How do we retain talent in KW?

[plam]

One imagines it could change quickly if the local market began offering competitive wages ...

The wage difference is used to promote the Region to corporations considering setting up offices here as well. It's explicitly the model for Terminal for example, and every service-focused company I've worked at uses both the lower cost of living (which is a lower cost of labour for them) and the value of the Canadian dollar as competitive aspects. We do more with fewer dollars is presented as a point of pride.

This piece written by Stephen Lake (co-founder of North and given recent events maybe less effective an appeal to authority than normal, also just in general likely incentivized to save money with lower salaries) in 2016 argues that the cost of living here makes the salaries more effective than elsewhere: https://medium.com/@srlake/debunking-the...828cbf6698.

I'm not arguing in favour of any this position necessarily, nor against it. From a personal experience standpoint, my salary is competitive based on my understanding of the local market, which is not super broad. It's higher than people I grew up with who have similar levels of post-secondary education and while I like to think I'm quite good at what I do, a lot of the basis for that difference is the industry not me.

I strongly dislike that Stephen Lake piece. I don't think it's arguing in good faith. He compares city prices to non-city prices. You can't really compare Toronto to Mississauga to Waterloo to San Francisco and say that these are all the same.

I also know the number of Waterloo Software Engineering students who come from the local region. It is about 10%. I think it's a different 10% from the 10% who stay in the region. Most students come from the Greater Toronto Area. Undergraduate Engineering at Waterloo is mostly Canadians (and permanent residents); international students account for about 15%. Math is much more international.

My opinion is that there's a global market for talent, and CEOs who complain about not being able to get talent should find ways to pay more.