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In 2018, The Chamber will be celebrating its 155th anniversary. That kind of longevity only comes with strong leadership and vision. We've continued that proud tradition with The Chamber's 2018 Board of Directors. To read full bios click
here
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The Chamber's 2018 Board of Directors
Member-at-Large - Patricia Jelinski (
Vice Chair, Governance Committee)
Member-at-Large - Mark Mawhinney (
Chair, Policy & Gov't Affairs Committee)
Directors
Ian Batey
Captain (Navy) Jason Boyd
Christina Clarke
Rahim Khudabux (
Chair,
Ambassadors Committee )
We also would like to thank our outgoing board members Natasha Reger
, Gary Kinar, Shaun Cerisano and Frank Bourree for their hard work over the years.
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The Chamber Year in Review 2017
Message from the CEO, Catherine Holt
I'd like to take a moment to reflect on the many successes The Chamber has had in 2017 by working with our members and advocating on their behalf at all levels of government. From punitive tax reforms to getting more staff for local businesses (plus getting them housed,
transported to work and
their kids in quality care) we've been busy. Click here to see everything that we've been up to for you in 2017.
In 2018, our 155th year of doing business, we anticipate a lively year of advocating to government on behalf of our members, with a focus on the municipal elections in October. Our advocacy priorities for 2018 will be announced later this month as our new board weighs in on the issues, make sure you let us know the issues you'd like addressed.
Throughout the year you'll hear our theme "Building Good Business" frequently as we look forward to the future and perhaps take a moment or two to bask in our previous successes.
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BUSINESS LEADERS LUNCHEON
Hear Peter Legge, one of Canada's most inspiring entrepreneurs, on why good is the enemy of great - and how to move you and your company to the next level of success.
Peter Legge is Chairman and CEO of Canada Wide Media Limited, the largest independently owned magazine publishing company in Western Canada controlling a network of over 25 magazines across the country in addition to providing a diverse range of media services and products with over $15 million in sales annually.
Sponsored by:
Wed, Jan 31 | 11:30 am
-1 pm
Coast Victoria Hotel & Marina
by APA, 146 Kingston St.
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Alberta's Recovering Economy is Greater Victoria's Loss
In an
article in Victoria News about the year ahead, Chamber CEO Catherine Holt comments that Alberta's ongoing economic recovery could further dry up an already thinning pool of employees in Greater Victoria, especially in construction, the trades and tech.
"As Alberta's economy is doing better, we're going to see less interest in Alberta workers moving to Victoria. We may even see the reverse start to happen - Victoria workers moving to Alberta," said Holt.
When it comes to BC business, the health of Alberta's economy is one of the horses to watch in 2018.
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Members Around Town
Prince of Whales to Add Second Catamaran to Fleet
After unveiling the Salish Sea Dream catamaran in 2017, Prince of Whales will add a second $3.5 million catamaran to its fleet. Currently, the Salish Sea Dream is home ported in Vancouver. The new catamaran will be home ported in Victoria giving the company greater flexibility in accommodating larger groups.
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Prince of Whales Whale Watching: member since 2002
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Accounting Companies Merge
MNP, Canada's fifth largest national accounting and business consulting firm, has merged with
Victoria's
Hulko Cameron Wellburn LLP. Hulko Cameron Wellburn was looking to deliver more specialty services to the marketplace and MNP was looking to expand its presence and add more accounting and tax professionals in Victoria.
V2V Home port Victoria
After feedback from guests, tourism partners, and the local industry,
V2V Vacations vessel the V2V Empress will now be home ported in Victoria instead of Vancouver. The V2V Empress is in sea trails and is expected to resume service in the coming weeks.
| V2V Vacations.: member since 2016 |
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2017: Great Year for Film in Victoria
- ReBoot: The Guardian Code (TV Series)
- Elsewhere (Feature)
- Fixer Upper 3 (Movie of the Week)
- Gourmet Detective 4 (Movie of the Week)
- Pup Star: World Tour (Digital Feature)
- Richard Says Goodbye (Feature)
- A Christmas Calendar (Movie of the Week)
- Dead Pool 2 (Feature)
Congrats on another year growing and nurturing our film industry!
