The Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Montréal International and Investissement Québec International held a Strategic Forum on June 6, entitled “International business at the heart of our companies’ growth.” The fourth edition of this event drew more than 350 people to New City Gas, where they discuss the dynamics of international markets and the best tools for expanding abroad or attracting capital and talent.
The meeting took place with the participation of Jean Boulet, Minister of Labour, Employment and Social Solidarity and Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration and Minister Responsible for the Mauricie Region.
“Internationally oriented cities will experience stronger growth.”
– Michel Leblanc, President and CEO of the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal
“We must encourage companies to export. 70% of them focus on the United States, but we need to diversify our activities abroad.”
– Hubert Bolduc, President, Investissement Québec International
“This year, we will get things going again and, if all goes well, resume our in-person mission in the fall.”
– Stéphane Paquet, President and CEO, Montréal International
Discussion – Immigration: A key solution to labour shortages
“The labour shortage is an opportunity for Québec and the labour market to be inclusive and to ensure that temporary foreign workers are supported and have access to all the benefits of Québec’s social and labour laws. There is still work to be done. Immigration is one of the key options for countering the labour shortage.”
– Jean Boulet, Minister of Labour, Employment and Social Solidarity and Minister of Immigration, Francization and Integration and Minister Responsible for the Mauricie Region
BLOCK I – CURRENT CONDITIONS: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES OF INTERNATIONALIZATION
Panel – Major global issues and their impact on companies
“To increase business resilience, we need to regionalize value chains at the input level and diversify Québec and Canadian exports, which are extremely dependent on the U.S. market.”
– Julien Martin, Holder of the UQAM Research Chair on the Local Impact of Multinationals, ESG UQAM
Panel – Innovating to remain competitive in an uncertain environment
“We are committed to innovating the recruitment process, specifically by recruiting young people through training programs so that they can grow within the company. It’s up to companies to not only attract talent, but also help develop it.”
– Sophia Bennaceur, Regional head, Morgan Stanley
BLOCK II – INTERNATIONAL: A CONCRETE RESPONSE TO THE CHALLENGES OF TALENT AND MANPOWER
Panel – The race for talent: Attraction and retention
“Companies looking to recruit internationally need to manage their expectations well. This process can be more time-consuming, complex and expensive than local recruitment. That said, the offer from support services has increased. The ecosystem in Montréal has reached a high level of efficiency to the benefit of businesses.”
– Christian Bernard, Vice President, International Talent, Business Intelligence and Communications, Montréal International
Panel – Building on the potential of international students
“When we look at the choice of programs for international students, we see that nearly 80% of them choose technical programs such as nursing, information technology, business management and tourism. These are programs whose employment sectors are experiencing labour shortages. It is important to promote the recruitment of international students for the economic vitality of Montréal.”
– Caroline Roy, President of the Campus of Higher Education Technology of Montréal, General Director of Collège de Rosemont
BLOCK III – TO BE SUCCESSFUL IN INTERNATIONAL MARKETS
Panel – International development support resources
“Successful companies export, but also take advantage of local markets and work on complex strategies, including acquisitions. Support services have a common objective to help companies with their projects.”
– Marie-Eve Jean, Vice President, Export, Investissement Québec International
Political speech
“Through our representations abroad, we want to strengthen our economic ties with strategic regions, create business opportunities and open doors for Québec companies in new markets.”
– Éric Dequenne, Assistant Deputy Minister, Economic and Interdepartmental Relations, Ministère des Relations internationales et de la Francophonie du Québec
Panel – Taking advantage of the high potential markets of North America and the Indo-Pacific
“With a market of 130 million people, there are a lot of opportunities in Mexico. We exported nearly $1.9 billion from Québec, 600 Québec companies are present in the territory and a hundred have offices there. Nevertheless, there is still plenty of space left on that playing field.”
– Stéphanie Allard-Gomez, Delegate General of Québec in Mexico
BLOCK IV – GREATER MONTRéAL: STANDING OUT AS A WORLD METROPOLIS
Panel – Export practices: Lessons learned from Québec champions
“The key to our success has been to adapt to our markets. There is no one recipe that can be repeated in every market.”
– Éloïse Harvey, CEO, EPIQ Machinery
Panel – Testimonials from foreign subsidiaries established in Montréal
“The reason we settled on Montréal is multifactorial: a stable and predictive financial structure for both clients and service providers, the city’s multiethnicity, the talent pool, which greatly favours creative solutions and a central location between Europe and North America, two major hubs of our client base.”
– Émilie Dussault, Country Head, Technicolor Canada
About the Strategic Forum “International business at the heart of our companies’ growth”
The Strategic Forum “International business at the heart of our companies’ growth” was co-developed by the Chamber of Commerce of Metropolitan Montreal, Montréal International and Investissement Québec International. It was presented by RBC and produced in collaboration with Ubisoft Montréal and in partnership with EDC Export Development Canada and Montreal Gazette. The event was made possible with funding from the Government of Quebec.