April | 2011 | Canada's top source for Alberta's business news

April 2011

Fear factor

The markets are starting to worry about a surging NDP. But should you? >

Encana plays the waiting game

Encana Corp. changed gears in its latest quarterly earnings conference call, but the destination remains the same. >

Alberta's Best Workplaces Recognized

Find out who won and see web exclusive photos from last nights award reception >

Alberta's Best Workplaces Recognized

Get the final results from our annual program >

Learn How To Sell Your Business

Taking place in Edmonton and Calgary on May 17th & 18th, the Capital Opportunity Conference will give you the know-how to build value in your company and prep it for sale. Click for more details! >

Alberta Venture Podcast: The Future of Natural Gas

How will this cheap fuel change North America’s energy landscape? >

Graph of the Month: Albertan vs Canadian Economic Growth

Despite the recent recession, the last 10 years have shown Alberta’s strength >

Western Canada’s Business School Directory 2011

Check out the Executive Education Guide and get details on business education from Athabasca to Vancouver and from one year diplomas to PhDs. >

The Guptas give back

The Rohit Group joins other builders in cerebrating Habitat for Humanity's 20th birthday celebration >

What went down is about to go up

Interest rates are on their way up. But how far, and how fast? >

Supply and demand

Another dispatch from the boom-in-progress >

The Urge To Merge

With a strong Canadian dollar and global opportunities, 2011 may be the year of the deal >

Calgary's Identity Crisis

Calgary is on the hunt for a new brand. Can it find one? Does it need one? >

Corporate tax cuts (again)

Why the evidence on the efficacy of corporate tax cuts may be more art than science >

Corporate tax cuts, investment and job creation: fact or fiction?

The Globe and Mail casts further doubt on the relationship between corporate tax cuts and capital spending, but the federal Conservatives don't seem to mind >

The Contractor of the Year Award Goes To...

Find out who the best of the best of the construction industry are >

Politics vs. policy

Jack Layton used the oil sands as a predictable political prop, but the truth of the matter is more interesting than he lets on >

The King of Cool: Encana's Randy Eresman Is an Optimist

Alberta Venture talks with the president and CEO on everything from the nature of Encana’s relationship with PetroChina and the environmental bona-fides of natural gas to the impact that the protests currently roiling the Middle East will have on the energy infrastructure in North America >

Online or Not, the Age-Old Auction Business is as Strong as Ever in Alberta

Find out how Alberta's auctioneers like Arthur Clausen and the Michener family keep the deals rolling >

All in the Family

How six generations of Brewsters have shared the mountains with the world >

Auctioneers Across Alberta

An annotated Google Map of every auctioneer in Alberta and a photo gallery from our feature story on the age-old business of the auction >

New Schooled | Why the Education Process Doesn’t End at Graduation

Just in time learning, executive MBAs and custom post-secondary options are all on the table >

Globalization Hits Home on Campuses Across Alberta

Find out more about satellite campuses and Albertan post-secondary investments in education abroad >

Rise of the Machines: Find out About Wedge Wells, Zircon Capture and Van Sized Sonicators

Technology takes over the oil and gas Industry >

Oil Sands Operators Promise a New Era of Co-operation

Will Imperial Oil, Total, Suncor, Nexen, Statoil, ConocoPhilips, Syncrude and the rest be able to play nice? >

iBid

“Internet’s on!” Wade calls out from the auctioneer’s booth at Michener Allen Auctioneering Ltd.’s January industrial sale >

Foreign Cash Changes the Game

What a difference a year makes >

A City By Any Other Name

Canadian cities from coast to coast brand themselves under a variety of monikers. Here’s a sampling: >

The Nenshi Brand

Both David Finch and Sharon McIntyre point out that the best brands are built from the ground up >

Legal Eagles: When You Need a Tax Lawyer

Complexity and legal privileges are among the deciding factors >

A corporate tag line is important – so don’t scrimp on the effort

The Other Bottom Line >

The Smart Investor: Forestry Rebound on Horizon

According to Fabrice Taylor, all signs point to an upswing in the lumber business >

Executive Speak: Alberta Venture Speaks with Alberta's Liquor King

From an early age Irving Kipnes knew he would be in business for himself >

New Opportunities Beckon Gas Drillers | An Interview with Don Herring

Alberta Venture talks to the president of the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors >

Food Fight: Carla Alexander and Daniel Costa are working together to change Jasper Avenue’s culinary scene

Two of Edmonton's top young chefs are profiled >

The Brewster Businesses Explained

John Brewster moved to Alberta from Ontario in 1886 and established his homestead at the base of Yamnuska Mountain, which today is the Kananaskis Ranch >

How Radhe Gupta is Reigning in Real Estate

When the property market declined, the Rohit Group in Edmonton profited by expanding >

Many factors to consider when getting out of business

Exit Strategies >

Custom Education Developer Icom Feeling Anything But Testy

Web to the Wise: Custom-built online learning courses are a growing concern >

How one man built a career from the ice up

Power Forward >

Life as a chocolatier

Inside Job >

Tech Essentials: This month, we’re here to help you avoid looking like your office’s April fool

It's time to get back to office basics >

Small Players, Big Issues | Alberta Venture Speaks with Duncan McCowan of Winter Petroleum

Consolidation is on horizon for independent gas explorers >

Social Dividend: Edmonton's AwareBase repurposes out-of-use computers for local charities

AwareBase donates laptops and monitors the company no longer needs >

Vital Statistics

Oil & Gas >

Inside/Out | Three Weddings and a Dinosaur

Drumheller's Little Church >

Long-Distance Dividends

Alberta released its International Education Framework, aimed at making the province’s post-secondary education system business-friendly, in November 2009 >