Out of all small tech talent markets in North America, Waterloo’s millennial population is growing at the fastest rate.
CBRE recently released its 2021 “Scoring Tech Talent” report, with a feature on the importance of millennials – anyone between the ages of 23 and 38. Since 2014, Waterloo has seen a 26.3% increase in its millennial population, which reflects a successful, thriving tech ecosystem. Nashville came in second place, with a 14.8% change in its millennial population since 2014.
In the 2016 census, it was reported that 28% of the population in Waterloo were millennials.* Given CBRE’s report, this number likely increased in the last five years, placing Waterloo’s concentrated millennial market high above the United States average of 22%.
Here’s why this data was included in CBRE’s Scoring Tech Talent report:
Millennials represent the largest demographic cohort in the workplace and their presence and maturity fuel tech talent growth. Millennials tend to gravitate toward youthful, job-creating economies and progressive, accessible cities with internationally recognized post-secondary institutions. It’s the same reason companies are looking to mid-sized cities for their talent-focused satellite offices.
Waterloo checks all these boxes. We have a reputation as a top technology hub and world-class robotics and automation cluster.
Waterloo is abundant with successful startups, scale-ups and multinational companies like Google and Square. We are home to the University of Waterloo, Wilfrid Laurier University and Conestoga College. Linking it all together is an impressive system of walkable trails, bike paths and Light Rail Transit (LRT).
The growing number of millennials in Waterloo will continue to make a difference in our economy and innovation ecosystems. Millennials have the potential to influence society in a myriad of ways, as they study, start jobs, buy homes and have families locally.
This situation is a win-win. Ecosystems like ours benefit from an influx of millennials and millennials benefit from living and working in vibrant communities like Waterloo.
*The CBRE data identifies millennials as between the ages of 23 and 38, while the Waterloo Region Record – the source of this statistic – uses a slightly different age range: 20 – 39.