Calgary’s buzz drew business leader

Kitchen cooks for Bruce Graham

Bruce Graham, president and CEO of Calgary Economic Development, came to Calgary a decade ago after many years of aspiring to move west.

“I was really attracted to the city,” says Graham.

He seized the opportunity to lead an economic development organization “in what I would suggest is now probably the most economically successful city in Canada.”

“In the 10 years I’ve been here, Calgary has evolved from being an aspiring Canadian centre for business to a global business centre with a key focus on energy and related head office activity,” says Graham.

“Particularly in the last five years, Calgary has moved onto the global stage with investment from global sources funnelling through Calgary for resource development.”

Calgary Economic Development works with businesses, government and community partners to position the city as the location of choice for business investment, fostering trade and growing Calgary’s workforce.

Those efforts have been paying off. Increasingly, Calgary is recognized as a global centre compared to other cities around the world.

It’s ranked by The Economist, an international business magazine, as the fifth most livable city in the world, and MoneySense magazine has called Calgary the best place to live and raise a family in Canada.

“There are numerous other rankings for cities being done, and Calgary is at or near the top of those lists, certainly in a Canadian, if not a global, context,” says Graham.

As for the future, he is “extremely bullish” on Calgary’s prospects. He believes the city is maturing as a place for people to put down roots.

“We are a major headquarter centre in Canada, second only to Toronto in terms of total number of head offices. We are also a strategic hub for logistics to serve Western Canada, due to our proximity to other major centres in Western Canada and the growth that’s happened here with highway, rail and airport infrastructure.”

Graham was born in Morrisburg, Ont., a small town situated along the St. Lawrence River.

Photos, Wil Andruschak/ For the Calgary Herald Above, Bruce Graham of Calgary Economic Development and daughter Claudia look over the morning newspaper at the kitchen table. Left, a tea set and Christmas plate from Graham’s daughters adorn a shelf in the family’s Strathcona home.

A set of hand-turned salt and pepper dispensers made by Graham’s brother-in-law, Brian Hoffos. These and other wooden pieces in the home were made by Hoffos using sustainable alder harvested near Golden, B.C.