Question: What happens when you get two of Peterborough’s amazing entrepreneurs and one of Canada’s leading business advisory minds on the same panel? Answer:  Seven pages of notes and insight into the reality of cultivating your own business.  

Thank you to Marty Laskaris, The Publican House Brewery; Cam Taylor, OUTDOORsmart; and Peter Lawler, VP of Business Advisory Services, BDC for their knowledge and commitment.  

Every business faces the questions around growth.  How to grow?  When to grow?  Why do I want to grow? What is the full spectrum of issues in dealing with growth? What are the needs of the business for capital investment, human resources, marketing, etc?  What are my needs?  

The following is a summary of the panel discussion that happened at the Peterborough Chamber’s Business Summit 2016. 

Business Development

• Take the time and effort to understand each channel of the industry we were in 
• Aspirational growth has to match cash flow
• Businesses need to plan for growth, otherwise they can get 
• caught in the cycle of being unable to grow because they can’t keep up yet needing to grow because can’t keep up with demand
• Two main ways a company can grow: 1. As a reaction to demand for your product or service; 2. Through acquisition and
• integration of existing businesses
• Figure out the “who” in your business.  What is your mission?
• Find uncontested market space
• Develop a fluid business plan for your year
• Spend money to accelerate
• Know your business and be able to identify the pain points
• Invest in technology and software.
• This helps in several ways: you can collect more data and find ways to be more efficient
• Understand that there could and most likely will be legislation at each level of government that could impact your business
• Get smart about your business
  
  

Nurturing Your Human Capital

• Have a solid network to support you and take time for yourself
• Business advisory panels are a tremendous resource
• Invest in your people and when hiring look for people with enthusiasm, passion, and initiative
• Find the common mindset and develop core values about the business that all employees share
• Establish guardrails and communicate what the business wants to achieve as a team 
• Authenticity and legitimacy are paramount in business success 
• Customer service is what will set you apart
• The session wrapped up with a great question from the audience: As a community what can we do to help business?  
  
  

Our panelists had a few ideas: 

• Support entrepreneurs
• Share ideas
• If asked, be a part of an advisory board 
• Strengthen the thought leadership around the vision of our local business community
• Invest in young people to help build the future workforce e.g. mentoring or internship
• Understand that there is no magic wand to wave to create the perfect city or economy, but at the same time government and business need to limit the disconnect between the two and understand projects in a larger context
  
  

Canada is really good at starting companies.  Peter Lawler of BDC told us that 98% of small and medium-sized businesses in Canada have 1-99 employees and that 1 business in 1,000 passes the 100-employee mark to move into that next level.  Lawler says ideally encouraging and supporting businesses to move to the next level is key.  

​Our panelists agreed that Peterborough does have all of the right ingredients for success and our time is now. 

November is financial literacy month in Canada.  Strengthening the financial well-being of Canadians is the vision of the National Strategy for Financial Literacy—Count me in, Canada. The federal government ministry in charge of this program is the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC).  The 2016 campaign is called “Managing money and debt wisely: It pays to know” and includes the themes of budgeting, rights and responsibilities, and having a savings plan.  While this program applies to all Canadians, there is no doubt as to the importance of students learning about finance and how to responsibly manage personal, as well as  business finances.    

The Ontario Chamber Network has had a policy resolution on the books for several years now calling for a more focused and dedicated high school curriculum around financial literacy.  The resolution peers into the future and suggests that one reason for adjusting the curriculum is that there may be a need for Ontarians with non-traditional
business skills to run their own businesses.  Another point made in the resolution is that Canadian household debt hit record levels in 2015 with roughly 80% of the population in debt. Half of all consumer spending (retail and housing) occurs in Ontario and BC alone. 

