Ron Gaudet is the CEO of Economic Development Greater Saint John. (Photo: Danielle McCreadie)
Saint John’s economic development agency says the number of people wanting to move to the city for work is growing.
Nearly 900 people have told Economic Development Greater Saint John (EDGSJ) they want to work in the Port City.
CEO Ron Gaudet says now, it’s about matching them to the right ones.
“We’re working with them through a database and connecting with these companies to get them connected to real jobs,” he said.
“You know, it would be great if we could just plug and play, but often times it’s about, are the skill sets aligned to the jobs on demand? When it comes to relocating, are they at the point that they’re able to pick up and move? So there are some complicating factors.”
220 of those on the waiting list are interested specifically in IT jobs.
Gaudet says EDGSJ has created a job-matching program that they are now working to refine.
Last year, it helped them fill 350 jobs in 22 different industries.
“That work is going to continue in 2020,” said Gaudet.
Gaudet admits 2019 was a hard year for attracting new investors to the Port City, but things are already turning around.
“In the first quarter of 2020, we believe that we are more than compensating for that. We’ve had some pent up demand, and I can tell you, we’re hosting a number of companies that are looking at investing in the area,” he said.
Gaudet says many companies in the Port City are thriving and looking to hire.
“We have companies that are fifth and sixth generations strong that are growing, they’re international companies. We have newer companies that are 30 years strong like Cooke Aquaculture that are the largest in their field, and we have a vibrant start-up culture,” he said.
Gaudet says it’s time to change the narrative because Saint John is a desirable place for industry.
“We need to tell the story better,” he said.
Gaudet says they recently filled a marketing position in their office that had 152 applications come through.
“Two of them were local. All the others were from across Canada and around the world,” he said.
He said the majority of the applicants were from India and China, and some from the United States.
Gaudet says innovation and entrepreneurship are also thriving.
In 2019, 39 new companies were started with the help of EDGSJ’s incubator programs, creating 67 new jobs.
Gaudet says the city has the potential to create a thriving, innovation district, which would create more jobs, and bring more people to Saint John.
“We need to be doing more of what we’ve been working for the last couple of years, but we need to take it to yet another level, and that will be the introduction of an innovation district,” he said.
Gaudet says the relocation of the University of New Brunswick’s MBA program to the uptown is a ‘historic’ first step in the creation of such an innovation district.
“Bringing post-secondary education, bringing governments at all levels, bringing industry and bringing NGO’s in a tangible way to think about how we build our companies, our city, our region, and how we market that to the world,” he said.
Gaudet expects the new campus will be open in April or May.
