Wednesday, 15 March 2017

How Trump Being Elected Could Benefit Canada’s Tech Economy

In November, Parliament issued new regulations that would make it “easier for fast-growing Canadian tech firms and multinational corporations operating here to quickly bring in skilled foreign workers for jobs they are struggling to fill in Canada” explains Barrie McKenna and Sean Silcoff of the Globe and Mail. The announcement included Parliament’s plan to distribute $218-million over five years into a new foreign investment organization. Interestingly, this strategy was implemented only days before the election of Donald Trump. But what is the connection?




As Trump’s potential presidency seemed increasingly more possible, so did the notion of U.S skilled workers packing up and heading north of the border to escape his influence and pursue their careers. Canada’s new regulation strategies simply made it easier for tech companies to recruit workers from the U.S. For example, they reduced visa processing times from six months to a few weeks and also made it easier for foreigners to receive short-term visas in general. Obviously, the strategy wasn’t created purely in response to Trump’s election, as making Canada more competitive in the international tech market has been an objective of our government for quite some time. However, it is definitely a beneficial ‘coincidence’ to say the least; especially considering certain Canadian tech companies such as Influitive have already reported increased numbers of applications from U.S workers (Melendez, 2016). What do you think? will Canada benefit from Trump-dodging tech workers? Or are we getting carried away with this idea?



References:

https://www.fastcompany.com/3065576/go-north-young-coder-how-canadas-tech-scene-may-benefit-from-trumps-election

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/ottawa-to-make-it-easier-for-some-businesses-to-import-foreign-talent/article32622768/


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3 comments:

  1. Unknown16 March 2017 at 12:18

    I think the high-tech industry in the US will push back hard if Trump continues his immigration shenanigans for much longer. Much of academia and the high-tech sector requires immigrants, and the opportunities are too great for people to decide to jump to Canada. Perhaps some will, but I don't think the impact will be that great. Hopefully I'm wrong.

    Check this out for an interesting view...https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NK0Y9j_CGgM

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  2. Unknown22 March 2017 at 09:54

    I think it's possible for the Canadian tech industry to benefit in a minor way, but realistically I think that the negative consequences of Trumps presidency will outweigh any benefits like this.. I guess only time will tell! I do however, see immigrants coming to Canada if they are turned away from the US as being extremely beneficial not only for immigrants themselves but also for our country as a whole.

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  3. Will Sutter2 April 2017 at 23:53

    Very interesting perspective. In addition to welcoming additional technology talent via immigration, this article got me thinking about another advantage Trump provides the Canadian economic development/innovation agenda.

    Considering President Trump's climate change-denying policies, this could be a great opportunity for the Canadian Government to double-down on it's commitment to position Canada as a global renewable energy leader. The lack of government support in the USA could provide Canadian companies a talent, research, and commercialization advantage.

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