Summar
BA Blacktop Ltd. is a subsidiary of Eurovia, the VINCI Group, which provides contractor and design services for specialized road surfaces. The company’s services include concreting, milling, reclamation, recycling, and bridge construction to create transport infrastructure using innovative solutions. The company was founded in British Columbia in 1956 and provides services statewide. BA Blacktop Ltd.’s business complies with ISO 9001: 2015, which allows it to work with the largest customers and participate in the most demanding projects (BA Blacktop, 2021). This paper aims to analyze the current strengths and challenges and future prospects and risks in the context of political forces influencing the company.
Current Strengths in the View of Political Influences
As BA Blacktop Ltd. provides services exclusively in the District of British Columbia, it deals primarily with the municipal and provincial governments. From a political perspective, the business’s main current strengths include compliance with employment and safety laws and providing bonding insurance for projects. It allows for the maximum number of orders from the municipal government, one of the main clients. BA Blacktop Ltd. also works on commercial and private projects.
The company meets most of the policy requirements for a sustainable business, including recruiting employees from local communities, handling locally sourced materials, and recycling old concrete and other reused structures for construction. BA Blacktop Ltd. has five asphalt plants in British Columbia and is a reliable partner of the state as a large employer. Besides, BA Blacktop Ltd. complies with sustainable manufacturing standards, including materials and production methods, refurbishment, and new facilities construction. Finally, the company is directly involved in communities’ lives and oversees about a dozen charitable projects. All these features characterize BA Blacktop Ltd. as a reliable partner for municipal governments and ensure a constant flow of orders.
Current Challenges in the View of Political Influences
It is noteworthy that Canada has three government levels – federal, provincial, and municipal, which regulate laws that are important for doing business. Canada is recognized globally as the second-largest economy by country size and ranked tenth in terms of economy. Simultaneously, Canada has long been a role model in freedom of doing business and political non-interference. In 2015, Canada was rated “mostly free” rather than “free” due to government spending growth. According to some experts, the state also needs reforms of the labor laws, which provide an exceptional level of protection for employees. Canada remains the freest economy, including low levels of corruption and political interference compared to other countries on the American continent.
BA Blacktop Ltd. must meet the high standards required by many occupational health and safety laws. For example, in Canada, contractors and subcontractors cannot hire non-certified employees for qualified work. The company also ensures insurance compensation in the event of accidents and must provide excellent reasons for employees’ dismissal (BA Blacktop, 2021). Particularly noteworthy is screening employees for alcohol and drug addiction, which may be a prerequisite for declaring an employee incapacitated and is a sensitive aspect of control measures. In general, since BA Blacktop Ltd. works closely with municipal governments, the company is under scrutiny from municipal and provincial politicians and acts as a role model for other businesses.
Future Prospects in the View of Political Influences
BA Blacktop Ltd. has good business prospects due to compliance with most of the standards that guarantee the company government approval and support. The company currently holds a significant market share in the province of British Columbia. The most likely development perspective is the continuous integration of innovations, including Aegrevia Aesthetic Asphalt products, Evotherm Warm Mix Asphalt, Viaphone Quite Pavement, Salviacim Industrial Pavement and Flooring, Recyvia Foamed Asphalt Base Stabilization, and Modulovia High-Load Asphalt. Besides, modern technologies for testing the quality of the work done allow the company to guarantee its services’ high reliability. Therefore, since the company has been on the market since 1956 and received state approval, it has good prospects for further business development.
Future Risks in the View of Political Influences
At the moment, after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was accused of being involved in a corruption scandal related to the implementation of an education project, his party has a very precarious position in parliament. Some experts predict that the prime minister’s party may lose power even before the re-election in 2023. Currently, the taxation policy is fair, and the level of political interference in business and corruption is the lowest among the countries of the continent. However, in the event of political upheaval, even the major players in the Canadian market could be at risk of introducing new rules and laws in taxation, labor safety, and employment policies.
Thus, the current strengths and challenges and future prospects and risks in the context of political forces influencing BA Blacktop Ltd. were analyzed. The company’s most important advantage is its stable position in the market and compliance with all official requirements for doing business. The current challenge is the need to act as a role model for other businesses. Prospects are associated with the introduction of innovation since Canada’s political segment does not create obstacles for business, and the laws of the country facilitate innovation. Future risks can be triggered by unexpected changes in political power and changes in current legislation.
References
BA Blacktop. (2021). Web.