The second annual Haliburton Highlands Business Summit is being held on Wednesday, October 18 at Sir Sam’s Ski & Bike in Eagle Lake.
Officials say the event recognizes that communities play a pivotal role in shaping the success and resilience of businesses.
Scott Ovell is the county’s Director of Economic Development and Tourism and says the idea really developed once the pandemic ended. “With things coming out of COVID there was a lot of discussion that a lot of businesses, stakeholders, and organizations hadn’t had a chance to interact a great deal in person. So that really was the genesis of the idea.” He adds last year’s event gave people an opportunity to get reacquainted with each other and network. “That’s obviously really important in the business space.”
This year’s summit will also provide those attending an opportunity to hear in person some of the business support available for those in Haliburton but located elsewhere. “There are a lot of organizations that do great things but some of (them) actually reside in Kawartha Lakes, Peterborough, and Lindsay. This gives us an opportunity to get some of them up here and allow businesses to know they exist,” said Ovell.
Among the presentations is one from the Workforce and Development Board on recruitment and retention for small to medium employers along with keynote speaker Trevor Benson talking about how strong communities bring stronger business.
Registration for the event is available at https://myhaliburtonhighlands.com/doing-business/business-summit/?fbclid=IwAR3IaKZektvPZFwIqXgv_J7OtWLYU0HjCfnF8tJMtlZIB5I2HZ7yci4zlWE