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/1351663
6 BCBUSINESS APRIL 2021 PORTRAIT: ADAM BLASBERG W hat a difference one year can make. Leading up to 2020, companies all of sizes and descriptions were coming around to the idea that treating their staff, their community and the environment well doesn't just feel good—it's good for busi- ness, too. Then last year burst onto the scene, bringing with it not just a deadly pandemic but also a breakthrough for equity, diversity and inclusion. Thanks to the efforts of Black Lives Matter and its fellow social justice move- ments—which have made it clear that marginalized groups such as the BIPOC community will no longer accept the sta- tus quo—organizations can't just pay lip service when it comes to systemic racism and other forms of discrimination. If you run a business, you're expected to take those problems seriously or risk losing employees, customers and brand loyalty. Besides, discrimination hurts societ y at large, as Heather McGhee explains in her new book, The Sum of Us: What Racism Costs Everyone and How We Can Prosper Together. McGhee, who is Black, points out that in the U.S., slavery's influence lives on in low wages and shoddy health care for working Americans of all ethnic backgrounds. Lest Canadians feel smug, this country also has much to answer for in the racism depart- ment, from the disappearance of B.C.'s Hogan's Alley to its appalling treatment of Indigenous Peoples. Diversity and inclusion is one of five categories in our second annual Business of Good Awards (p.23), which offer positive and hopeful stories during a trying time for local companies, entre- preneurs and employees. Con- gratulations to the 20 finalists for showing that it will take more than a pandemic to weaken their com- mitment to social responsibility. We're very grateful to our returning panel of judges—Darian Kovacs, Carol Liao, Matt O'Grady and Mary Ellen Schaafsma—for selecting the winners and runners-up in five categories. For deftly managing the awards, a big thank-you to associate editor Nathan Caddell, who pro- filed many of the contenders. There's also something good happening in B.C.'s postsecondary education sector, which has started offering micro-creden- tials for professionals and others looking to upgrade their skills or learn new ones. Contributor Dee Hon surveys that land- scape in "Mini School" (p.14) by talking to students, educators and administrators. We hope you learn something new. Nick Rockel, Editor-in-Chief bcb@canadawide.com / @BCBusiness ( editor's desk ) Awards season continues with our 2021 Women of the Year I N M AY The Ugly, the Bad and the Good BCBusiness is published eight times a year by Canada Wide Media Limited, Suite 230, 4321 Still Creek Drive, Burnaby, B.C. V5C 6S7. 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