With a mission to inform, empower, celebrate and advocate for British Columbia's current and aspiring business leaders, BCBusiness go behind the headlines and bring readers face to face with the key issues and people driving business in B.C.
Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/1296256
10 BCBUSINESS SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2020 PORTRAIT: ADAM BLASBERG; BOTTOM RIGHT: AMANDA GELOWITZ S o how is the new world of work working out for you? Like us, you've probably made some changes to the way you get things done since COVID-19 came to town. I had a jump-start on working remotely, having spent a decade as a freelancer. Still, with most of my colleagues from the office hunkered down at home, the past several months have been an adjustment. Whether it's keeping the team spirit alive via Zoom or creating a print magazine almost entirely online, we've had to rethink how we do our jobs. It looks like some of the new ways will stick. In a recent national survey by PwC Canada, respondents named work-life balance, produc- tivity and connectivity as top post-pandemic challenges. Those obstacles aside, one in three British Columbians said their ideal workplace would be primarily or entirely remote. Which brings me to "Making It Work" (p.33), an attempt to make sense of what's changed, from tech- nology to wellness, for B.C. organiza- tions and their employees. It kicks off with Matt O'Grady's thoughtful take on how we can build a better rela- tionship with the digital devices that now blink and bleep in every corner of our lives. Throughout this editorial package, local business leaders share their views on how the pandemic has changed work and what the future might hold. Thank you to everyone who took the time to comment. Elsewhere, we chat with entrepre- neurs from two industries that have seen tough times of late. In "Against the Grain" (p.24), Ryan Stuart profiles three smaller B.C. forest products companies that keep bucking the industry slump, even during COVID. By reinventing their businesses and creating innovative products, these players have given a beleaguered sec- tor new hope. On a less encouraging note, Andrew Findlay's "Flying Blind" (p.62) checks in with heli- and cat-skiing operators who fear for their livelihoods this winter, given the potential absence of foreign travellers, who comprise the bulk of their business. This issue also sees the launch of Shift Hap- pens (p.21), a new column by Guy Saddy, who previously covered the cannabis industry for us. As racism, sexism and unethical behaviour become unacceptable in the business world, we thought it was time explore why companies and their workers still make those mistakes—and how to avoid them. Saddy and I welcome your ideas for future instalments. Nick Rockel, Editor-in-Chief bcb@canadawide.com / @BCBusiness ( editor's desk ) Meet some of our most innovative companies. Plus: Leadership lessons from B.C.'s early handling of the pandemic N E X T I S S U E Job Shift C ON T R I B U T OR S Two years ago, when writer Ryan Stuart drove across central B.C., he sensed hardship in the forest-dependent communities along the way. Back home in the Comox Valley, he saw the impact of the Island Timberlands strike. Coming across the odd success story in the sector, he wanted to know what these outliers were doing differently. "I was heartened to hear that people were figuring out ways of making money," says Stuart, whose investigations resulted in "Against the Grain" (p.24). To shoot Skeena Sawmills president Roger Keery for "Against the Grain" (p.24), photographer Adam Blasberg naturally chose a forest for a backdrop, in a particular spot in Vancouver's Pacific Spirit Park. Describing the location to Keery in advance, Blasberg was surprised to find "he seemed to know the place well. Turns out he'd been living in the area a lot longer than me."