Preserving the things that matter in a world of constrained resources (Ed Clark, TD Bank Group)
Canada survived the financial crisis relatively well, but we are now at a defining moment in our nation’s economic history, says Ed Clark, President and Chief Executive Officer of TD Bank Group.
Mr. Clark said that Canada, like other Western countries, faces a crisis created by slow growth and an aging population. As a result, governments may not be able to afford to provide all of the services that citizens take for granted. Mr. Clark was speaking at a dinner to mark his acceptance of the Ivey Business Leader Award from the Ivey School of Business at the University of Western Ontario.
For example, “At the provincial level, growing health care costs threaten to literally crowd out all other provincial expenditures.”
Mr. Clark said that citizens must encourage difficult conversations about how to allocate constrained resources. Business leaders also have a specific role to play, and Mr. Clark highlighted several principles used to drive change in the private sector that may be useful for politicians who must lead these changes.