Ontario’s Ministry of International Trade: Opening the world to Ontario business
Speakers: Pranab Shah, Community Export Development Advisor and Michelle Madden, International Programs Officer - Ontario Ministry of International Trade
Format: Webinar (90 minutes)
Course outline
This session is a 90 minute webinar intended to build bridges between Ontario communities and the province’s Ministry of International Trade.
The newly reorganized and stand-alone Ministry of International Trade (MIT) is eager to build connections with communities and provide value to them. This webinar will share information on available programs and resources with the goal of engaging new partners and expanding collaboration with existing ones.
At the end of this session, participants will have a greater understanding of:
- The Ministry of International Trade’s structure and capabilities;
- What the Trade and Investment Offices (TIOs) and Senior Economic Officers (SEOs) within them do;
- How the SEOs foster trade, foreign direct investment, research and commercialization, and BR&E;
- The variety of ways communities can work with the TIOs to reach their economic development goals;
- Export assistance available through the Ontario Ministry of International Trade;
- The various courses being delivered as part of the “Accelerate to International Markets” program;
- How economic development organizations can tap into the export services to assist their local businesses in going global.
Speakers
Michelle Madden is an International Programs Officer with the Ontario Ministry of International Trade. She supports the Trade and Investment Offices by serving as a liaison between them and Ontario-based stakeholders, including economic development organizations. She has a master’s degree in local economic development from the University of Waterloo and is a certified economic developer (Ec.D.) via the Economic Developers Association of Canada.
Pranab Shah is an Export Advisor with the Ontario Ministry of International Trade. As a member of the Business Engagement Branch, he works with Ontario small and medium enterprises in making them export ready. He also works with companies in expanding their export markets or increasing their sales in current markets by leveraging various federal, provincial and industry contacts. He holds a master’s degree in local economic development from the University of Waterloo and a post graduate diploma in International Trade Management.
Webinar: Help Local Companies Find & Recruit Talent in Your Region
60 mins + 30 mins Q & A.
Want another way to show your local businesses your economic development support keeps them competitive?
Even with recruitment firms, job fairs, and the promise of online communication, most companies struggle to find the right talent: from skill sets to corporate culture.
One of the best ways an economic development office can support their local companies is to help them understand how an online communications strategy will attract the right talent.
Come learn how more carefully crafted content, and Inbound Marketing methodology can impact the recruitment of talent. Afterwards, you’ll be able to direct your local companies to better market their vacancies, connect with ‘best fit’ talent and create healthier businesses bustling long-term with the right team in place.
What You Will Learn:
- Why online communication is critical to finding talent.
- Understand the online customer: how they buy, how to find them, and how long it takes.
- Take your knowledge of the online customer and apply it to job seekers.
- Know how to attract attention, start conversations and turn ‘best fit’ applicants into ‘long term’ staff.
- What kind of online communication helps attract the right staff.
- How you can now help your retained businesses solve their vacancy problems.
Presenter Bio:
Alysha Dominico, CEO & Founder of Tangible Words, helps attract more business and attention to your community with truly strategic messaging (on your website and other communication channels) by following a simple principle: content first, then design. Alysha understands how people read online, is an excellent team facilitator and knows how to get great projects off the ground.
Tangible Words provides Website Content and Development, Content Creation, Communications Plans, Inbound Marketing Strategy and builds Smarketing Engines for Economic Development & Tourism, Education, SMEs, HR, Canadian Manufacturing and Industrial companies who want an expert to get them organized, create a repeatable sales-driven marketing process, and make the selling process easier.
Non-profit corporations, government departments and SMEs across Australia and Canada hire Tangible Words to craft communications plans and inbound marketing strategies, write SEO website content, develop website and Intranet best practices, and train your in-house communications staff.
Webinar: How Online Marketing Will Increase Experiential Tourism Dollars In Your Region
45 mins + 30 mins Q & A.
The tourism world has moved away from tours and into “experiences”. The online world has made it easy to find what you’re looking for - but harder for buyers to make a decision. This is a great webinar to attend if you know your community has great tourism assets and a great opportunity to expand tourism revenue.
When your community is targeting tourism dollars, it’s essential to simplify the process for buyers by understanding the essential components of online communication and best practices. See what is working well for other experiential tourism businesses, including how one rural company doubled their revenue in one year. At the end, you’ll know how to lead your tourism operators in becoming a more attractive and competitive destination.
What You Will Learn:
- Best Practices to inspire what’s possible to increase rural experiential tourism in your region.
- How Online Communication Sets Experiential Tourism up for Success.
- Best Tools and Practices In Communicating "The Experience."
- What’s working well for other experiential tourism businesses in rural areas.
- How to translate this knowledge to your tourism operators.
Presenter Bio:
Alysha Dominico, CEO & Founder of Tangible Words, helps attract more business and attention to your community with truly strategic messaging (on your website and other communication channels) by following a simple principle: content first, then design. Alysha understands how people read online, is an excellent team facilitator and knows how to get great projects off the ground.
Tangible Words provides Website Content and Development, Content Creation, Communications Plans, Inbound Marketing Strategy and builds Smarketing Engines for Economic Development & Tourism, Education, SMEs, HR, Canadian Manufacturing and Industrial companies who want an expert to get them organized, create a repeatable sales-driven marketing process, and make the selling process easier.
Non-profit corporations, government departments and SMEs across Australia and Canada hire Tangible Words to craft communications plans and inbound marketing strategies, write SEO website content, develop website and Intranet best practices, and train your in-house communications staff.
Ready, Set, Advocate – Government Relations Training for Economic Developers
Speaker: Sean Madden, Advocacy Consultant
Format: Webinar (90 minutes)
Course outline
This session is a 90 minute webinar intended to cover the basics of a successful advocacy strategy.
While advocacy is a marathon, not a sprint (and involves no small amount of luck), there are steps and behaviours that economic developers can take to build the strong, beneficial relationships required to yield positive results for their communities and clients.
At the end of this session, participants will have begun to assemble the tools and tips required to:
- Understand the structure and needs of government and how to position themselves as partners;
- Draw on their organization’s expertise to assemble compelling arguments for their ideas and needs;
- Identify barriers to community and client success, and strategize overcoming them;
- Understand the advantages and drawbacks of several approaches for lobbying government and elected decision makers , and how to incorporate them into strategies;
- Work within the current government and its timelines.
Economic developers are in a challenging, but unique and high-potential, advocacy environment. As an important part of the province’s economic engine, local and regional economic development is an appealing subject to any elected official. However, very few things sell themselves without help, and economic developers work in complicated environments with multiple stakeholders, clients, levels of government, and competition.
Advocacy requires patience, consistency, communication, and bridging the gaps between politicians, bureaucracy and consumers. A sound advocacy strategy can help provide consistency, frame your efforts and timelines to the people you answer to, and serve as a foundation for successful contact with decision makers.
Speaker
Sean Madden has been working in advocacy, government relations, and government for nearly 10 years. During this time, Sean has worked as the chair and then executive director of an influential advocacy organization and think-tank, as a governance and advocacy consultant for government agencies and NGOs, as Issues Manager for an Ontario Cabinet Minister, and now as a senior policy person in the OPS.
Register now for this exciting four-part series using the button on the left hand side of your screen!