Saint Vincent University. Natalie is currently a co-op student at Greater Halifax Partnership.  

Record breaking port day is fantastic for our economy

Halifax is booming with visitors today. Extra staff has been called in into work in many local businesses to help with the rush of visitors. Over 11,000 passengers are visiting Halifax as the Port of Halifax celebrates a record breaking week. Five cruise ships made their way into our beautiful city this morning.

Michelle Peveril from the Halifax Port Authority says that “despite the US recession, we are seeing roughly the same amount of passengers and cruise ships dock in Halifax when compared to last year. We are still on par with an estimate of 216,000 – 220,000 passengers.”

Earl and Cindy Pleasance from British Columbia travelled from coast to coast to visit Halifax. They were amazed by the historic richness of Halifax. “We’re only here for a few hours but we will certainly be back to explore Nova Scotia,” explains Cindy. The couple took a break from their shopping to observe Nova Scotian Crystal workers. Bumping into Canadian cruise passengers is a rarity. I’m told that 95% of visitors are actually American.

We might take it for granted when we see a ship arriving to our port or notice the city hopping, but the impact is phenomenal. The Port of Halifax estimates that the direct economic impact of the cruise ship season is $50 million. Restaurants, boutiques and museums are booming with visitors eager to learn about Halifax. “It’s not only Halifax that benefits,” adds Michelle, “but areas such as Lunenburg, Grand-Pré, and Peggy’s Cove have also seen an impact.”

See more pictures on Flickr

-Natalie Cormier is a senior Public Relations student at Mount Saint Vincent University. Natalie is currently a co-op student at Greater Halifax Partnership. 

Hiring immigrants- it's not as complicated as you think.

Over the past two years I have met with over 100 local employers educating them about the immigration process and the benefits of hiring immigrants.

During this time, I’ve experienced a common thread.  That some employers are hesitant to get involved with anything immigration-related because they believe the process is extremely complex.  However, after some discussion they often realize it is not as complicated as they had initially thought.

Immigration is something I hold close to my heart.  As an immigrant to Canada from Colombia I am well aware of the barriers that newcomers face, and the hesitations that employers have about getting involved in the process.   I feel a sense of fulfillment when I visit with an employer and I am able to provide clarity around some of the process.  I feel that I am doing my part for other newcomers who are coming to Canada in hopes of finding work, and my part for Canada as employers begin to recognize the benefits of hiring immigrants.In addition to the one-on-one sessions with employers, I also provide information sessions to groups. If you are in the manufacturing sector, there is an upcoming information session that may be of interest to you.

At this information session for manufacturers you will learn about:

• The immigration process with representatives from Citizenship and Immigration Canada Nova Scotia Office of Immigration
• The Temporary Foreign Worker Program
• The process to obtain a work authorization
• The Provincial Nominee Program: Skilled Worker Stream
• The Provincial Nominee Program: International Graduate Stream
• And much more…

Wednesday, October 28, 2009
8:45 a.m. – 12:15 p.m.
Nova Scotia Office of Immigration,
1741 Brunswick Street, Suite 110A.

      
           
There is no cost to attend this event but please RSVP to cdean@greaterhalifax.com If you have specific questions that you would like to have answered by the presenters during the session, please send them by October 20th to Cindy (902) 490-6049 or email cdean@greaterhalifax.com

We look forward to seeing you there!

Margie Casallas is a Coordinator for the Immigration Employer Support Program. This program is a Greater Halifax Partnership initiative that is part of the organizations talent strategy to shift attitudes about hiring newcomers and educate business owners on the benefits of hiring an immigrant. To book a on-on-one appointment with Margie: mcasallas@greaterhalifax.com or 490.7464