From 2002 to 2015 Shannon took a 3 man basement start up to a 10 million dollar company that employs over 120 people. Shannon left his home town of Rexton, New Brunswick to frame houses in Vancouver. While he was there he gained valuable insight not only into his chosen trade but into the realm of labour workflow and leadership. This grassroots experience, where he witnessed a variety of workforce flow and leadership problems convinced him that there had to be a better way to get work done. He witnessed first hand how irregular workflow, tumultuous management practices and sporadic income not only hindered the quality of work completed but also on worker retention and well being. He vowed that his company was going to be different. His strong entrepreneurial drive and superior leadership qualities got him noticed by a Calgary construction company. He was retained by them and began to work primarily on commercial projects, helping build ambitious structures in this vibrant and booming city.
As a member of the company’s management team he gained a reputation as an expert in his field and a finder of solutions. After completing a variety of noteworthy projects which allowed him to hone both his carpentry and leadership skills Shannon was able to use his connections and reputation to launch his own company.
Today Matrix primarily focuses on providing full service staffing solutions for large industrial, civil and commercial projects across Canada. They have been recognized for their outstanding work on a variety of public works projects including the 800 million dollar South East Ring Road and Calgary’s LRT lines. In 2013 Shannon and Matrix were honoured by a variety of groups including Profit 500, The Fast Growth 50 and Business Calgary’s Leaders of Tomorrow. Shannon has always been humbled by accolades such as these, and insists that the formula for Matrix’s success is simple: They bring together great people and filter out the administrative burden so that their tradespeople can focus on what they are skilled and passionate about. Matrix also works hard to ensure they are positioned at the forefront of technological innovation in the industry in a variety of ways. One such way is their proprietary web portal that is used to attract, educate and facilitate stable, long-term opportunities for previous, current and potential Matrix employees. This system allows them to easily connect their staff with clients, ensuring the perfect fit. Matrix is also known for their strong commitment to safety, and was one of the first organizations to implement OEX TraX on site. OEX TraX allows everything to happen, and be logged, in real time. Safety meetings are documented, time cards and incident reports are updated and detailed vehicle assessments are made available. This system was chosen because it insists on transparency and accountability, two qualities Matrix values highly.
While still working in Vancouver Shannon vowed that his company was going to be different. In the last decade they have remained on the cutting edge of the full service skilled labour placement model by investing in their most important asset - their employees. This people focused approach has allowed them to continue to expand and grow as they boldly lead their staff, their clients and Canada into the future.
In the spirit of reconciliation, we acknowledge that we work on the traditional territories of the Blackfoot Confederacy (Siksika, Kainai, Piikani), the Tsuut'ina, the Îyâxe Nakoda Nations, the Métis Nation (Region 3), and all people who make their homes in the Treaty 7 region of Southern Alberta.
