Focus Québec

The Focus Québec study, launched by our office located in the province of Québec, aims to explore the key challenges facing Québec entrepreneurs. This initiative aims to deepen our understanding of how businesses and organizations are responding to fluctuations affecting business and society at large. The goal is to help them sustain their activities and prosper by offering concrete perspectives and solutions.

This third edition of the Quebec survey was conducted in the fall of 2023, interviewing 373 business leaders across the province and focusing on 6 key themes for entrepreneurs.

86% of CEOs express strong confidence in global economic growth for the next three years

81% of CEOs agree that actions by their business to prepare for a recession resulted in lost growth opportunities.

82% of CEOs are bringing succession plans forward

71% of CEOs do not consider the next generation to be fully ready to take up the reins

76% of businesses have entered, or will enter, into acquisition, joint venture or joint arrangement projects set to close in the next 12 months

60% of businesses are planning to gradually expand their workforce over the next three years

88% of businesses report a persistent talent shortage in Canada

83% of CEOs plan to actively recruit talent for help in deploying artificial intelligence (AI).

84% of CEOs are encouraging their workforce to gain knowledge in areas like AI

86% of businesses consider issues about using AI, machine learning and generative AI to be essential

84% of CEOs believe generative AI can help detect cyberattacks but also generate exposure to new attack strategies

76% of CEOs say their business has no idea where to start to prepare for AI

62% report that the lack of qualified talent is a major obstacle preventing their business from fully leveraging digital technologies

93% of Canadian CEOs fear generative AI will generate more cyberattacks

79% of CEOs acknowledge that their infrastructure or systems are outdated and leave them vulnerable to cyberattacks

70% of businesses admitted to having paid a ransom in the past three years

87% of CEOs think climate change should be treated as an actual emergency

74% of businesses are seeking to reduce their climate impact but have no idea where to start

79% of entrepreneurs are determined to reduce their environmental impact and invest more to support their climate-related goals

83% of businesses are actively looking for “green” suppliers or seeking to position themselves as a “green” business