Janet Austin
CeO, YWca metro Vancouver;
Chair, Vancouver board of Trade,
british columbia institute of Technology
A
s CEO of the YWCA Metro Van-
couver, Janet Austin is quick
to emphasize the common
ground—and skip the philosoph-
ical di"erences—with her more recent
role as chair of the Vancouver Board
of Trade. "We're subject to the same
swing in the economy," she says, even
if "our goals are aspirational: achieving
women's equality."
With Austin at the helm, the
YWCA has
made great strides to that end. The char-
ity—with a $22.5-million annual operating
budget, comparable to what a city spends
on social services—has taken on an ever-
expanding role in the life of the region,
providing long-term and transition hous-
ing to women in need and their families,
as well as a suite of services (from early
learning to childcare) for single mothers.
With 30 o£ces, buildings and support
clinics around the Lower Mainland, the
YWCA has expanded its geographic and
social reach under Austin (CEO
since
2003), providing services to 60,000
women, children and men annually. Aus-
tin has also bolstered one of the
YWCA's
historic competencies: its hotel and rec-
reation centre, income from which allevi-
46 BCBusiness June 2015
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