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Alberta businesses compete for talent amid economic rebound

Alberta businesses compete for talent amid economic rebound

Flexibility, career growth are recruitment strategies in a tight labour market

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Alberta is enjoying an economic renaissance, and while this is good news for employers, it also means the competition to attract new talent is fierce.

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The competition is especially vigorous in the oil and gas sector, where drilling activity and oil production is jumping well above their levels of a year ago, according to a recently released TD Provincial Economic Forecast.

But this year’s Alberta’s Top Employers competition shows that whether the jobs are in the oil patch or in urban centres, the most successful companies are relying on a multitude of smart strategies to engage and retain newcomers.

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Richard Yerema, executive editor at the competition and also a best-selling business author, has seen this shift first-hand. “The recovery of Alberta’s industrial sector has been remarkable, and businesses understand that flexibility, health plans and an overall emphasis on employee wellbeing are required to attract the best and brightest,” he says.

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Such is the case at Inter Pipeline Ltd., a multinational petroleum transportation and infrastructure firm. Inter Pipeline is responding to a growing trend of employees wanting to advance quickly within their place of employment.

“More than ever, people are looking for opportunities that enable them to grow their careers,” says Desmond Salisbury, Inter Pipeline’s general manager of human resources. “Fortunately, we’re well equipped to accommodate that, having an abundance of interesting work and projects for those who want to challenge themselves.”

As for the familiar stigma of the oil patch being an undesirable workplace, Salisbury thinks it is largely a non-issue in 2023 and moving forward. “Concurrently we’ve developed an array of sustainable projects, which helps our standing as a desirable employer,” Salisbury says. “Our focus on sustainability is truly exceptional.”

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Increased competition among employers is also changing how Alberta companies recruit and engage the talent pool.

Salisbury elaborates, “Instead of casting a wide net, which only works when the market isn’t hot, we’re taking a smart approach to recruitment. We’re doing a lot more work engaging our leaders to determine exactly what they need. From there, we undertake initiatives such as reaching out to different networks and being proactive to find the right people.”

While it may not be a new trend, the need to give workers flexibility has become paramount to companies such as Fluor Canada Ltd. Stacy Posnikoff, human resources advisor for the engineering consulting company, points out that “Whether it’s Millennials or Gen X’ers, people have a lot of different needs, which is why we provide flexible start and end times as well as remote work and hybrid options.”

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Posnikoff notes that new recruits coming out of the pandemic are exhibiting a desire for a strong sense of community and belonging; to respond to this change, Fluor maintains an array of staff groups, including an Emerging Leaders group, and it has also gone to considerable lengths to augment its physical workplace with amenities such as free parking, free gym and in-office yoga sessions. “All of this is capped by an abiding focus on diversity, equity, and inclusion,” she says.

Posnikoff cites another element that makes a big impact in Fluor’s workplace desirability. “Our management is incredibly approachable,” she says. “All of these initiatives contribute to our on-going goal of staffing up with critical thinkers.”

As Alberta’s economic recovery continues, the care exhibited by companies such as Fluor and Inter Pipeline not only give them the edge on recruitment but also help ensure that the right people are selected for the right job.

This story was produced by Content Works, Postmedia’s commercial content division, on behalf of Mediacorp and Alberta’s Top Employers.