Edmonton Companies News & Discussion

[MacLac]

There is a yearly flurry of announcements during Stampede every year. That's what they do down there......

Try posting all of the business announcements for YEG - I look every day and there is a new article about YEG somewhere. Equal if not more than YEG. Please do not forgot the major projects that are the equivalent of a 1000 of those small ones for YYC. we are in the multi billions compared to the millions. Don't lose sleep over it.

 

[David A]

It makes sense that there is a flurry of Calgary related announcements during Stampede.

However, the issue here is tech jobs not major projects, which could be good for blue collar or trades jobs but not finance or tech ones. Students that go to school here in those fields should not often have to move elsewhere, our provincial body need to work to attract those here and help diversify our economy too.

 

[Munanyo]

A lot of big announcements made in Calgary recently and I also cannot help but be frustrated how we barely get any crumbs of the pie. Don't get me wrong - I'm happy we've been seeing some good blue collar jobs being created and invested here recently, but wouldn't it be nice if we got some white collar tech or finance jobs to help our slumping downtown and generate some diversity among Edmonton's job sector?

Keeping some of the U of A grads to stick around and maybe start their careers here would have a tremendous spinoff effect. Invest Alberta should be renamed Invest Calgary at this point.

 

[CaptainBL]

A lot of big announcements made in Calgary recently and I also cannot help but be frustrated how we barely get any crumbs of the pie. Don't get me wrong - I'm happy we've been seeing some good blue collar jobs being created and invested here recently, but wouldn't it be nice if we got some white collar tech or finance jobs to help our slumping downtown and generate some diversity among Edmonton's job sector?

Keeping some of the U of A grads to stick around and maybe start their careers here would have a tremendous spinoff effect. Invest Alberta should be renamed Invest Calgary at this point.

Here's the thing though, Calgary also gets its share of blue collar industrial type jobs and the necessary construction jobs too. Just for example, Green impact Partners is building a $1.2B ethanol plant in Calgary, de Havilland is building their aircraft manufacturing plant with 1,500 full time jobs just east of Calgary, there's a $210M wallboard manufacturing plant proposed for just outside Calgary, a $225M food protein processing facility just east of Calgary, and I could keep going on.

Calgary get its fair share of many industrial, blue collar, manufacturing or operating jobs as well. Its not at all like they get all the head offices and its ok because we get everything else.

Edmonton absolutely sucks pathetically at attracting anything non industrial related and I have no other way of stating that.

 

[David A]

I wonder if they understand the word Alberta is in their name, which means not just focusing on one city. I wish they would start living up to it.

 

[MacLac]

Here's the thing though, Calgary also gets its share of blue collar industrial type jobs and the necessary construction jobs too. Just for example, Green impact Partners is building a $1.2B ethanol plant in Calgary, de Havilland is building their aircraft manufacturing plant with 1,500 full time jobs just east of Calgary, there's a $210M wallboard manufacturing plant proposed for just outside Calgary, a $225M food protein processing facility just east of Calgary, and I could keep going on.

Calgary get its fair share of many industrial, blue collar, manufacturing or operating jobs as well. Its not at all like they get all the head offices and its ok because we get everything else.

Edmonton absolutely sucks pathetically at attracting anything non industrial related and I have no other way of stating that.

The Dow project that starts next year will be north of $15Billion…..just saying. Btw, they save all the announcements for the year for YYC at Stampede. So hence the “flurry.” Btw, I laugh when they say “upwards to 125 jobs over 5 years,” for the latest”Silicon valley” company setting up their Canadian HQ’s. Big deal I say. I wonder how that fake bank, on line credit card company is doing in YYC with their data entry folk aka Call…..jobs. Big 35K salary jobs down there…..lol.

 

[occidentalcapital]

The Dow project that starts next year will be north of $15Billion…..just saying. Btw, they save all the announcements for the year for YYC at Stampede. So hence the “flurry.” Btw, I laugh when they say “upwards to 125 jobs over 5 years,” for the latest”Silicon valley” company setting up their Canadian HQ’s. Big deal I say. I wonder how that fake bank, on line credit card company is doing in YYC with their data entry folk aka Call…..jobs. Big 35K salary jobs down there…..lol.

Are you really arguing that Edmonton should not expect better?

 

[David A]

So, back to the point raised, how many tech jobs here? How many head office jobs here? How many jobs downtown? from these projects

 

[ChazYEG]

The Dow project that starts next year will be north of $15Billion…..just saying. Btw, they save all the announcements for the year for YYC at Stampede. So hence the “flurry.” Btw, I laugh when they say “upwards to 125 jobs over 5 years,” for the latest”Silicon valley” company setting up their Canadian HQ’s. Big deal I say. I wonder how that fake bank, on line credit card company is doing in YYC with their data entry folk aka Call…..jobs. Big 35K salary jobs down there…..lol.

Not all jobs are data entry and call centre... And a city cannot live off of just blue collar jobs if it wants to attract and keep young, educated professionals.
I, for once, am considering moving to greener pastures, as much as I love Edmonton (and I think the amount of time I dedicate both here in this forum and out there, trying to make things happening in this city speaks for itself). I'd love to stay, but it's damn near impossible to find a finance related job here. Just as it's hard to find tech jobs, professional services, etc...

It's great that we get the big industrial projects, but if we do not attract more white collar jobs, we'll find it increasingly hard to diversify and grow.

And for every 1000 people "call centre job" you ridicule, there are a few mid-dozen management positions, accounting jobs, analyst positions and senior management. For every few of these we attract, we're also going to attract more professional services companies (consulting, finance, banking...) to serve these people. It's all a very intertwined process, that you seem to ignore.

