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COVER STORY I think one of the biggest challenges that most immigrants face is finding sustainable employment or a way to build a business that’s not taking on someone else’s problems.” — Ashwin Kutty President & CEO, WeUsThem Photo: Paul Darrow a region can literally change that entire community.” Pickering maintains that it’s not enough to treat immigration as an easy solve for our workforce woes — new arrivals have to be placed in positions that LET’S DO BUSINESS TOGETHER they want to assume. “Native-born Nova Scotians have a 60 per cent chance of working in their field, while immigrants have a 40 per cent chance,” he says. “This suggests that the pharmacist may be driving a taxi cab and although taxi cab 902 469-8151 drivers are wonderful and we need them, if you’re trained as a pharmacist, it probably isn’t what you want to do.” It’s an opinion shared by local entrepreneur Ashwin Kutty. Originally from India, Kutty’s parents immigrated to Nova Scotia to look for education opportunities for their children. After completing his studies at Dalhousie University, Kutty went on to hold several key positions with the Nova Scotia Health Authority. His work experience inspired him to co-found WeUSThem, an awardwinning marketing, communications, advertising and public relations agency. Kutty may have found considerable success as a business innovator in Nova Scotia, but this didn’t translate to his entire family. “Our biggest challenge was trying to find a business that was part of our skill set as a family and whether or not we could run it,” he says. Despite an extensive background in construction and real estate, his family couldn’t find “a clear pathway to success, a pathway to actually build something together.” The family tried to open a convenience store in Rawdon, but soon realized that it “wasn’t their business” and they shut it down. According to Kutty: “I think one of the biggest challenges that most immigrants face is finding sustainable employment or a way to build a business that’s not taking on someone else’s problems. We have to find a sustainable way to hold on to immigrants because people are returning to employment or entrepreneurial ventures in their home countries, which is what happened with my family.” 16 JULY & AUGUST 2016
COVER STORY Photo: Contributed We do this in partnership with ISANS at our Spring Dinner. We reach out to our corporate table purchasers and ask if they’d be willing to give one seat to an ISANS client. This is a small, yet impactful, way of making connections in the business community. At our most recent Spring Dinner. We had a record 28 tables host ISANS clients for the evening.” — Melissa MacDonald, Communications Specialist, Halifax Chamber of Commerce This sentiment is echoed by Sherry Redden: “Often times immigrants can’t get loans, so they have to find a job and invest their own money to start a business, which may be three to four years down the road. They need a place where they can get employment and language services in addition to information about laws and permits. They want a settlement service that sees them as a whole person.” According to Redden, ISANS has “taken this to heart” and developed a curriculum that addresses these specific requirements. Clicking on the “Do Business” tab of the ISANS website reveals a slew of valuable resources, including information on market research, import and export laws, financial institutions and sources for community support. In addition to their comprehensive, 67-page Connections guide, ISANS also hosts an ongoing series of free seminars about such diverse and practical topics as business plan creation, developing communication skills, job search strategies, details on provincial employment standards and growing awareness of cultural sensitivity. All of this, according to Redden, forms a “holistic package” designed to get people as “settled” as much as business-savvy. It’s a strategy well in-step with Ashwin Kutty’s philosophy: “We need to understand the basics of what people actually require. We need education for our children, a roof over our head and food for our family. And those three components are served by the Chamber through their networking opportunities or they can go to ISANS and develop their language skills or build a business plan to position themselves for some level of success. Not to just go through the immigration process but to communicate with people locally.” HOST TABLE One unique communication opportunity is the Host Table program offered by the Halifax Chamber of Commerce through their Driving Diversity initiative. “We do this in partnership with ISANS at our Spring Dinner,” says Melissa MacDonald, Communications Specialist for the Halifax Chamber of Commerce. “We reach out to our corporate table purchasers and ask if they’d be willing to give one seat to an ISANS client. BUSINESS VOICE 17
Page 1 and 2: DISPLAY YOUR PASSION Helping compan
Page 3 and 4: CONTENTS } Demographically, Nova Sc
Page 5 and 6: PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE An introducto
Page 7 and 8: NEWSMAKERS NEOCON INTERNATIONAL An
Page 9 and 10: NEWSMAKERS MEMBERS IN THE NEWS How
Page 11 and 12: NEWSMAKERS DRESS FOR SUCCESS HALIFA
Page 13 and 14: dal.ca/execed/lpm LAW PRACTICE MANA
Page 15: COVER STORY on By Immigrants critic
Page 19 and 20: COVER STORY hoping to “meet and i
Page 21 and 22: YOUNG ENTREPRENEURS Sean and James
Page 23 and 24: PROFILE management and concert prom
Page 25 and 26: WORKING FOR YOU Chamber appoints ne
Page 27 and 28: TRENDS Fairway courtesy The do’s
Page 29 and 30: Customer Connect A complete, direct
Page 31 and 32: dal.ca/execed/leadership CERTIFICAT
Page 33 and 34: CITY DESK Recognizing a great idea
Page 35 and 36: Join Forces and Network! DEFS event
Page 37 and 38: Nominations for the Now! Nova Scoti
Page 39 and 40: OPPORTUNITY KNOCKED. THEY ANSWERED.

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