The video game company is coming off a record hiring year in Montreal, with more than 700 employees.

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, left, and Montreal CEO Christophe Derennes at the company's Montreal offices, September 23, 2022.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot, left, and Montreal CEO Christophe Derennes at the company’s Montreal offices, September 23, 2022. Photo by Pierre Obendrauf /Montreal Gazette

French video game powerhouse Ubisoft Entertainment SA continues plans to expand operations in Quebec, despite the province’s troublesome labor shortage.

“Currently, it’s harder to recruit here than in Europe, but it’s less difficult than in the US,” Ubisoft co-founder and chief executive officer Yves Guillemot told the Montreal Gazette in an interview. “Quebec fits somewhere in between the two.”

Guillemot spent a few days in Montreal last week to meet with employees and participate in the celebrations marking the 25th anniversary of the opening of Ubisoft’s Mile End studio. The company is coming off a record year for hiring in the city, with more than 700 employees.

Ubisoft employs approximately 5,000 people in four Quebec cities, including approximately 4,000 at its Montreal hub. Quebec’s newest studio, in Sherbrooke, plans to grow to about 250 people over the next ten years, from 20 currently. It opened in November.

Founded in 1986, the creator of the popular Assassin’s Creed and Rainbow Six franchises has studios in nearly 20 countries, including China, Finland, Japan, Morocco, Poland, and the US.

“Ubisoft’s Quebec studios are among the best in the world,” said Guillemot. “The creations that come out of these studios are popular everywhere, allowing us to recruit highly qualified people. But competition for talent has increased in Montreal. We’ve opened studios in the regions to make sure we can be closer to the people.”

Lured by generous provincial tax credits and a pool of approximately 45,000 college students enrolled in video game-related programs, there are more than 200 studios scattered throughout the cityscape. About 19,000 Montrealers work in the industry at companies like WB Games, Eidos, Gameloft and local pioneer Behavior Interactive, according to data collected by Montreal International, the city’s foreign investment promotion agency. That makes Montreal the world’s fifth largest video game hub.

As a French company, Ubisoft generally isn’t bothered by Bill 96 – the Quebec language law that many employer groups have labeled as a bureaucratic and financial burden on businesses.

“Sometimes it’s a bit more work to make sure we follow all the rules, but being able to express yourself in your native language brings a lot of value to people who can create every day,” Guillemot said of the legislation.

“It is a real pleasure to work in your mother tongue. We’ve always insisted on making sure people can express themselves in their own language, because you’re much more creative that way. We must keep pushing the French language. We just need to make sure that others feel involved too. If people bring expertise that is unique, we must also allow communication in other languages.”

Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot during an interview at Ubisoft's Montreal offices on Friday, September 23, 2022.
Ubisoft CEO Yves Guillemot during an interview at Ubisoft’s Montreal offices on Friday, September 23, 2022. Photo by Pierre Obendrauf /Montreal Gazette

While charting the development of game franchises, Ubisoft is trying to distance itself from multiple episodes of sexual misconduct that emerged in 2020. Since then, it has taken steps to correct the situation, including hiring an ombudsperson and setting up an external investigation process to handle employee complaints.

“I’ve spent a lot of time with the teams this week and the atmosphere in the studio is fantastic,” said Guillemot. “It is a real pleasure to work for Ubisoft. But we have to make sure that this applies to everyone, which is why we have put in place a lot of systems.”

Asked about reports that some managers who behaved inappropriately were still working for the company, the CEO said: “All persons in doubt have been investigated and we have taken appropriate action. If the people are still there, it’s because it’s possible.”

Ubisoft has set itself internal goals – which Guillemot has not disclosed – to improve diversity.

Women make up about 25 percent of the company’s workforce in Montreal, although about a third of last year’s hires were women, a spokesperson said. Across the company, the proportion of female employees is increasing by about one percentage point each year, Guillemot said.

“We are making progress,” he said.

ftomesco@postmedia.com

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