 

[Kosy123]

Not all jobs are data entry and call centre... And a city cannot live off of just blue collar jobs if it wants to attract and keep young, educated professionals.
I, for once, am considering moving to greener pastures, as much as I love Edmonton (and I think the amount of time I dedicate both here in this forum and out there, trying to make things happening in this city speaks for itself). I'd love to stay, but it's damn near impossible to find a finance related job here. Just as it's hard to find tech jobs, professional services, etc...

It's great that we get the big industrial projects, but if we do not attract more white collar jobs, we'll find it increasingly hard to diversify and grow.

And for every 1000 people "call centre job" you ridicule, there are a few mid-dozen management positions, accounting jobs, analyst positions and senior management. For every few of these we attract, we're also going to attract more professional services companies (consulting, finance, banking...) to serve these people. It's all a very intertwined process, that you seem to ignore.

Honestly I've got to agree 1000% with this post. I lucked out with my current work in a public sector field, but finding anything revolving around finance/economics in a non public sector role was a difficult trek. I genuinely think that as the city approaches a 1.5-2 million population, we'll get more opportunities for that. Unfortunately, a city 3 hours south of us punches well way above their weight to our detriment as a city that just breached the 1 million mark.

 

[CaptainBL]

Honestly I've got to agree 1000% with this post. I lucked out with my current work in a public sector field, but finding anything revolving around finance/economics in a non public sector role was a difficult trek. I genuinely think that as the city approaches a 1.5-2 million population, we'll get more opportunities for that. Unfortunately, a city 3 hours south of us punches well way above their weight to our detriment as a city that just breached the 1 million mark.

I left Edmonton because there were better and more jobs in engineering and finance and many in my network did the same upon graduation from the U of A. I came back to Edmonton last year not for professional reasons (coming back to Edmonton for a finance role is career killing) and I had a hard time finding opportunities in finance.

If you are looking to grow a non-public career in something accounting, finance, engineering, etc field, Edmonton is not the place. Which comes back to the topic, Edmonton needs to do soooooooo much better at attractive investment, jobs, and companies because not everyone is going to come to Edmonton and be a Dow plant operator or the bobcat driver that works in construction.

Sadly, I see no evidence that the bodies in place of attracting this type of jobs investment/creation (Edmonton Global, City admin or council or the mayor) will be changing this, which begs the question, we are expecting the city to grow to 2M, where are the opportunities coming from for these people to work?

 

[TAS]

I left Edmonton because there were better and more jobs in engineering and finance and many in my network did the same upon graduation from the U of A. I came back to Edmonton last year not for professional reasons (coming back to Edmonton for a finance role is career killing) and I had a hard time finding opportunities in finance.

If you are looking to grow a non-public career in something accounting, finance, engineering, etc field, Edmonton is not the place. Which comes back to the topic, Edmonton needs to do soooooooo much better at attractive investment, jobs, and companies because not everyone is going to come to Edmonton and be a Dow plant operator or the bobcat driver that works in construction.

Sadly, I see no evidence that the bodies in place of attracting this type of jobs investment/creation (Edmonton Global, City admin or council or the mayor) will be changing this, which begs the question, we are expecting the city to grow to 2M, where are the opportunities coming from for these people to work?

Our Edmonton Chamber of Commerce doesn't seem to have any profile either. I know Calgary's CEO - Deborah Yedlin, but i don't know ours.

I do hear a lot from Puneeta McBryan from the DBA however.

She was presenting at Council committee last week and answered a lot of questions - she was very effective. I think council actually needs to be made more aware of these things by hearing it from business community etc because they ask a lot of questions from different speakers that give me the impression they maY not be that aware - there are so many issues before them.

 

[northlands]

I left Edmonton because there were better and more jobs in engineering and finance and many in my network did the same upon graduation from the U of A. I came back to Edmonton last year not for professional reasons (coming back to Edmonton for a finance role is career killing) and I had a hard time finding opportunities in finance.

If you are looking to grow a non-public career in something accounting, finance, engineering, etc field, Edmonton is not the place. Which comes back to the topic, Edmonton needs to do soooooooo much better at attractive investment, jobs, and companies because not everyone is going to come to Edmonton and be a Dow plant operator or the bobcat driver that works in construction.

Sadly, I see no evidence that the bodies in place of attracting this type of jobs investment/creation (Edmonton Global, City admin or council or the mayor) will be changing this, which begs the question, we are expecting the city to grow to 2M, where are the opportunities coming from for these people to work?

It really is so damn true. Just looking at LinkedIn of a lot of my peers I graduated with from U of A business are all either working for CRE firms, local big 4 offices, or have pretty much left the city for Calgary, Van or TO. Or government.

 

[IanO]

Some positive news - anyone know what space they took? Was it vacant or sublease?
---

Mark AndersonMark Anderson
(He/Him) •
Vice President at CBRE Canada
35m


On behalf of ATB Financial & Edmonton Office Advisors team we are happy to announce that a Fluor Corporation will be expanding into a new downtown office at ATB Place. This is a very exciting transaction for the market and terrific vote of confidence in our downtown.

A big thank you and shout out to Will Harvie for his diligent work in representing Fluor in this transaction. We expect this trend of companies coming downtown to continue as the value proposition of working in the core continues to grow.

 

[Glenco]

I saw an article the other day that said companies are not so keen on the work from trend as they feel it is not nearly as productive as first thought. Unfortunately I cannot find this article now. I think it was from The Economist if anyone cares to search for it.