Professional and Financial Services
Laurie Goldberg People Corporation Winnipeg
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eople Corporation is a national provider of group benefits, group retirement and human resource services. As Chairman and CEO, Laurie Goldberg has led the firm to the forefront of consolidation within its industry. Through acquisition of regional companies, People Corporation is now one of the largest and fastest growing national companies in Canada. When did you know you wanted to be an entrepreneur? I grew up in an entrepreneurial family and started a fence and deck building business at 12, which I grew through high school and college. What would you say are the top skills needed to be a successful entrepreneur? Believe in what you are doing, be passionate, have a plan, have strong work ethic and surround yourself with talented people who believe in your vision. C
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How important have good employees been to your success? They are the number one factor to our success.
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What sets Canadian entrepreneurs apart on the world stage? Canadian entrepreneurs are balanced in how we start and grow businesses, and as a result, the economy reflects that through steady growth.
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What did you want to be when you were a kid? I wanted to be a carpenter, so I was! What is your passion other than entrepreneurship? I replaced my passion for building with cooking. I want to be a pro chef someday. If you weren’t in your current leadership position, what would you be doing? Building – I would love to design and physically build my own house. Who has been your greatest inspiration? My father taught me a lot about business. He instilled in me values of work ethic, generosity, kindness and integrity. He told me, “It’s just as easy to think big as it is to think small, so think big.” Over the next 10 years, our intention is to build the next large-scale benefit, pension and HR consulting firm in Canada. Our vision is to grow to half a billion in revenue. We see a lot of opportunities in the Canadian landscape to consolidate the fragmented marketplace and bring best-in-class advice to the small- to medium-size business market, which we believe is currently underserviced.
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EY Entrepreneur Of The Year 2014