Episode 83 - Navigating Government Procurement in Canada
Release Date: 04/24/2024
Secteur manufacturier québécois: Trump, défis et solutions
Intended Consequences
Le retour de Donald Trump à la Maison Blanche et la mise en place de tarifs douaniers créent de nombreux défis pour les entreprises manufacturières québécoises. Les taux, la portée et même l’échéancier de ces tarifs ont changé à plusieurs reprises depuis janvier. Ces revirements de situation causent beaucoup d’incertitude pour les dirigeants d’entreprise et les travailleurs. Afin de dresser un portrait de la situation dans le secteur manufacturier et de discuter des défis et des solutions, l’Institut de StrategyCorp a eu le plaisir d’accueillir Julie White,...
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How Are the Democrats Opposing Donald Trump?
Intended Consequences
The first 100 days of the second Trump presidency have been a whirlwind. Between policy announcements on Truth Social, a barrage of tariffs and cuts to the civil service, the Trump White House has been moving fast and breaking things. Amid this breakneck pace, the Democrats are trying to oppose Trump on Capitol Hill while also getting ready for the 2026 mid-term elections. Bruce Fisher, a veteran of American politics, joins the podcast to discuss how the Democrats are dealing with the Trump earthquake and preparing for the mid-term elections. He also shares his insight into how Canada should...
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Tariffs and Economic Development: Threats, Opportunities and Strategies
Intended Consequences
The 100th episode of Intended Consequences explores the impacts of the U.S. tariffs on economic development in Canada. Many Canadian communities are vulnerable to tariffs with Saint John (NB), Calgary and Windsor topping the list according to the developed by the Business Data Lab at the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. The Director of the Economic Development Program at the University of Waterloo, Brock Dickinson, joins the podcast to discuss how economic development is impacted by tariffs and what it could mean for sectors like manufacturing, agriculture and tourism. He shares helpful...
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Private Investments in the Ontario Electricity Distribution Sector
Intended Consequences
Much of Ontario – including most of the province’s main urban centres – are served by local electricity distributors (LDCs) owned by municipalities. Both the federal and Ontario governments have recently announced measures that could enable more private sector or pension fund investment in those municipally owned LDCs. This podcast looks at the current situation, the proposed changes and what more private or pension fund investment could entail for municipalities, investors and the Ontario Energy Board. We are joined by Mary Anne Aldred, Strategic Advisor at Norton Rose Fulbright Canada,...
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Perspectives on the State of Ontario’s Development Sector
Intended Consequences
In the face of an uncertain economic future, where housing starts have plummeted and residential sales are down, but demand shows no signs of abating, the key goal of the industry is to somehow make it through 2025. StrategyCorp Dave Wilkes, President and CEO of the Building Industry and Land Development Association, and Jason Burggraaf, Executive Director of the Greater Ottawa Home Builders’ Association, join the podcast to discuss the state of the development industry in Ontario. They provide their insight on the development financial model and the barriers developers are currently...
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Municipal Financial Sustainability
Intended Consequences
The StrategyCorp highlighted that municipal finance is a top area of concern. The report noted that “many CAOs spoke of financial challenges not just in terms of the gaps and shortfalls they are trying to fill, notably with respect to infrastructure, but in the context of affordability for residents.” Two StrategyCorp Senior Advisors, Michael Fenn and Tony Haddad, join the podcast to talk about the state of municipal financial sustainability in Ontario. They provide their insight on the financial challenges municipalities face and the importance of financial planning to navigate uncertain...
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StrategyCorp’s Year-in-Review & 2025 Look-Ahead
Intended Consequences
Our annual year-in-review & look-ahead episode is back to close out this season of Intended Consequences. Our StrategyCorp guests discuss the most important national and international developments of 2024 and their significance for Canadian politics and economics. They also share with us what they will be keeping an eye on in 2025 and why.
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Technology Adoption in the Construction Sector
Intended Consequences
Like the rest of the Canadian economy, the construction industry is badly hit by a decline in labour productivity. Looking at historical data, labour productivity in the construction sector is lower today than it was before the pandemic. This comes at a time when communities are growing and we need to build more houses and infrastructure. Increasing productivity will require a variety of tools and one of them is technology. To discuss the impacts of technology adoption in the construction sector, we are joined by Hamid Alemohammad, Co-Founder and Chief Operating Officer of Brickeye.
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The Impacts of Emerging Technologies on the Digital Divide
Intended Consequences
, the and are changing the game for governments, companies, and workers. As these emerging technologies gain traction and get adopted, questions around their impact on people are top of mind. Will they create a digital divide where some individuals get left behind in both their personal and professional Faun Rice from the Information and Communications Technology Council joins the podcast to discuss what the digital divide means for individuals and businesses. She also provides insight into how students and workers can develop the right skills for a rapidly changing digital economy. ...
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One Woman’s Fight for Freedom and Democracy: A Conversation with Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya
Intended Consequences
While the war in Ukraine rages on, another fight continues in its neighbour to the north, Belarus. In 2020, its dictator Alexander Lukashenko faced massive protests in the streets and is widely seen by the international community to have lost the presidential election to an unlikely opponent, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. Tsikhanouskaya ran in the place of her husband Siarhei, who was arrested by the authorities in May 2020. While Siarhei remains in prison in Belarus, Sviatlana, who was exiled almost immediately, leads the opposition from abroad. Her goal is to work with international...
info_outlineGovernments spend large sums of money on procurement every year. According to Global Affairs Canada, estimates show that government procurement represents between 13 and 20 per cent of a country’s gross domestic product.
Given the size of the budgets and the wide array of goods and services governments need, procurement is a big opportunity for potential suppliers. However, procurement processes are often complex and hard to navigate.
To explore the topic of federal procurement, we are joined by the President of AES Inc., Annie Randell, and Martin Rust, a Senior Advisor and a member of the StrategyCorp Procurement Solutions team. We explore why government procurement matters, the lifecycle of a process and how it could be improved. A member of Qalipu Mi’kmaq First Nation, Annie Randell also discusses the obstacles Indigenous-led organizations face when they partake in government procurement processes.
Later in the show, Julie Gonyou explains what makes municipal procurement unique and debunks common misconceptions. A former Chief Administrative Officer, Julie Gonyou is a Director at StrategyCorp and a member of the firm’s Procurement Solutions team.