Ultimately, the resolution concludes by urging the Ontario Government to:

1. Create a mandatory grade eleven Introduction to Business and Commerce course from existing business and family economics curriculum and designate it as a compulsory credit to obtain the Ontario Secondary School Diploma.
2. Dedicate a specific section of the course to financial literacy.  This would include, but not be limited, to personal and family budgeting, the value of credit, mortgages, insurance, debt management, and accountability to pay.
3. Promote in all school districts in the province, the Specialist High Skills Majors (SHSM) program in the area of business and commerce, a ministry-approved specialized program that allows students to focus their learning on a specific economic sector while meeting the requirements to graduate from secondary school. 

The above recommendations were passed in May of this year at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce Annual General Meeting in Oakville.   

Let’s break them down.

1. A mandatory course in Grade 11 that is required for high school graduation.  With volunteer hours now required in order to receive your Ontario Secondary School Diploma, a dedicated financial literacy course certainly has the potential to be the next graduation requirement.
2. Dedication to personal and family budgeting basics benefits the economy as a whole by ensuring an educated workforce and consumer-base.  
3. Here in Peterborough, Holy Cross Catholic Secondary School has a Specialist High Skills Major in Aerospace/Aviation.  The program offers students nine credits including two for cooperative education.  You can find more on the program on the Holy Cross website: hccss.ca.  These types of programs, if approved by the Ministry, can help an area develop a workforce that is pertinent to its needs.   

As part of ongoing efforts outside of the advocacy realm, the Ontario Chamber of Commerce has partnered with a program called “Funny Money” (funnymoneyinc.com).  The program is geared toward high school students and is about “empowering students with the knowledge they need to make good financial choices.” High schools can contact [email protected] to learn more about the session. 

Having a population armed with the tools and knowledge to manage finances is a proactive approach to ensuring a productive economy. 
​
#FLM2016

Peterborough, ON, November 17, 2016: Today, the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce (OCC) has released new data that reveals a significant tourism opportunity gap when compared to international growth rates. According to the organization's report, Closing the Tourism Gap: Creating a Long-Term Advantage for Ontario, Ontario has foregone nearly $16 billion in visitor spending between 2006 and 2012 by not keeping up with global growth trends. While this year has been a strong year for tourism in Ontario, it is important that this recent growth is translated into long-term, sustainable gains in tourism visitation.

“The tourism industry is an important economic driver in the community with almost 1800 businesses and 17,500 jobs in the three ridings connected to Peterborough,” said Jason Becker, Chair of the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce.  “However, through research outlined in this report, we’ve found that Ontario is missing out on significant tourism growth in comparison to international trends. Our local industry and the province as a whole must take steps to boost our reputation as a global destination for foreign visitors and close the tourism gap.”

The Peterborough Chamber of Commerce believes that for our member businesses and businesses in the tourism realm as a whole the sector should be studied through the lens of the province’s Red Tape Challenge.  “We feel this type of analysis and feedback directly from businesses involved will help the government understand the needs of this economic sector and identify the pinch points,” adds Stuart Harrison, President & CEO, Peterborough Chamber of Commerce.  

The report identifies a number of challenges faced by tourism operators and the broader tourism community in Ontario, while presenting a series of action items to address them. The Peterborough Chamber is encouraged that the government is moving ahead with an action plan for the province’s tourism industry, a key consideration highlighted by its membership.

The report is clear about the need for any provincial strategy to include measurable targets, a practice currently employed by many successful tourism destinations. These targets would help to organize and coordinate tourism activities amongst the diverse group of public and private tourism organizations in Ontario, another key recommendation of the report.

“Ontario's tourism sector needs a dedicated strategy driven by the provincial government that not only promotes tourism within Ontario, but also focuses on drawing in visitors from around the world,” said Allan O’Dette, President and CEO of the OCC. “If we can do this successfully, the province will achieve substantial economic gains while keeping up with global growth trends.”

To produce this report, the OCC convened a group of Ontario’s leading thinkers within the tourism community. The report builds on previous initiatives undertaken by members of the tourism industry and further substantiates the need for a focused and measured approach targeted towards supporting the future of tourism in Ontario.  The Peterborough Chamber of Commerce would like to thank Kawarthas Northumberland and Peterborough & the Kawarthas Tourism for their participation.  

