Toronto Talks

We Need to be a Country of Business with CIBC's Lisa Raitt

Canada is not a country of business. Not at the moment. On the latest episode of Toronto Talks, Giles Gherson speaks with Lisa Raitt, Vice-Chair in the Office of the CEO at CIBC, about why Toronto's productivity gap with ten major US metros has grown to nearly $100,000 per worker, what's driving the outflow of talent and capital, and what it will actually take to start thinking and acting like a country of business.

Billions Spent, Transit Lessons Learned with the Hon. Prabmeet Sarkaria & Hon. Todd J. McCarthy

Ontario is in the middle of the largest transit expansion in its history and two of the province's most senior ministers say the hardest part is behind us. Recorded live at the Board's 11th Annual Transportation Symposium, this conversation between Giles Gherson and Ministers Sarkaria and McCarthy covers GO Expansion, the shift to alliance-style procurement, OneFare, and why — despite the bumps on the road — the future has never looked brighter for getting around the Toronto region.

Wellington Holbrook, Vancity: Competition, Capital and the Future of Financial Services

Giles Gherson sits down with Wellington Holbrook, President & CEO of Vancity, to discuss how institutions of different sizes contribute to a strong and resilient financial ecosystem.

Holbrook explains Vancity’s growing presence in Canada’s financial capital and it's supporting role in housing, clean energy, community infrastructure, and small business growth. The conversation explores how mid-sized institutions can complement Canada’s well-established banking sector by advancing innovation, and deepening relationship-based financial services.

Bonus Episode: Canada’s Global Strategy with The Hon. Anita Anand and RBC’s John Stackhouse

In this special bonus episode, recorded live at a Toronto Region Board of Trade luncheon, Canada's Minister of Foreign Affairs, The Honourable Anita Anand, sits down with John Stackhouse, Senior Vice-President at RBC, just hours after returning from trade negotiations in India and as a new military conflict in the Middle East unfolds in real time. From the breaking Iran-Israel crisis to Canada's accelerating reset with India, China, and the Asia-Pacific, Minister Anand offers unfiltered, first-hand insight into where Canada's foreign policy is headed and what it means for business.

Michael Keroullé, President of Alstom Americas: What World-Class Cities Get Right About Regional Rail

In this episode of Toronto Talks, Giles Gherson speaks with Michael Keroullé, President of Alstom Americas, about what it takes to plan, build, and operate regional rail systems in the world’s leading cities.

Drawing on Alstom’s experience across Canada, the United States, and Europe, Michael explains why long-term planning, disciplined execution, and a focus on day-to-day service quality matter as much as capital investment. The conversation looks at GO Expansion, electrification, modern signaling, and the role of operations and maintenance in delivering reliable service that people trust.

They also explore why regional rail has become a critical piece of economic infrastructure. As congestion, labour access, and productivity shape business decisions across the Toronto region, the ability to move people efficiently is no longer just a transit issue. It is a competitiveness issue that will influence growth for decades to come.

Building for the Long Term: Tony Irwin on Rental Housing and Toronto’s Growth

Toronto’s rental housing challenge is far from over.

In this episode of Toronto Talks, Giles Gherson speaks with Tony Irwin, President and CEO of the Federation of Rental Housing Providers of Ontario, about why short-term market indicators can be misleading and why rental housing remains critical to Toronto’s long-term growth. Irwin explains why nearly half of the city’s residents rent, how rental affordability affects talent attraction and workforce stability, and why essential workers and families are increasingly priced out.

Canada Has Everything, Except Urgency: Goldy Hyder on Canada’s Economic Drift

In this year-end episode of Toronto Talks, Giles Gherson sits down with Goldy Hyder, President & CEO of the Business Council of Canada, to look back on a tumultuous 2025 — and ahead to the choices Canada must confront in 2026.

Together, they examine an uncomfortable paradox: a country with every structural advantage a modern economy should want still finds itself struggling to scale companies, attract investment, or remove the barriers it built for itself. As they reflect on the year, they press into the questions 2025 made impossible to avoid:

• Why did a more assertive U.S. catch us off guard yet again?
• How did regulatory inertia become a defining feature of Canadian policymaking?
• And heading into 2026, is our real challenge competitiveness — or complacency?

Hyder argues that Canada’s greatest vulnerability isn’t external pressure but the comfort that allows drift to masquerade as stability. If 2025 was a wake-up call, then 2026 will test whether we’re willing to act.

When Your AI Becomes You: Don Tapscott on the Future of Identity

As AI moves from helpful tool to ever-present companion, what does that mean for how we work, lead, and stay in control? In his new book You to the Power of Two, Don Tapscott argues we’re entering the age of Identic AI—digital extensions of ourselves that can think, act, and even negotiate on our behalf.

In this episode, World Trade Centre Toronto VP Jon Worren sits down with Don to explore how Identic AI could transform business, reshape personal identity, and test our ability to build technology we can trust. From the future of executive work to the question of who owns our digital selves, this is a conversation about what’s coming and why Canada needs to get ahead of it.