On November 2nd, the BC Tech community gathered for our annual AGM and to watch speakers from our community discuss the Future of Tech in BC.
The night kicked off with Rocky Ozaki, BC Tech’s VP of Community, leading a panel of four influential players in our tech ecosystem, Dan Gunn, CEO of VIATEC, Laurie Schultz, CEO of ACL, Dr. Bethany Edmunds, Associate Dean of Computing at BCIT, Ray Walia, Managing Partner of Victory Square Ventures & CEO of Launch Academy.
One by one they discussed the opportunity and struggle within the industry equally—and their excitement for a strong tech vision that we can all get behind. Common topics in everyone’s mind—the talent drought, housing issues, salary discussions, the need for more anchor companies, and constant comparisons to the east coast. Everyone agreed we have to work harder and bring our community together, from Victoria to Kelowna, and beyond we all want and need to collaborate.
Following the panel was a fireside chat, a one-on-one with Bill Tam, our President and CEO for over 6 years and our new President and CEO, Jill Tipping. Being such close friends and colleagues for years, Bill and Jill were able to give the audience a good sense of what is to come with Jill, and equally so discuss our journey so far with Bill.
Jill’s desire to focus on talent and education as a cornerstone of growth and opportunity was clear. Her boldness and enthusiastic answers to where she wants to take BC Tech refreshed the crowd and let everyone know she’s the right person to take us into our next stage.
When it was Jill’s turn to ask the questions, Bill recapped his time at BC Tech, how he started and leaned on our tech leaders to help him navigate his early visions for growth, and the initiatives BC Tech has been working on. In his last official speech he took the time to thank everyone for their support and hinted that he will still be involved in our ecosystem as an advisor, consultant, and maybe even an investor.
Last but not least we got to show all who attended a short animated video that revealed our new logo and how we got to our upcoming new look. Take a peek!
With a new CEO, new logo, and upcoming website relaunch, we’re definitely all in.
To check out more highlights from the event on Twitter, click here.
For more images from the event, check out our Facebook album.
