The B.C. chapter of the American Marketing Association invited VPs, directors and managers for an intensive day of professional development at the Vision 2013 conference, culminating in a rooftop penthouse party at the Hotel Vancouver. Attendees continued their social networking on the dance floor in the legendary Panorama Roof Ballroom, while the business cards flowed as freely as the drinks.
Get inside the head of B.C.'s leaders with our monthly Q & A. You know their companies, you know their business personas, but we take a closer, more personal look at some of the province's most well-known business figures. What makes them tick? What drives them crazy? And most importantly, how do they take their coffee?
With a packed house at the Hotel Vancouver on May 28, the Vancouver Board of Trade hosted Google Canada’s managing director, Chris O’Neill, for a talk on big-picture tech trends. Born in rural Ontario, O’Neill was introduced to business early, through his parents’ small Canadian Tire franchise, but cut his teeth in Silicon Valley. I sat down with him after the event to discuss the future of technology business and entrepreneurship in Vancouver.
Vancouver business leaders gathered on May 28, as Chris O’Neill, managing director of Google Canada, took the stage at The Vancouver Board of Trade’s afternoon event.
O’Neill spoke on how people, ideas and culture can “power an innovative nation.”
Over 1100 people gathered at the Women of Distinction's 30th anniversary celebration to honour inspiring women and their achievements. The Women of Distinction accoloade is recognized nationally as one of Canada's most prestigious awards for women whose achievements contribute to the well-being and future of their communities. The awards also honoured the businesses and organizations that support the wellness and diverse needs of their employees.
When do you get your best ideas? Sleeping
What is your greatest extravagance? Can’t say... it’s too red and too fast.
What is your greatest regret? Believing I was not worthy.
What do you never travel without? My wife
How do you take your coffee? Mood dependent, but normally black.
In today’s world of business, more and more women are becoming leaders and mentors within their respected fields. Dozens of business-savvy women gathered on May 30 at the eighth annual Women in Business Luncheon in downtown Vancouver, an event put together by the Women in Leadership Foundation and TD Bank Group.
Great leaders are as much a product of their time as they are of any innate character traits. Would Winston Churchill, Mackenzie King or even Steve Jobs have led as effectively in any context other than their own?
Seven years after founding Sotheby’s International Realty Canada in Vancouver, president and CEO Ross McCredie found himself at a crossroads: “What I recognized is that we had grown quite a bit and I wasn’t going to be able to take it on my own to what we believed we were going toward.”
Roger Hardy, the co-founder and CEO of Clearly Contacts Ltd., faced what could have been a Steve Jobs-ian moment: the gala opening of the first bricks-and-mortar retail showroom for his 13-year-old company. A physical store on Vancouver’s Robson Street signalled a radical new direction for what had been a strictly online company—the biggest shift since ClearlyContacts.ca began selling eyeglasses in 2008, in addition to contact lenses.
Part of leading is knowing when it’s time to step down. As the head of a young and growing company, Amielle Lake showed in the last year that she knew exactly when that time was, and it helped get her company back on solid financial footing.
When Diane Loomer, the founder and artistic director of the Vancouver-based Chor Leoni Men’s Choir, passed away suddenly last December, it was left to 37-year-old choral director Erick Lichte to take over a grieving organization unaccustomed to anyone else steering the ship.
You recently returned from a whirlwind trip to Kathmandu, Palau, Laos, Maldives, Rwanda, Botswana and Spain. What was it for?
More than 400 people attended the annual Dish 'n Dazzle gala, featuring Wines of Chile in partnership with the B.C. Hospitality Foundation. Twelve participating restaurants, over 19 wineries and seven mixologists made for a spectacular night of food, wine and cocktails that raised over $40,000 for the BCHF. A cocktail competition, silent auction and raffle rounded out the evening.
