Business
Business Profile
More than any other province in Canada, Alberta shares the pro-business attitude of its American neighbours to the south (indeed, its government is the only one in Canada not to charge a sales tax). Nowhere is this more so than in Calgary, the economic capital of Alberta and the largest centre for head offices in Canada, after Toronto.
Calgary is first and foremost an oil town. The head offices of TransCanada Pipelines, Petro-Canada, Mobil Oil Canada, Husky Oil and Shell Canada are all situated in the city. These are among the city’s top ten companies in terms of revenue generation. As such, the city lives and dies according to the price of oil – booming when oil is expensive and experiencing a decline when the price of oil goes down. Although the mid-1990s were unkind to Calgary, Alberta’s booming energy sector and a more diversified economy have benefited the city, as evidenced by its unemployment rate hovering around 5.3%, well below the Canadian national average of 7.6%, in April 2002.
Agriculture formed the backbone of Alberta’s economy before the discovery of oil in 1914, as attested to by the vast wheat fields of the Alberta prairie. It still plays a major role in Calgary’s economy today, in terms of food processing, farm equipment marketing, showing and selling livestock, and agricultural publishing. Calgary is also seeing the emergence of a strong technology industry. Telus Corporation has its home in the city, as does Shaw Communications, AT&T Canada and three Nortel manufacturing plants.
The medium-sized skyscrapers of Calgary’s city centre are home to most of the city’s business offices, including national head offices. A number of business parks on the outskirts of the city are home to businesses requiring warehouse, manufacturing space or proximity to the airport or countryside.
Business Etiquette
Situated just to the east of the Rocky Mountains, Calgary’s business etiquette falls somewhere between the legendary laid-back attitude of the west coast and the well-known conservatism of the east. Calgarians are immensely friendly, hardworking and punctual. Both men and women dress ‘business conservative’ in the office, while formal dress is expected at business meetings. During the Calgary Stampede, however, many of the city’s business professionals express their civic pride by dressing in cowboy hats, boots, jeans, etc.
The working day typically begins as early as 0800 and ends at 1700. During formal introductions it is common to shake hands and address individuals by their surnames. On a day-to-day basis, however, both superiors and co-workers are normally addressed on a first-name basis. Most entertainment takes place in bars and restaurants and it is unusual for a business visitor to be invited into someone’s home. Gift giving is uncommon in business situations, although a token gift is acceptable after a project or deal has been completed (but not before). Although Canada is officially bilingual, English is almost always the language of business in Calgary.
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Business