WorkLore

Recently, I had the opportunity to contribute to a proposal that would address the need for trade diversification, particularly for small to medium businesses, as well as the under-utilization of the skills newcomers to Canada bring.

The working title is the Global Trade and Talent Accelerator (GTTA) and it addresses these two problems together.  

The first problem is the under-utilization of the skills that professional newcomers bring to Canada, resulting in their under-employment and reduced contributions to Canadian society. The result is highly professional newcomers working at jobs that do not match their talent and the gap that creates between available and utilized talent in our society. 

RBC estimates that “Bringing immigrants up to the wage and employment levels of those born in Canada has the potential to add $50 billion to GDP”

The second problem is the need for trade diversification in Canadian business, particularly small to medium enterprises that is challenging because of the risk that international trade diversification poses for small businesses with less experience and fewer resources to risk on expansion. Risks include not being familiar with the country of export and its culture and the cost of executing on a strategic internationalization plan, such as research, system set up, regulatory requirements, and business process modifications (e.g. Accounting or HR practices). 

BDC (Business Development Bank of Canada) research shows that exporters, particularly SMEs experience 3% higher revenue than non-exporters (12% as opposed to 9%) and 8% higher profits (17% as opposed to 9%).

Taken together, both these problems result in a productivity gap here and across Canada.

The GTTA will create a trade consulting company that provides trade and in-country expertise to small to medium businesses that will help them expand into new markets. It will do so through recruitment of newcomer consultants in key disciplines like accounting, information technology, compliance, business analysis, supply chain, research and writing, finance and legal. 

 It will then match cohorts of consultants with small to medium businesses, much like any other consulting company but will do so in a cost-effective manner because of the strong connections to resources needed for the project. 

The result is that small to medium businesses have domain expertise as well as potential in-country experience that will help mitigate the risk of entering new markets. For small to medium businesses, the opportunity to expand into international markets is great, but the risk is also high. The risk of failure in these small businesses, is amplified because they have fewer resources to allocate to expansion. The program gives them this expertise in a cost effective structure that will allow them to achieve their trade expansion goals. 

For newcomers to Canada, it will allow them to use their existing professional skills while being trained in trade diversification. More critically, it will give them experience within a Canadian business context, which is highly valuable to their resume and increases their chances of landing a more permanent role in their chosen field. 

We think this is a valuable addition to the programs already in place locally with the potential to reach beyond our region. 

What do you think?