“We were pleased to have been part of the background discussions for this report with the Ontario Chamber of Commerce through the Peterborough Chamber,” says Brenda Wood, Executive Director of Kawarthas Northumberland. “We are happy to see the report includes a recommendation for the provincial government to move to a multi-year funding model for provincial tourism marketing funding. The consistency and predictability of such a model would help us in the marketing and promotion of the region and its businesses.” 

"The long-standing tourism industry in our region plays an important role in the vibrancy of the local economy. Peterborough & the Kawarthas Tourism, a division of Peterborough Economic Development is the Destination Marketing Organization (DMO) for the Peterborough Region.  As an active member of the tourism community in Ontario, we're glad to see so many organizations involved in the call to improve the timeliness of tourism data dissemination, particularly as it related to visitation and spending, " says Rhonda Keenan, President & CEO of Peterborough Economic Development. "Also, as a destination that has experienced growth as a result of our recent investments in cycling infrastructure, we are pleased to see the recommendation to incorporate tourism into provincial infrastructure investments."

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Learn more about: Closing the Tourism Gap: Creating a Long-Term Advantage for Ontario

Peterborough Chamber of Commerce Media Contact:
Sandra Dueck   
Policy Analyst/Communications Specialist
Peterborough Chamber of Commerce
T: 705-748-9771 x215
E: [email protected]

Recently during the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce Business Summit, President & CEO Stuart Harrison interviewed City of Peterborough CAO Allan Seabrooke.  What happened from the time they sat down to the end of question and answer was as unique as our city.  

It was a frank discussion of the challenges and opportunities our city faces.  There are currently 17 community plans guiding city staff. Mr. Seabrooke took these plans, analyzed them, identified themes and created a graphical image and document called Shaping Our City for the Future.  

The graphic is based on four pillars and an outer circle.  

The four pillars are:

1. Healthy & Connected
2. Prosperous
3. Vibrant
4. Sustainable

The outer circle describes the components of effective leadership:

• Innovative
• Responsive
• Progressive
• Resilient
• Compassionate
• CollaborativeTransparent
• Accountable 

The discussion revealed that our municipal government has a challenging balancing act on its hands between the demands of the provincial government and its constituents.  However, Mr. Seabrooke told the crowd that the city has to ensure that they are able to work within the rules to find ways to complete creative and challenging projects. Is there a way we can solve a problem so that the city benefits as a whole? 

Mr. Seabrooke is looking forward to research being done around the red tape faced by restaurants and craft breweries in our city.  The hope is that the result and the findings will help dismantle the perception that the city is closed for business.  

He believes that residents and businesses have a role to play as well, in that, as residents or as those involved in the business community we can choose to speak positively about our Peterborough (#TeamPTBO).  He says we can do this and still have fruitful discussions about the challenges that Peterborough is facing.  

Mr. Seabrooke believes Peterborough is in a unique position in that our demographics are challenging municipal, business and community leaders to think differently about how we define success.  How can the city and all of its groups come together and use our differences to make different choices, to create an atmosphere of openness and dialogue?   He says communication from the City is crucial.  For example, a lot of people still question the investment in the airport.  Mr. Seabrooke says the impetus behind airport investment and the lengthening of the runway was to ensure the Peterborough airport could survive as a working airport first; an airport that had service capabilities for other planes and fed the service side of the aviation economy.  The emerging passenger service component is a potential bonus.   

He also addressed a question about the new library building and the value of upgrading that space.  Mr. Seabrooke explained that city staff spoke to groups of all ages and determined there is still value in having a city library.  He said the most interesting concept that emerged from those discussions was how residents are still using the library, but in a different way than in the past.  With the new building it has the potential to become a central community hub.  
Wrapping it up, Mr. Seabrooke acknowledged the city still faces challenges, but having an understanding of where we, as a community, want to go is paramount, along with recognizing and understanding how integrated our various community groups, business community and residents truly are. 

