Board elections add new voices to The Chamber

Bruce Williams is CEO of the Greater Victoria Chamber of Commerce
The Chamber is pleased to announce the election results for our 2022 Board of Directors.
Jessica Stigant, Associate Director of Government Relations and Partnerships for Ocean Networks Canada, and James Gatsi, founder and CEO of CL Web Developers Inc., have been elected to two-year terms on The Chamber Board. Incumbent candidates Rose Arsenault, Agilus Work Solutions and Tom Plumb, Kinetic Construction were also re-elected.
The Chamber holds staggered elections every fall, so we can maintain continuity while ensuring fresh voices are able to join the table. This year, there were 11 candidates vying for four open positions.
That level of competition is a good indication of just how interested Greater Victoria’s business community was in this election. That’s not surprising, given the work The Chamber and its board have been doing on behalf of business. We’ve been going full-out since the pandemic started to try and help businesses get through the uncertainty and prepare for recovery. Our efforts have shaped government relief programs and championed innovations that businesses were able to embrace as the way forward.
I’m grateful for the expertise and guidance I’ve had from our current board and look forward to working closely with the new board, which formally begins its term on Jan.1, 2022.
Jessica, James, Rose and Tom will join John Wilson, Kris Wirk, Christina Clarke, Moira Hauk, Judith Ethier, Pedro Marquez, Richard Michaels, Ann Squires Ferguson as well as past chair Dan Dagg as members of the 2022 board.
On a related note, the board will also have two other new faces. The Chamber maintains a seat at the table for whoever is the current Base Commander of CFB Esquimalt. So, when Capt. (N) Sam Sader was re-assigned to a new post in Ottawa, we welcomed new Base Commander, Capt. (N) J. Jeffery Hutchinson to the table. As well, the incoming chair of The Chamber’s Prodigy committee, Paul van Koll, will join the board in 2022.
It really is an outstanding cast of diverse community leaders with decades of experience in successful organizations. Put them together on our board and they became a remarkably influential group that can get the ear of decision makers at all levels of government. It’s a blessing for me, as CEO of the organization, and a true benefit for our members. Even beyond that, the work our board does improves conditions for entrepreneurs and businesses — and even other chambers — across Vancouver Island.
Thank you to everyone who put your name forward as a candidate for The Chamber board, and to all our members who voted. The work never ends, and we know that many challenges lie ahead.
We’ll keep doing what’s right for the entire business community as we continue down the recovery runway.
 
This column was originally published in the October 2021 edition of the Business Examiner

Chamber Events
Celebrate Small Business Month sponsored by Grant Thornton!
Tuesday, October 19 | Annual General Meeting – Speaker Min. Ravi Kahlon | 11:30am – 1:00pm | Union Club (805 Gordon St.)*
Wednesday, October 20 | Data for Better Business Efficiencies with Grant Thornton | 12:00 – 1:00pm | Webinar
Thursday, October 21 | Virtual Membership 101 | 12:00 – 1:00pm | Zoom
Thursday, October 21 | Modified Business Mixer | 5:00 – 6:30pm | Max Furniture (3460 Quadra St.)*
Tuesday, October 26 | International Students and Local Business Connector |5:00 – 6:00pm | Zoom
Wednesday, October 27 | What Comes Next? Plan Your Exit with Grant Thornton | 12:00 – 1:00pm | Webinar
Thursday, October 28 | Small Business Month Networking Breakfast | 7:30 – 9:00am | Victoria Sandman (2852 Douglas St.)*
*Pre-registration and double-vaccination required to attend all in-person events.