Meet the Team: Ryan
“No matter how talented an individual is, without passion, internal competitiveness and drive for results, success will be elusive.”
ROI’s Meet The Team Series is meant to showcase some of our exceptional team members and share in their passion for all things economic development. We also have a little bit of fun to help you get to know the ROI Team more personally.
In the ever-evolving realm of Economic Development, visionary leadership serves as the beacon guiding organizations toward growth and innovation. Today, we are excited to introduce you to one of the most distinguished leaders at ROl-Ryan. As a seasoned professional who has navigated diverse roles within the organization, Ryan now takes the helm as President, steering ROl into an era of great achievements!
Join us as we delve into Ryan’s vision for the future and the passion driving their commitment to the world of Economic Development. In this exclusive interview, Ryan shares insights into their professional journey, promising sectors for future investments, tips for EDOs, and the essential elements of a successful Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) strategy.
Discover the wealth of experience and expertise that Ryan brings to the field of Economic Development and gain a deeper understanding of the company’s mission.
Can you provide a brief overview of your professional background and how it led you to your current role as the president of the company?
I would be lying if I said growing up, I dreamed of working in the Economic Development world. Happily, as fate would have it, that became my career destiny. Prior to joining ROI, I spent many years in the Telecommunications industry as a Marketing executive. I had the privilege of working for renowned organizations where I honed my analytical, project management and leadership skills. My initial connection to ROI was through an ex-colleague and friend of mine, Simon Leroux. At the time, he was leading the private sector division and we signed a lead generation contract with them (and of course, they did a great job 😊). When I left Bell Canada, I was seeking a career change with more of an entrepreneurial spin, and luckily, ROI was looking for help. I began as an employee, became a partner, and recently took over as President following the acquisition of ROI’s sister company Gazelle.
As an expert in FDI strategy, what emerging markets or sectors do you believe hold the most promise for investment in the coming years?
The business landscape has changed dramatically over the last several years and the pace of change has significantly accelerated. This is in large part due to unprecedented innovation and technology advances. I think healthcare and specifically, MedTech holds incredible promise. Along with an aging population, longer life spans as well as increases in the volume of disease diagnosis, there are other key trends that point toward growth and investment. With the acceleration of value-based care, greater demand for diagnostic / tracking / disease management tools, ongoing and fast-paced innovation, the future of the healthcare industry is extremely bright with amazing promise for investment in the coming years.
FDI strategy is a critical component of economic development. Can you elaborate on the key elements of a successful FDI strategy? What strategies do you believe are essential for economic development organizations to attract and retain foreign investments in today’s competitive landscape?
In my perspective, the starting point for crafting a successful FDI strategy has three components: “knowing thy region”, defining your vision, and setting objectives. I have seen EDOs set themselves up for FDI attraction failure by positioning themselves in a way that does not feed into their strengths but rather focuses on what they are striving to become. The first step or crafting a successful FDI strategy is therefore, understanding your region’s local industry assets inside and out, and clearly defining your value proposition. It is essential to know how your region stacks up against the competition and knowing which factors carry the most weight in your targeted company’s expansion decision. This of course, varies from sector to sector. If there are some gaps that may hinder the effectiveness of your FDI strategy, prioritization must be placed on narrowing or closing that gap prior to launching a take-to-market strategy. Once this important step is completed, it is time to shift focus to defining your optimal targeting strategy. This often entails leveraging data to identify the “hot spots”, followed by creatively raising awareness and visibility. A digital strategy is a very effective way to cost-effectively reach your targeted audience.
Can you discuss any ongoing projects or future plans that you’re particularly excited about for ROI?
I am extremely optimistic about ROI’s future. We have been in business over 20 years and one of our key success factors has been our ability to stay ahead of the curve and continuously evolve. We have recently modified the way we do business with the introduction of a new and mutually beneficial lead generation model for our clients. Our new model emphasizes the importance of building customized and intelligent prospect lists, based on our in-depth knowledge of our clients’ regions, targeted sectors and “hot spots” to identify ideal recruitment zones. Our Business Intelligence team invests time in this process as we have proven, the smarter our prospects lists are, the greater the success of the program. We are also growing our ROI Digital Labs division with an important new event planning offering. We believe that a sound Digital Marketing strategy is an important component to a successful FDI strategy. Down the road, our plan is to empower our clients to promote their regions in a unique and innovative way. I am being vague here as this plan of ours is in its early stages. Having said this, its potential is vast, so I am very much looking forward to ensuring this future development comes to fruition.
