Workplace Challenges
Threat #2: GlobalizationSmarten up Canada: get educated to compete in the global marketCompetition is steep in the global marketplace. Education can not only give you the edge to get ahead, but it will also give Canada the ability to compete in the global market. By Jennifer McFee |
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 [ 2009-03-03 ] |
For Canadian companies to get and keep contracts, we need to offer something unique. Lisa Abe, chair of the Canadian chapter of the International Association of Outsourcing Professionals, believes that a top-notch education will set us apart.
“We have to provide training that you can’t get anywhere else in the world. It’s going to be tough to compete [with other countries]. We have to make sure that we keep improving our schools to bring out the right calibre of graduates.”
Specialized advantage
One way Canadian companies can keep competitive on the global market is to pursue innovative fields.
One such field is nanotechnology, which focuses on atomic- or molecular-level research. Canada’s National Institute for Nanotechnology, located on the University of Alberta’s campus, is renowned as one of the most technologically advanced research centres in the world for physicists, chemists, engineers, biologists, pharmacists and medical professionals.
Their graduates are in high demand, since their skills can be used to design small, energy-efficient electronics or to make stronger, cheaper automotive materials.
And when Canadian companies can produce products that are tougher, more efficient or less costly than what other countries are making, that’s good for all Canadians.
“Over the long term in the current economic environment of globalization, skills and education are the most important way to succeed,” says TD economist James Marple.
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