The recent NB Power/Hydro-Quebec saga was a stark reminder to me of the importance of making evidence-based decisions. There were people with almost no knowledge of the industry and even less knowledge of energy asset valuation, long term market trend analysis,…
Continue ReadingStats Can’t-a-da: Part Deux
I hadn’t planned on commenting on this again but all the craziness around has prompted me to write one more time. Opponents are suggesting it is a) an invasion of privacy, b) ‘forced’ labour on Canadians, c) a free ride…
Continue ReadingInception
I had a 1,000+ word blog all penned around the theme of trying to understand why New Brunswickers have a primarily hostile perception of business – particularly ‘big’ or ‘international’ business. I had taken a look at all five political…
Continue ReadingSocialist capitalists
There are very few guarantees in life. Tom Peters, probably the most successful management guru of the 1980s, once said that American businessmen were true capitalists – until they walk through the front door of their businesses each day. Then…
Continue ReadingCounterpoint to my view
It’s nice to know that someone is paying attention to my column in the TJ. It would be boring if everyone agreed with me all the time, wouldn’t it? I have met Dr. Moir on several occasions and find him…
Continue ReadingOne good benefit from exporting people
I see that a native New Brunswicker was primarily responsible for convincing Areva to take a long hard look at New Brunswick. He made the case internally that NB should be a serious market for the French multinational firm. Now…
Continue ReadingThe ghost in the machine – understanding employment figures
You probably know by now that New Brunswick’s employment performance has not been very good since the recovery started across Canada. Over the last year, New Brunswick was the only province in Canada to register a decline in total employment…
Continue ReadingAreva
I met one of the guys from Areva after the announcement last week. We had a good discussion. It seems logical enough to me. Areva is a huge player with no deployed nuclear reactors in North America (I think this…
Continue ReadingStats Can’t-ada
Statistics Canada is changing its long-form census survey from a mandatory to a voluntary one. Apparently Minister Tony Clement made the decision. It has angered a number of stakeholders that rely on this data. The long form was sent out to 20%…
Continue ReadingEnergy park idea – building the cluster
I read this morning that the French energy firm Areva is looking at getting involved in an energy park in the Saint John region. This could include a second nuclear reactor and other investments creating lots of high paying jobs. …
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