Is there a message or philosophy that you would like to convey to your employees, customers, and EDOs about your role and the company’s mission?
Absolutely. I view my role as enabling company success. This is accomplished by ensuring a healthy company culture whereby employees feel valued and heard while having growth opportunities within the organization, making sure the team is equipped with the right tools and platforms to deliver, and doing what it takes for ROI to maintain its market leadership position. In terms of my messaging to employees, I will defer to our corporate values as I believe that is the best way for me to describe my leadership style and belief in how we will ultimately achieve our mission. Our corporate values are 1) Care & Commitment, 2) Collaboration and 3) Agility & Adaptability. I believe it is essential that every individual on the ROI team has a passion for what we do and a burning desire to make a difference. No matter how talented an individual is, without passion, internal competitiveness and drive for results, success will be elusive. We must work together as a team as the sum of our parts will always be greater than the whole. And finally, we need to understand that to maintain our market leadership position, stagnancy is not an option. We must always be nimble and continuously evolve. Only then can we achieve our company mission of “driving growth and prosperity by uniting companies and communities”.
Beyond your work at ROI, what’s your favorite aspect of being involved in the world of economic development?
For me, it’s all about human connection. I have had the privilege of developing both business and personal relationships with such a diverse group of individuals in the economic development world. I have a great deal of respect and admiration for our talented group of employees as well as our clients from all over the globe. I am grateful that I spend my days interacting with people that are passionate about their work and for our clients, strive to have a positive impact in their respective regions. In sum, my enjoyment of working in the economic development world stems from ongoing interactions with individuals both internally and externally that bring sunshine to my days and push me to continuously achieve greater heights.
Can you share a personal motto or philosophy that guides your approach to economic development, and how has it shaped your career?
My personal philosophy that guides me is not necessarily economic development specific, but rather is a universal philosophy that applies to both personal and business life. I believe that we should seek to push our limits and strive to continually grow as professionals and individuals. This often means leaving our “comfort zone”. We should always celebrate our victories, however, never feel fulfilled, because “fulfillment is death”. We must have the courage to make decisions knowing that all decisions won’t work out as planned. And that is perfectly acceptable as our greatest lessons typically come from failure. It provides us with the opportunity to not only bounce back, but also to strengthen. Otherwise said, nothing ventured, nothing gained!
What books or resources outside of your professional field have had a lasting impact on your personal growth?
One of my favorite books that had a profound impact on me is the Saint, the Surfer, and the CEO by Robin Sharma. It is a powerful, thought-provoking story that depicts the journey of the main character. The reader follows him along as he interacts with interesting characters in his search for more meaning in his life. The book provides incredible insight into what truly counts and readers will inevitably ponder whether they are living their “best life”. I believe we should all defend against living our lives on “cruise control” by having a high-level of awareness and ultimately seek a higher version of ourselves.
Beyond your professional life, can you share some insights into your interests, hobbies, or personal values that shape who you are outside of work?
I adore playing and watching sports. In many ways, I believe sports often represent amazing life analogies. There are many common threads when analyzing what it takes to become a championship team and these threads can easily apply to the business world. Talent alone is never enough to win. A winning team is comprised of a group of individuals with a common goal and willingness to commit to the cause. This means never cutting corners and understanding and embracing one’s role. In addition, attitude is everything. All teams inevitably face adversity, and everyone has a part to play to stay positive and pick each other up when things are not going according to plan. I also believe that although failure is painful, it also represents powerful learning opportunities. Winning often stems from lessons learned from losing. Sports has always been an outlet for my competitive spirit and has inspired me to put my best forward in being the best person, leader and teammate I could be. It has taught me that nothing is more gratifying than overcoming adversity, knowing you pushed your limits and collaborated with teammates to find success.