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The Vancouver Island South Film & Media Commission: member since 1980
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What Business Impressed You This Year?
Nominating only takes two minutes and you can nominate as many businesses in as many different categories as you want.
The are 12 award categories from Business Person of the Year to Innovation, Sustainable Business Practices to New Business and everything in between! Check out the full list
here.
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MEMBER SNAPSHOT:
Nick Poushinsky
Stantec brings buildings, energy, resource, environmental, infrastructure, and water projects to life.
How and when was your business founded? Stantec is a Canadian success story. We started in 1954 as a one-person firm, and today, the Stantec community unites approximately 22,000 employees working in over 400 locations across 6 continents. We collaborate across disciplines and industries to bring buildings, energy and resource, environmental, water, and infrastructure projects to life. What do you think is the most important life lesson for someone to learn? I don't believe in ONE most important lesson being a helpful notion. I DO believe that living life to the full with honesty and respect for those around me is a lesson I learn daily. What are you passionate about? Life, living and people. What was your first job? A paper route when I was seven years old. If you had a superpower what would it be? I would mandate that children outlive their parents.
More about Nick - and additional Member Snapshots - can be found in the Business Matters.
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Stantec: member since 2002 |
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Keep your most important asset - your people - healthy and well taken care of with the Chambers Plan - the most popular employee benefits plan in Canada for small business.
Click here
for more information.
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The Benefit of Knowledge
The Chamber is announcing yet another
benefit for our members -
webinars on over 40 subject areas. We know business leaders are constantly seeking to expand what they know and we want to help.
We also know that the two things most business owners and managers work hardest to manage are time and money. Our partnership with
Small Business BC looks after both by providing a discounted rate for the seminars and expert advice delivered in a webinar format that can be viewed live or up to seven days after.
Click
here to get the latest benefit for Chamber Members and all of their employees - hey, maybe this can be the first thing crossed off your new year's resolution list.
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The Future is Now
Technology is changing the way people do things at an ever increasing pace. Futurist Speaker compiled a list of 63 questions every mayor and city planner should be thinking about. See the full list here.
Some examples:
- At what age is it ok for a child to ride solo in an autonomous car?
- How will Hollywood deal with "chase scenes" in the driverless car era?
- How will a decreasing number of traffic violations affect city revenue in 5, 10, 15, and 20 years?
- How long before most police departments have their own fleet of drones?
- What percentage of city workers will find their jobs disappearing in 5, 10, 15, and 20 years?
The article reminds us of an episode of Black Mirror, but poses interesting questions and demands big picture thinking. People are inherently afraid of change, but not all change is bad - it can lead to innovation to solve real world problems. Share your thoughts on The Chamber's Facebook page.
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BC Ferries Coastal Review
The Province has begun a
$250,000 comprehensive review of
BC Ferries to evaluate its performance in meeting the needs of ferry users and British Columbia's coastal communities.
It will also identify what improvements can be made to the existing model and the Coastal Ferry Services Contract to better serve the needs of ferry users and coastal communities.
The review will not consider bringing BC Ferries back into government.
Under the terms of reference, the review will:
- Examine whether the contracted ferry services are being provided for in a manner that supports the public interest.
- Consider what changes to the price cap and regulatory model would ensure the ferry system is working as efficiently and effectively as possible for all British Columbians, and, in particular, for the ferry users and communities who depend on this essential service.
- Identify opportunities and recommend actions to enhance ferry service delivery and/or reduce costs without impacting existing service.
BC Ferries CEO Mark Collins will be speaking at a Chamber luncheon in April.
Sign up here to be the first to know when tickets go on sale.
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BC Ferries: member since 1983 |
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Welcome to Our Newest Members!
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Chamber Name Tags
 Need to get one of the snazzy new Chamber Name tags?
Email Reception to order yours today.
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