 COME DINE WITH US!
 In our WLC survey many members told us they wanted more opportunities to connect and learn from our successful women leaders at more intimate roundtable events. We thought this was a terrific idea so this fall we are launching a new and unique event called, Come Dine With Us. On Tuesday, November 2, join these three WLC Advisory Council members for some lively conversation and a three-course dinner at Vancouver’s historic Teahouse Restaurant in Stanley Park:
- Janet Austin, chair of the Women’s Leadership Circle® and CEO, YWCA, Vancouver
- Ros Guggi, deputy editor, The Province
- Jill Schnarr, vice-president, community affairs, TELUS
Janet, Ros and Jill will be sharing personal stories, life lessons and their passion for life. This is a fantastic opportunity to learn more about what it is like to lead a a fully engaged not-for-profit organization, edit a major newspaper or be involved with one of Canada’s Top 100 Employers for 2010 that makes giving and volunteering a priority. It’s guaranteed to be an evening of fascinating conversation and great connections. Tell your business colleagues and friends—spread the word to make this launch dinner a sold-out event. Register now.
INNOVATE, INVEST, GROW
 To kick off Small Business month, The Board hosted BDC's Edmée Métivier, Executive Vice President, Financing and Consulting. BDC has just released the results of its Canadian Entrepreneurship Status 2010 (PDF) report showing Canada is undergoing an entrepreneurial revival triggered by the economic crisis and the economic recovery now underway. A surprising fact to us was that most businesses owned by Canadian entrepreneurs are quite small: 79.4% have between one and 10 employees. Only .3% of the companies in Canada have over 500 employees. Also, Western Canada leads the country in entrepreneurship. We have more individuals with the intention to start a business, more people actively involved in creating a business and more business owners.
The BDC report focuses on three main themes: Innovate, Invest and Grow. Innovation (defined as the introduction of something new) is a priority for 74% of all Canadian entrepreneurs but only 9% have a formal innovation strategy. Lack of funds (54%) and lack of time (46%) are two of the main barriers. Close to half the respondents are aiming for at least 10% growth in the next 12 months and think that accessing new markets and improving overall productivity is the way to do it. See report (PDF).
LEARN TO FISH IN A GLOBAL POND
 Here's a great event on November 25th that focuses on entrepreneurism, Unlocking the Potential, with Anthony Ariganello, President and Chief Executive Officer, The Certified General Accountants Association of Canada (CGA-Canada) and Eamonn Siggins, Chief Executive, The Institute of Certified Public Accountants in Ireland (CPA Ireland). Ireland has had an amazing roller coaster ride and there are lessons (and opportunities) to be learned. Join our WLC TABLE and meet other women entrepreneurs. Register now.
POSITIVE NETWORKING® TABLE TIPS
 There are an impressive number of Board of Trade breakfast and luncheon events in the next few months, so we thought we’d take this opportunity to share a few tips to maximize your connecting.
Arrive early. Too many people arrive just in time for the sit down portion of the event and don’t attend the reception. They miss the best networking opportunities. If you feel anxious about circulating at the reception solo, bring a tag teammate.
Introduce yourself. After you are settled in your seat, get up walk around the table and introduce yourself to each person you will be dining with. Shake hands and exchange cards. That way you will know people’s names, making it easier to bring them into the conversation.
Speaking of conversation. Try not to spend your whole time talking to just one person--that person to the left or right of you. Instead try to find a topic that brings everyone at the table into the conversation.
Tag-team tablemates. If you are attending an event with a colleague or friend, don’t sit right next to each other at the table. Instead put two people between you so you each meet a new person on either side of you. You will still be close enough to bring each other into the conversation but instead of meeting two new people, you meet four.
WOMEN IN POWER- A SERIES WORTH READING
On October 8th, The Globe and Mail launched a series on women in power, with a hard-hitting editorial: “...last year, Ursula Burns became the first woman to succeed a woman as CEO of a major U.S. company. Also last year, Hillary Clinton succeeded Condoleezza Rice as U.S. Secretary of State. Canada does not have a woman in politics or in the boardroom who can compare with either of those two powerful women. What is the horizon for such an occurrence in Canada? Ten years? Twenty? In the U.S., roughly 50 per cent more women run the top 1,000 companies, including Archer Daniels, Kraft and Pepsico. In Canada, fewer women preside over significantly smaller empires. The number of women corporate officers here has grown only by 2.8 per cent since 2002.”
