The tech community of the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) draws its talent from a population of over 5 million people, nearly half of whom were born outside of Canada. Silicon Valley draws its talent from a population of over 2 million, many of whom are originally from other countries, or just other places in the US.

The tech community in Waterloo Region, on the other hand, draws its talent from a population of only around half a million. Many of those tech workers were born or went to school in the area.

Community connections and home-grown talent
This migration, or lack thereof, contributes to Waterloo Region’s unique technology culture. A large percentage of the tech community grew up together, went to school together, work (or have worked) together, play together, and have survived the ups and downs of trying to change the world together.

The result is a community where ‘six degrees of separation’ is closer to three.

School days and power plays
The region’s professional networks often germinate in college or university, expand into the business world after graduation, and flower as entrepreneurial partnerships. Likewise, many of the Region’s techies have worked together at more than one local firm, both in high tech and other industries.

In addition to working and going to school together, extensive networking results from local professional and recreational organizations as well, like Entrepreneur Week and the Hi-Tech Hockey League.

When everyone knows your name
An environment with fewer degrees of separation offers considerable benefits. Job hunting, recruiting, vendor recommendations, competitor validation, business development, and entrepreneurial opportunities are examples of how it’s easier doing business when ‘everyone knows everyone’.

One former eBusiness manager commented, “Recently I left the corporate world and jumped into consulting. My current position is a direct result of the networking connections I’ve made. I got a call out of the blue and within a week I was working on a 3-month contract.”

Some professionals employ a relationship-centric approach to network-building. One IT manager, also a U of W graduate, observed, “I don’t like to use it for business development, but I know of a lot of deals that started with a business relationship or friendship.”

She continued, “The best network extensions or connections happen organically and, for me, because I have a genuine interest in that person. I’m proud to say that I still keep in regular contact with a good number of people going back 10 years in the industry.”

Chemistry and lasting relationships also develop as a result of the tech sector’s volatility, producing “comrades-in-arms”. One local veteran noted, “There can be a sense of shared history, even if you didn’t actually work with that person before, because you know someone that they worked with, or know the story of their dot-com bust…”

The caveat of these benefits is, of course, that they only available to those within the community.

In a tight-knit community, reputation is sticky
A small world means tech professionals are always building their personal brands, whether consciously or not. One executive observed:

“The tech community [here] is small. If you’re authentic and good at what you do, your reputation/personal brand will build. Conversely, if you’re looking for the quick scam and are not professional, then word gets out and sooner or later, you won’t get much further in the industry. Building your brand (not in an overly promotional way) will create opportunities for you.”

Personal brands are built both inside and outside of the office. One proponent of tech events explained:

“You get to work with like-minded individuals… and by the end, not only have you had a good time and hopefully developed something, but you’ve had the opportunity of seeing how those people work. You get great insight into work habits and the knowledge level of those individuals. Intense tech events really force you to put your skills where your mouth is.”

It’s a small (work) world…
Of course, as anyone who grew up in a small town can tell you, it’s not always a good thing when everyone knows your business. Everyone interviewed commented that perceptions of people and companies stick around a long time.

One C-level executive with a background at several local tech firms elaborated, “Some hiring managers within the community do not have the capacity to see beyond a candidate’s previous experience, and may discern that [the person is] unable to deal with the necessary corporate ambiguity or take on new market challenges with vigor… and ultimately will not hire them.”

It isn’t only the locals who are exposed to the challenges of tight-knit culture. One Toronto-area IT manager looking to relocate to Kitchener-Waterloo commented, “I don’t know anybody in KW that I’ve worked with. As somebody who has been a hiring manager, I’ve certainly placed more weight on an internal recommendation based on a past working relationship. My guess is other hiring managers do the same.”

Who you know becomes ever more important the higher you go in corporate hierarchies. “I’ve noticed that in a lot of cases, management positions go to people who had a prior relationship with somebody senior in the organization. So as a non-local competing in a small job market, where I don’t have a lot personal connections, I’m probably going to be at a disadvantage.”

For companies, local candidates can be desirable for requiring less “ramp-up”, and being already somewhat familiar with the company’s business and culture. And there are no relocation costs if someone already lives here.

...and a small (personal) world
Impressions of people based on past experience or hearsay aren’t limited to the professional sphere. With work and social connections often overlapping, it can be difficult to keep work life and personal life separate.

One manager noted, “It’s hard to have your private life (or your “I love kitties” blog) stay private. You can be sure that if there’s a story about you, that it will be shared throughout the community.”

One woman recalled local online dating discomfort. “On a few occasions, guys would almost immediately ask if I was that girl from the gym or if I worked at Company X. One guy I hadn’t even met in person asked a co-worker, with whom I happened to be acquainted, about me. Creepy!”

Waterloo Region’s population isn’t going to hit 5 million in the near future. And our history of invention and entrepreneurship has a ways to go to catch up to Silicon Valley.

However, the Region’s unique, tight-knit culture, continued growth, and investment in future technologies and tech leaders make the tech community far greater than the sum of its parts.