As a member of the chamber of commerce movement I am often asked why do I belong to the chamber and what do I hope to achieve through my involvement?

These are important questions as we look to grow the network and improve the economic prosperity for all British Columbians.

I am here like you are because I believe in our combined potential. I am here like you because I believe we have serious issues with skill shortages, immigration, our environment, our transportation, taxation and energy policies. I am here with you to do the right things and to ask for your ideas, support, and commitment. Together, this year, we may have to do some unpopular things to solve some big problems we face.

In a broader sense, we are a part of the movement because we believe in advocating for popular and not-so-popular causes from a grass-roots perspective. Because, we as business owners, managers and employees care about our health, our air, water, resources and quality of life, our families and our future. We care about the successes and growth of our communities, our friends, our neighbours.

Our chamber, through you and with your support, is truly a provincial and far-reaching organization. The strength of our voice is increasing but we have lots of work ahead. We need to ask the tough questions of ourselves and government, we need to continue to grow and build our reputation, and we need to increase our relevance to all businesses in our province.

Your Board of Directors has undertaken an extensive review of our Strategic Plan and has three strategic goals for the province and for the network. These show both the challenge we have to face but also highlight the possibilities and potential we have as a network;

• To make BC the #1 place to do business;
• Be the Leading Voice of BC Business; and
• To build the strongest Chamber network in North America

To achieve these ambitious goals we must be united in our focus and bold in our undertaking.

As an organization and as a province we need to question the way we have always done things even though that may not be comfortable for some of us. Things that have worked for us in the past, will not work for us in the future – our environment is changing quickly – we must move forward with a strong purpose and a continuous effort. We must be able to make unpopular decisions to solve big problems and leave our environment in better shape than we found it. To do this we must incorporate sustainable business practices in everything we do. Our new thinking must revolve around “sustainability”. If we do not build practices, policies, and programs that are sustainable, we will tend to be less relevant to our members, our communities and our governments.

The Chamber is uniquely placed to lead this effort. We are the leaders in our communities and we must turn this leadership into action. We must continue to be the voice of our communities and business, remember, we are government, we are the future, we do control our own destinies.

To all chamber staff, volunteers and their families and spouses, thank you for your continuous involvement. We could not do this without you. Please stay involved, let’s continue to improve together and take our respective organizations to new heights. We will be successful in making BC the best place in the world to live, work and play.

Daren Hancott

2007-2008 Chair, BC Chamber of Commerce