Vancouver tech firms go head hunting in Calgary

Here’s an ironic twist. For the past few years, Calgary authorities have travelled to places in Canada and internationally trying to recruit workers for a labour shortage in Alberta.

Now in an environment dominated with talk of the province facing a possible recession this year due to the crash in oil prices, Vancouver tech companies are coming to Calgary to court talent to help fill some of the West Coast’s city’s hottest jobs.

HTML500, the largest learn-to-code event in Canada, is hitting Calgary today along with a career fair giving coding graduates a face-to-face with tech employers from Vancouver. The event launched in Vancouver last year, and has taken off. About 1,000 people have signed up for 500 spaces at the Calgary event.

“Vancouver has become one of the largest tech centres in North America, and tech is one of the fastest growing segments of our city’s economy, so we have a challenge that our demand far exceeds our supply of talent,” said Ian McKay, chief executive of the Vancouver Economic Commission.

Todd Hirsch, chief economist with ATB Financial, said he wouldn’t expect an exodus of workers from Alberta even with the dire economic climate.

“But I do think we’re moving into a softer labour market and maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that now we are going to be perhaps a bit of a target of some of this labour poaching,” said Hirsch. “For a long time, Alberta and Alberta companies, we’ve been going elsewhere to bring people here. In 2015, we might see a little bit of a reversal of that and that maybe isn’t such a bad thing.”

Hirsch said younger people in Calgary may be more willing to move to Vancouver for a job. They might be less attached to families, a house, and a mortgage, being more mobile and more likely to take an opportunity “especially in an attractive city like Vancouver,” he said.

One of the Vancouver tech companies coming to Calgary is Riipen, which is looking to hire five people. It’s an online platform that connects students with firms on short-term projects.

Richard Tuck, chief executive of the company, said the company has 6.5 full-time positions. The current economic climate in Alberta could help attract workers from Calgary to Vancouver, he said.

“In addition to hiring for positions with Riipen, our platform matches job seekers, regardless of what city they live in now, to over 60 Vancouver businesses like Sun Life Financial and PlentyOfFish,” said Tuck.

But I do think we’re moving into a softer labour market and maybe we shouldn’t be surprised that now we are going to be perhaps a bit of a target of some of this labour poaching.

TODD HIRSCH

CHIEF ECONOMIST, ATB FINANCIAL