Media Release
Wednesday, November 9, 2016

PETERBOROUGH, ON, November 9, 2016: The Peterborough County Federation of Agriculture and the Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce are pleased to announce the Buck family, of 1576 Centre Line, Norwood as the 2016 Farm Family of the Year.

Jim and Barb Buck have been farming for 42 years.  Their 375-acre farm includes 35 head Black Angus beef cattle and 40 head replacement Holstein heifers.  They also harvest hay for feed and several horse farms, soybeans, and mixed grain and/or wheat.  

They raised four daughters – Julia, Amanda, Jamie, and Ashley – who provided tremendous help and support, and they are now proud grandparents to Madeline (Julia and Tim).  

Over the years the Bucks have earned numerous awards and recognitions, including the Peterborough County Agricultural Award, Peterborough County Plowman’s Award, Peterborough County Forage Master’s Award, 10-year 4-H Leader Pin/Award, and Holstein Canada 30-year Breeders Pin.  They have also won several milk quality certificates.  

Jim and Barb are active volunteers in the farming community.  Jim is the secretary/treasurer of the Peterborough County Soil & Crop Improvement Association, past president of the East Central District SCIA, a 4-H Crops Leader, and chairman of the Heavy Horse Show & Field Crops Competition at the Norwood Fair.  Barb is a member of the Norwood Fair Homecraft Division, past social convenor at Trinity United Church in Hastings, and past committee member of the Peterborough County Queen of the Furrow.  The Bucks have been members of East Gen for 40 years.  They frequently donate baking and farm product for fundraisers by local community groups, including the 4-H Club, Lions Club, Trinity United Church, and the Norwood Fair Board.  

The family farm has hosted many organizations for events including 4-H Judge-It Day, Hay Demo Day, and the Tillage Demo Day, as well as various bus tours.  In 2015, they hosted the Peterborough County Plowing Match.

Congratulations to the Buck Family on being selected as Peterborough County’s 2016 Farm Family of the Year!

The award will be presented at the Peterborough County Federation of Agriculture Annual Banquet, to be held on Friday, November 18th, at the Holiday Inn Peterborough Waterfront.  For tickets, please contact Karen Jopling (see contact information below).

For further information contact:
Karen Jopling                                                           or            Stuart Harrison 
Peterborough County Federation of Agriculture                     Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce    
Phone: (705) 927-5677                                                           Phone: (705) 748-9771 x202

More on the event: http://bit.ly/2fI7OTm

The Greater Peterborough Chamber of Commerce is a member-based organization. Our main focus is to channel the collective strength of the business community to improve the economy. This includes providing representation on numerous committees, conducting surveys, issuing discussion papers and developing policy positions on issues of significance to our members.

The Peterborough Chamber of Commerce was at the forefront of the discussion around increasing hydro prices recently. Stuart Harrison presented a question, via video, to Premier Kathleen Wynne at the Ontario Chamber of Commerce Ontario Economic Summit event in Niagara-on-the-Lake and we submitted a letter to the Long Term Energy Plan 2017 consultations held recently in Peterborough.  

The Premier answered our question, starting with an overview of the situation the Liberal government inherited in 2003.  She identified that there had been a lot of “false starts” to improving the system and this contributed to further challenges. Premier Wynne also dentified that the government has changed the nature of power by investing tens of thousands into lines, by shutting down the coal plants and by investing and incentivizing renewable energy.  

She recognized that there was a cost associated with reaching the goal of having a clean, reliable grid that included renewable energy and that while they have done that, the government is now looking at ways to get costs out of the systems. Premier Wynne referred to two ways her government has done that to date including renegotiating the deal with Samsung on renewable energy and developing a deal with Quebec Hydro for cheap hydro electric energy to supplement what we have in Ontario.   

In our letter to the Minister of Energy on Long Term Energy Plan 2017 we highlighted several issues impacting business, including cost of electricity for small business, transparency on electricity bills, innovation around projects
important to Peterborough such as Energy East, and the future of natural gas.  

