It’s not common knowledge but in addition to their traditional bank branches,  the RBC Royal Bank (RBC) has a small office in Belleville; tucked in the Quinte Business Development Centre, aimed at providing services to support business in the region.

Team Effort to Develop Businesses

Here, Adam Brown, an RBC commercial accounts manager, works as the region’s representative; collaborating with organizations such as Quinte Economic Development Center (QEDC) and Trenval Business Development Center (Trenval) to create opportunities for local businesses.

“We have a great relationship with QEDC and Trenval.  What RBC offers and what QEDC and Trenval offer is different, so we work together with mutual customers to make sure the business is getting the best option.

We mainly help businesses with cash flow management.  So QEDC might help a manufacturer find vacant land, and at RBC we have term loan facilities to help them purchase or lease the land.”

Having grown up in the Bay of Quinte, Adam is passionate about his community, working closely with local employers to help them get what they need.

“I’m out there working with local businesses, getting to know their challenges and helping make opportunities.

We’ve helped business with leasing advanced tech, like laser cutting machines and robotics which help manufacturing plants run more efficiently.  We’ve also set up company credit cards which helps businesses get discounts from suppliers, or purchase expensive software packages to improve their workflows.

By financing new technologies, we aim to keep businesses in our community relevant and competitive.

We also have a dedicated not-for-profit sector, where we’ve helped nonprofits manage cash flow, like large donations.”

Developing Skills For the Future

As part of his role, Adam stays up to date on academic papers and uses that knowledge to improve his community.  As part of the RBC Future Launch program, Adam has helped build skills in the local youth, and indigenous communities:

“RBC has released research about the future of work in Canada, and with the changes in technology, there are more people that need trained employees and a high tech skilled labour force.

RBC has set aside a large amount of funds to invest in skills training for the region, and I’m here to help our community get access to those funds so we can provide our next generation workforce with on-the-job-training and skills development.  By developing these skills in our youth we keep our community competing in a global marketplace.”

In order to provide support for new technologies,  RBC also helps small businesses with skills training for new equipment.  After financing new technologies, Adam also helps businesses with getting the training needed to use the equipment as well.

“I grew up here on a dairy farm, and I know how expensive it is for employers to provide training.  Small businesses are trying to keep their margins low to stay competitive, and can rarely bear the same costs.

But by getting local business to funds - without the same traditional high capital costs to employers - we hope RBC can be part of developing a skilled future-ready workforce here in Bay of Quinte.”

If you need help upskilling to your employees, contact the Quinte Economic Development Commission to find out the best options for you.
 

This article is sponsored by Quinte Economic Development Commission.  If you have any questions about the information in this article, please contact the QEDC at 613.961.7990.