Issue link: http://digital.canadawide.com/i/375772
BurnaBy Board of Tr ade 2014/2015 • MeMbership & resource Directory 5 H Message from the Chair Leza Muir Having Been given the somewhat rare honour of an additional year as Chair of the Burnaby Board of Trade, i have been afforded a unique opportunity to understand, better than most, what it has taken to achieve the many accomplishments of this organization over not only the last year, but the last few. The new era started in 2011. Coming off of our centennial year, we welcomed current President and Ceo Paul Holden and started on a path of rejuvenation for both the BBoT and our entire membership. While there is always more work to do, i can confidently say that we have found that rejuvenation. We took the time to reaffirm our long-term goals, and we revitalized and simplified our Mission and vision to better reflect our member- ship and our commitment to serve the business community. our Mission is to improve business by providing our membership with insightful leadership, advocacy, education and a platform for collaboration. our vision is to be the recog- nized leader in championing an innovative, sustainable, socially responsible and robust business community in Burnaby. Since 2011 our membership numbers are up significantly, our revenues have increased annually, and we are offering our members and our business community more services, events and benefits than ever before. But rejuvenation isn't just about numbers. it's about energy. it's about passion. it's about making business better. it's knowing that our advocacy efforts, as one example, are making a positive difference for Burnaby businesses. from our support for the local film and television industry, to our continued research on transportation issues, pipelines, and provincial and federal budgets, we have been working to make sure that we always have a voice on what's best for this community. for you. it's also about setting ourselves up to be successful now and in the future. Through our environmental sustainability initiatives like the Pledge for a Sustainable Community, and access, our youth professional development program, we are ensuring that the future of business in Burnaby is secure and in good hands for the long term. and we are seeing our success paying off. a great indicator is the increased interest in one of our key business promotion tools: the Burnaby Business excellence awards. The BBeas have always been one of our marquee celebrations, but the 2014 event has already received more nominations than ever before. This truly is a testament to the spirit of our business community and confirmation that Burnaby is thriving. as not just the Chair of the BBoT, but as a member as well, i want to thank my fellow Board directors and all our BBoT staff for the count- less hours of work they have put in to get us to where we proudly stand today. i'm tremendously excited for this organization as we continue to move forward in prosperity for the benefit of everyone in Burnaby. Leza Muir, Chair Burnaby Board of Trade rejuvenation isn't just about numbers. it's about energy. it's about passion. it's about making business better.