COVID-19 - Eighty Independent Professional Services Firms Join Forces to Contribute Actively to Québec's Economic Relaunch

MONTRÉAL, May 12, 2020 /CNW Telbec/ - As deconfinement and the progressive resumption of activities begin to take shape, 80 Québec-owned firms have joined forces to showcase their expertise to Québec decision-makers, whose choices will have far-reaching consequences in the coming weeks, critical to the sustainability of their activities. Accordingly, this interdisciplinary and multisectoral group is launching firmesindependantes.com, a B2B services portal to increase its impact in the Québec economy's recovery, while promoting and enhancing entrepreneurship in the professional services sector in Québec.

"We want to play an active role in Québec's economic relaunch and that is why we have come together to offer a collective response to the issues facing decision-makers," explains Olivier Laquinte, president and founder of Talsom, one of the firms behind the merger. "We are bringing together a complete range of expertise and professional services to enable executives to become the leaders that the Québec economy needs to make it through this crisis". 

Québec-owned and managed independent professional services firms are an essential component of the Québec economy. They employ more than 127,000 people in organizations of 10 people or more, and provide close to 12 billion services annually in Québec¹. Investments in independent Québec firms providing quality services to local businesses not only benefit the industry's vitality, but also have a stimulating effect on the relaunch.

Besides the B2B services portal, the Regroupement des firmes de services professionnels indépendantes (RFSPI) also aims to encourage the government and major institutions to consider and recognize the key role of independent Québec firms in accelerating economic and business recovery.

The collective urged the government to accelerate the transformation of Québec businesses and industries by providing temporary and specific subsidies for expertise and know-how provided by local consulting and service firms. It also invites key decision-makers to maintain a long-term vision in their business decisions by maintaining the major transformation projects currently under way.

According to a survey conducted by the Regroupement among its members, independent professional services firms are concerned about their short-term future: 85% of firms say they are eligible for government-issued grant and loan programs, but more than half (51%) consider that these programs will be insufficient. If the current situation persists, one in three firms do not think they will be able to survive beyond a six-month period. Forty-four percent of members of the Regroupement believe a return to pre-crisis performance levels will not be possible for 6 to 24 months.

The Regroupement's spokesperson, Olivier Laquinte, notes that " at the moment, all Québécois want to contribute to giving the Québec economy some breathing space and a bit of life. Many initiatives have been launched and the RFSPI is part of that effort. Independent professional services firms say they are working for Québec and are mobilized to support decision-makers. Above and beyond our own firms, there is the economic health of Québec, and this depends on strong entrepreneurship".

About the RFSPI

With 80 independent professional services firms in accounting, public relations, communications, management, advertising, operations, recruitment, technology, human resources, law and strategy, the RFSPI aims at playing a leading role in Québec's economic relaunch. The RFSPI is a strong and unifying voice for the Québec-owned and -operated professional services industry. For more information: firmesindependantes.com

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¹Source : portrait de l'industrie des services professionnels réalisé par Indicia.  

SOURCE Regroupement des firmes de services professionnels indépendantes (RFSPI)

Hugo Morissette, Cabinet de relations publiques NATIONAL, Cellphone : 514 962-4648, [email protected]