On January 1, 2017, we consolidated reporting for the USA and Canada regions into one North American Region, chaired by Dan Heiman of Kansas City.
Executive Search in USA – 2017 Outlook
That’s Over! Now Let’s Get to Work
With the US election cycle finally complete, but the 45th president not yet inaugurated, business appeared poised to getting back on track.
A poll by Gallup in early January found that 50% of Americans felt now was a good time to find a quality job, the highest level in more than 15 years of polling on the issue. Despite the rancor and bitterness of the campaign, 55% of Democrats (the losers) felt this was a good time versus 44% of Republicans (the winners).
It also appears that, with a new, more pro-business administration, most companies have opted to begin investing again in strategies they know can impact the top line. Most businesses have been laser focused on bottom-line improvements for the past several years.
As search consultants, we have seen a demand for talent that embraces process improvement via LEAN, Six Sigma, TPM, Kaizen, etc. I would foresee 2017 as the shift year where companies will begin to focus their talent acquisition efforts on improving their sales and marketing channels, among other growth oriented opportunities, to improve top line growth.
Pent up demand for strong leaders will continue as the vacuum created by the retiring baby boomer generation continues. Technology, big data, information, cyber security, Millennials and business leadership are key business trends that will demand attention for business to thrive in the new economy.
Executive Search in Canada – 2017 Outlook
When Growth is Slow, Throw a Party
Most of the media and financial analysts in Canada reported a mildly disappointing year in 2016, and are forecasting a modest pick-up in the coming year. But we’ve got two big parties to go to!
The entire country is anticipating a big year in 2017 – at least culturally and politically. It is the nation’s 150th anniversary and the 375th anniversary of Montreal, the largest French speaking city in North America. There is also a political renewal underway with a new Prime Minister only 15 months in office and both the opposition Conservative Party and third place New Democratic Party choosing new leaders this year.
Canada’s economy is the 11th largest in the world with an abundance of natural resources and a well-developed, international trade networks.
In recent years, the most growth has been experienced in the west of the country as trade with Asia has strengthened. British Columbia is rich in natural resources, but the focus has been on Vancouver which has grown to become one of the nation’s largest industrial centers.
Port activities generate $9.7 billion in gross domestic product and $20.3 billion in economic output. A traditional location for forest product and mining companies, in recent years, Vancouver has become a center for software development, biotechnology, aerospace, video games development, animation studios and television production and film industry.
According to Statistics Canada, the Vancouver area has the lowest unemployment rate and the strongest growth rate in the country.
In 2017, growth is expected to remain modest, going from 1.3% to 2%. Late in 2016 the Bank of Canada cut its economic forecasts through 2018, predicting a slower housing market and conceding the export sector may not rebound the way many anticipated.
The greatest hope for Canadian growth appears once again to be our exports, aided by a weak Canadian dollar.