That was the bad news, but there was more encouraging news in the second installment of this Globe and Mail series, “the success rate for women in leadership in government is now far outstripping that of publicly traded corporations. Assisted by rigorous hiring processes and executive training programs, growing numbers of women are now moving into CEO jobs at Crown corporations and government agencies, or leading government departments as deputy ministers. Women now fill 27 per cent of corporate officer jobs at Canada’s 44 largest federal and provincial Crown corporations, almost double the 14 per cent of corporate officer positions filled by women at publicly traded companies in the private sector, says research firm Catalyst.”
This series is available at: http://www.tgam.ca/women
THIRTY PERCENT: TOO BIG A NUMBER
It's a shocking number that almost 30% of BC children are developmentally vulnerable before they reach kindergarten. According to Dr. Paul Kershaw of the Human Early Learning Partnership (HELP) at UBC, vulnerable children struggle to hold a pencil, follow instructions, get along with peers or know 10 letters. Even more surprising is that “although the poor are more likely to be vulnerable, the majority of vulnerable children reside across the larger middle and upper class.” HELP reports that “eliminating unnecessary vulnerability at kindergarten will increase by 34% the proportion of students who graduate with grades eligible to attend university. Failing to reduce child vulnerability now means paying later in terms of more child welfare, more income assistance, more health care costs, more policing and crime costs and less economic growth.”
Learn more about this issue and see their recommended solutions in the HELP BC Smart Family Policy 2010 Report Card (PDF).
The Board has been actively engaged in making the argument for more focus on early childhood development, showing the benefits that flow to the children, their families and society. See latest Vancouver Board of Trade report on Kids N’ Crime.
HAVE ZIPLOC WILL TRAVEL
With all the recent baggage restrictions and the desire by most of us to limit our schlepping to just a carry on bag we thought you might appreciate some of the brilliant packing tips from Wendy Perrin’s Confessions of an Unfashionable Traveler. “Think of the zip-top bag as the Swiss Army Knife of your packing system. All of the stuff that other travelers place in the aforementioned internal compartments, I place in Ziploc bags. One holds my liquids, gels, and creams in containers of three ounces or less. Another holds dry toiletries, another my makeup, another electronic accessories (cables, chargers, anything I don't need at my fingertips in my handbag). I carry a couple of spare Ziplocs for use during the trip—say, for holding a wet bathing suit. If I've made purchases and need to free up space in the wheelie, I'll roll up some wrinkle-free clothing (e.g., a wool sweater), stick it in a gallon-size Ziploc, squeeze out every bit of air, and—like magic—the sweater's size is halved.” Read more...
PINK IS THE NEW ORANGE
 The traditional fall color is orange—orange leaves, orange pumpkin, but times have changed. When autumn rolls around we think of the color pink. One of the signature fundraising events, the CIBC Run for the Cure raised $1.7 million. The Vancouver Sun has a highly informative series on Breast Cancer Awareness. If you missed it go to Vancouver Sun Breast Cancer Series.
MORE GOOD CAUSES
 Women In Natural Resources: Minerva Foundation for BC Women celebrates and honours women for their excellence in leadership and philanthropy in the energy, forestry and mining industries. Wednesday, December 1, 2010, noon at the Four Seasons Hotel.
JIBC Foundation Awards for Justice and Public Safety: JIBC celebrates the contributions of British Columbians to justice and public safety across the province. This year they will be honouring:
- R.C.M.P. Commissioner (Retired) Beverley A Busson, O.B.C., C.O.M., L.LB., Ph.D (Hon)
- The Honourable Lance Finch, Chief Justice of British Columbia
- The Integrated Security Unit for the 2010 Winter Olympic & Paralympic Games
- Organizations involved in Assistance Relief to the People of Haiti following the Earthquake
- The Four Host First Nations – the Lil'wat, Musqueam, Squamish and Tsleil-Waututh
on Wednesday, December 1, 2010 at 6:00 p.m. at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver.
YOUR FEEDBACK
We would love to hear from you. Send your comments, ideas for this newsletter, for speakers, for content to: info@wlcircle.com
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