Serving Vancouver’s diverse business community

Professional and Corporate
Written by Stuart McNish

Guest: Bridgitte Anderson (CEO of a board of trade)

As CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, Bridgitte Anderson needs to be diverse – after all, that is what her members are. They touch almost any industry, which means the Board’s events have to be diverse as well. Meanwhile, she has to do her research into the industries that she is serving. Her secret? “I work with some of the smartest people I’ve ever known,” she replies. Those people have not allowed her to fail, but she has also learned that failure can also provide valuable lessons that can help her going forward.

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Studying businesses and understanding how they work
Studying businesses and understanding how they work

What does a vice-president of research do? This is Steven Zicherman’s role with Odlum Brown – he studies businesses by looking at their financial filings and trying to understand how a company “ticks.” This could be from internal factors within the company but can be affected by its ecosystem and competitors, which need to be taken into account; this requires skills geared towards recognizing patterns and seeing everything with a fresh set of eyes.

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Doing more than average to become above average
Doing more than average to become above average

As far as Scott Jacob is concerned, he has the greatest job he can have. As the CEO of Jacob Bros. Construction, he deals with ensuring that the company runs smoothly and clients get what they need, while his brother (and business partner) handles more of the safety and finance. Knowing and realizing the impact of what the company does is what drives him forward every day – he believes that doing more than average is needed to become above average.

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Cultivating a workplace where people are heard
Cultivating a workplace where people are heard

When people think of human resources, there is often a very narrow view of what it is. When Fit Foods hired Giselle Blackman as VP of People and Culture, this was something they wanted to change. How do you make people feel seen and heard? Addressing this is the key to cultivating a positive and healthy workplace – a place that isn’t afraid to ask allegedly “stupid questions” that could lead to innovations and ideas.

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Lumber and forestry business in his blood
Lumber and forestry business in his blood

When Ken Kalesnikoff was approached to form a task force around Canada’s lumber industry, it was a tall challenge but he was the right person for the job – it came shortly after his role as the principal leader of Kalesnikoff, a lumber company based in Castlegar, British Columbia. Lumber had always been in his blood, growing up in Thrums, an extremely small logging town between Castlegar and nearby Nelson.

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Stuart McNish
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Balancing stakeholder interests and public policy
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Attracting economic opportunities and investments