Sustaining Saskatchewan’s Growth Attitude is Everything Institute of Certified Management Consultants of Saskatchewan In Cooperation with the Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy

The World’s Premier Management Consulting Certification

Contributing Firms & Consultants  b Creative Group  Conroy Ross Partners  Deloitte  Mandate Consulting  McNair Business Development  Paradigm  Perspect Management Consulting  Praxis  Saskatchewan CMC Institute  Johnson Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy

Study Objective: How to Sustain our Growth State of the Economy (Statistical Analysis) Challenges and Opportunities (Business Leaders) Sustain Saskatchewan’s Growth Attitudes Survey (Public Opinion)

Residents believe the Future is Bright  Thinking about the next four years, how do you expect Saskatchewan’s economy will perform? Do you think it will … Source: Praxis Analytics 2013 household survey + = 85%

Most Think They Will Be Doing As Well or Better in Four Years

And are Largely Pro-Business

Economic Conditions Shape Attitudes Building Together. Land of Opportunity Outward looking, Confidence in the future. Innovative. Welcoming immigration. Abundance of potential Population growth. Create a better life. Risk averse, cautious, Success is envied; not applauded Adversarial: winners & losers Redistribution Dependent on Government Tolerate our hardship, Inward looking, better next year. Rural vs. Urban Shrinking & Stagnating Opportunity is elsewhere Out-migration. Pioneers Post Great Depression

2006: A Return to Pioneering Values Regional interdependency. Community is the region. Partnerships for win/win. World needs what we have Global opportunities. within our reach. Entrepreneurial. International Immigration driving population growth. The place to invest Population growth resumed. A prosperous future. Building Together. Land of Opportunity Outward looking, Confidence in the future. Innovative. Welcoming immigration. Outlook of abundance Population growth. Create a better life.

Why the Change in Attitudes in Sask?

Buoyant Economic Conditions = Optimism

Income Levels Have Also Grown

Economic Growth Driving Employment Growth

Why all the Economic Growth? Source: Statistics Canada Growth of Exports 2003 to 2012 Exports!

Population Gains relate to Global Commodity Super Cycles

80 % of Population Growth is in Sask Cities

Communities Close to Regina & Saskatoon Growing Much Faster

New Canadians are Driving Population Growth—Most Coming to Regina & Saskatoon

All of the Job Growth Also in the Cities

Because Employment Intensive Industries are Urban Based

Cities are Critical for Continued Population and Employment Growth

Observations  Saskatchewan’s recent success is due to both rural and urban economies:  Exports originate in rural Sask.  Most of the main supporting services, employment and housing growth is in the cities  Sustaining the interdependency between rural and urban Sask is vital to Saskatchewan’s continued growth via:  sustaining competitive resource industries, and  Growing the cities since cities are the primary destinations to attract population, employment growth and investments in high value added production.

Higher Value Added Needed—Cities Critical

So Why The Need for Regional Cooperation? Sustaining Saskatchewan’s Growth and Competitiveness

Sustained Growth is not Guaranteed Pursuing Opportunities, Addressing Challenges

Cities Have the Ability to Become Globally Competitive at 500,000  Cities of 500,000 or more have avoided outmigration in the Northern Plains region of North America  Cities become regional and national ‘engines of growth’ as they attract economic activity.  Other than Atlantic Canada, Saskatchewan is the only Canadian province without a city of 500,000.  Sustaining Saskatchewan’s growth requires larger cities.

Challenges to Maintaining Growth  Business leaders see four major challenges  Increasing access to skilled labour and professionals  Improving growth enabling infrastructure  Addressing the rising cost of living and doing business  Continuing to improve and evolve the policy environment  Addressing these challenges is largely an urban based agenda because of the role of cities in:  Attracting skilled trades persons and professionals to Saskatchewan  Providing infrastructure and services to support business growth  Creating local economies with sufficient scale to support growing business.

Today’s Population300,000500,000Growth in TownsAdd in RM Growth

Thank You A higher level of management Consulting

Study Findings – Attitude is Everything Findings:  Unprecedented levels of growth and investment  A material shift in public attitudes: ‘positive about the future’  Businesses are planning extensive developments and investments  Cities capturing all the growth; larger cities are key to sustaining growth  Only larger cities are able to attract and retain new skilled professionals Opportunities:  Add more value to resources: manufacturing, processing, technologies, services  Grow the population: Increase immigration, greater participation of First Nations  Sustain the right policy environment: trade, taxation, training, promotion Barriers to Continued Growth:  Shortages of: infrastructure, skilled labor, value added production, cultural industries  Need more growth of cultural industries  Fragmentation of governance, insufficient capacity of institutions