The province is asking how to encourage innovation in the energy sector through private and public sector means.  We suggest that the answer is simple: allow innovation to happen. Innovation on a project such as Energy East could benefit the economy in profound ways, potentially pushing our community specifically, but Ontario as a whole to higher levels of natural resource movement and development and safer and more environmentally friendly pipelines.

The Ontario Chamber of Commerce and by extension the Peterborough Chamber of Commerce advocates for a transparent energy system that offers a reliable and affordable supply of power to all customers at all times.  Reducing electricity and energy costs for industry and small to medium-sized businesses is also a top priority.  According to an OCC survey, one in twenty businesses in the province expects to close their doors in the next five years due to rising electricity prices. In addition, 38 percent will see their bottom line shrink, with the cost of electricity delaying or canceling investment in the years to come.

We asked that the government look at the electricity system through the lens of the small to medium-sized business owner working to keep people employed and provide a service or a product to their customers.  

And we came to the conclusion that any long term energy plan should be rooted in alleviating the challenges
of today in preparation for a predictable, transparent and reliable system in the future.
​
Click on the image below to read the full letter to the Minister of Energy or watch the video response to our question to the Premier at the Ontario Economic Summit.

With a vision statement of strengthening the business community and a mission that recognizes the Chamber’s role as the leading organization providing business advocacy, networking and education for our members and the community at large, we are proud to host Business Summit 2016.  The 1/2 day professional development event is full of great learning and networking opportunities.   

The event kicks off with a keynote on Scaling Up with Peter Lawler, Executive Vice President, BDC Advisory Services and centre around a recent BDC study titled: “The Scale Up Challenge: How are Canadian Companies Performing?”  With just over one million businesses in Canada and 99.8% small or mid-sized firms, the BDC study asks how many are ascending to a higher level?  What are the barriers to transitioning to another category and what are the main obstacles to growth?  An interesting finding is that very few small businesses are growing to have at least 100 employees and moving into the mid-sized business category.  With many of the new jobs in our economy anticipated to be created through our smaller businesses, understanding the pathway and how to make it a smoother transition would be beneficial.  

After the keynote breakfast, participants at the Summit will move into the workshop and speed consulting phase of the program.   

The workshops are panel discussions with a significant amount of time for questions and answers.  
In the first grouping Peter Lawler of BDC will join a panel with Marty Laskaris, The Publican House Brewery and Cam Taylor of OUTDOORsmart! to talk about the finer points of Scaling Up and how they have approached this challenge.   

The concurrent workshop at 9:00 am is all about effectively Telling Your Business Story with a discussion featuring Sofie Andreou of Sofie Andreou & Associates, Jeffrey Macklin of Prevail Media & Design, and Jennifer Garland of The Mane Intent.  

In the second workshop block, Melanie Kawalec from City of Peterborough, Cathy Mitchell from PDI and Scott Murison of Wild Rock Outfitters Inc. will be talking about the Business Case for Going Green. 
Assessing Your Digital DNA is the fourth workshop available and will feature a discussion around content marketing, being found on Google and mobile technology with Michael O’Farrell from The Mobile Institute, Alysha Dominico from Tangible Words and Ken Pipher of PMD.  

This solid line up of local business leaders ready to answer your questions shows there is something for everyone.
 
NEW to the Summit this year is Speed Consulting with seven Chamber members ready to sit down with Summit participants for a 10-minute speed consulting session.  As a Summit participant, you will have the opportunity to meet with experts on trade marking, insurance, business start up and resources, energy conservation, content marketing, risk and financial strategy and learning about the Fast Start program for student entrepreneurs.  

The Summit will wrap up with lunch and a conversation with City of Peterborough CAO Allan Seabrooke.  How does he see the future of Peterborough?  What are some key decisions on the horizon? 

With all this information and connections at your fingertips in just a half a day, the Business Summit is great way to kick start the planning and goal setting for your business in 2017.   See you there!
​ 
To Register: peterboroughchamber.ca/business-summit-2016