Category: ARTICLES & OPINIONS

Providing exceptional customer service also leads to customer retention. Companies not only need to advertise, but must have strategies to retain business.  Ask yourself: how do I or my employees serve our customers? Are all customers the same?  If you want to improve this side of your business, ICBA’s brand-new Providing Exceptional Customer Service course is for you and your employees!

In this seminar, you’ll learn how to:

• Develop your customer engagement and experience strategy;
• Apply effective listening skills;
• Draw out what your clients really need, and how to add value;
• Work with difficult and demanding customers; (we all have them);
• Build strong and lasting relationships with potential and existing clients.

We’re bringing this course to Kelowna and Victoria in October, Burnaby in November, and Prince George in December. Check out www.icba.ca/training for a full course description and to register. While you’re there, take a peek at our full course list!

Not a member? Not a problem! We offer courses to members and non-members, though you’ll save on registration if you become a member with us.
If you’re interested in a private course, we would be pleased to bring the trainer directly to your office. Email our training team at training@icba.ca for more details on how we can bring this course or any of our other workshops directly to you.

ICBA continues to support projects to #Get2Yes and #Stick2Yes by filing an application to intervene in the Squamish Nation’s B.C. Supreme Court case against the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion.

The issue being raised by Squamish Nation is that the Province relied on the federal government’s assessment of Trans Mountain’s proposal and its consultation and negotiations with Indigenous communities impacted by the project. In the opinion of Squamish Nation, the Province cannot cede its obligations in this regard to the federal government. The Province took this position given the federal government’s responsibility for reviewing and approving interprovincial pipelines. In recent years, Ottawa and Victoria agreed that in such cases, having one environmental review and consultation process was simpler and more efficient for all parties: proponents, Indigenous communities and other stakeholders.

ICBA is not challenging the constitutional obligations that the federal or provincial governments have vis-à-vis Indigenous communities and ICBA recognizes that in some cases, the obligations of the Crown to Indigenous communities may in fact prevent some projects from moving forward. ICBA is simply asserting that project reviews and consultations take place in a timely manner so that infrastructure and resource development projects can be approved in a fashion that allows Canada and BC to get projects built and its resources to market efficiently. ICBA’s concern is that duplicative and overlapping reviews will result in confusion and conflicting proceedings that could paralyze major projects and cost our economy jobs and investment. In this case, since the federal government has jurisdiction over the Trans Mountain pipeline project, we believe it is appropriate that the federal government lead the review and consultation process.

The Application was filed by our attorney, Peter Gall, Q.C. and we are being joined in the application by the Progressive Contractors Association of Canada (PCA), the Canadian Iron, Steel and Industrial Workers’ Union (CISIWU), and the Canada West Construction Union (CWCU). Click HERE to read ICBA’s application to intervene.

ICBA CAST! Terrace’s Lucy Sager joins Chris Gardner and Jordan Bateman to talk about the impact of the loss of Pacific Northwest LNG on northwest B.C., along with regular features #ComeOn and social media questions. And we debut our first-ever BC Liberal leadership race power rankings. Will Chris and Jordan agree on who is most likely to win the race to Christy Clark?

Change is constant in business, no matter the industry, and when it comes to changes in an organization, it can be stressful for employees and supervisors alike.

Our new Leading and Managing Organizational Change course will prepare you to manage organizational change and will teach you how to lead and mentor others through these changes.

In this seminar, you’ll:

• Understand the impact change and transitions have on you and your employees;
• Learn how to adapt to and be resilient to change, whether the change is from a people, process, or technology transformation;
• Develop approaches to managing and leading change;
• Use pragmatic tools to help you with anticipating and addressing resistance to change, engaging with stakeholders, and facilitating change.

Our first session will take place on October 11 in Burnaby; for more information and to register for this or any of our other upcoming courses, please visit icba.ca/training.

Our training team is also always here to help if you have any questions about this or any other course; email them at training@icba.ca and they will be happy to assist you.

Don’t forget, members of ICBA save on registration fees! If you’re not already a member, check out icba.ca/become-a-member.

ICBA Communications Director Jordan Bateman talked BC Liberal leadership race, Trans Mountain pipeline, LNG, and more with Jim Goddard on his show this week:

Ominous Signs for Construction Jobs in B.C.

After an unprecedented long period of post-election uncertainty, a minority NDP government has taken power in Victoria – with the formal backing of the Green caucus. And while speculation abounds about the likely shelf life of this government, I believe current dynamics suggest it will remain in power for at least a significant proportion of the usual four-year term.

So in this Monitor, we take stock of what that may mean for B.C. – drawing from the platforms and accord of the two parties, ministerial mandate letters, and various public statements from key figures within the NDP and Green Parties.

We begin with the current outlook for several resource-development and other major projects, upon which thousands of existing and even more future jobs depend. None of these projects were treated very favourably in the NDP or Green platforms, and if anything the outlook has worsened since they formally took power. Indeed, Pacific NorthWest LNG was just cancelled – a $36 billion investment lost.

The message from Pacific NorthWest LNG’s decision is that we have to move faster to compete globally – but the new government is signalling that we will be moving more slowly, if at all, on many major projects.

We also look at some of the central players in the new government – with a particular focus on those with construction-related portfolios – and at the agendas they’ve been tasked with implementing. As with the cabinet as a whole, these people represent a narrow segment of views and backgrounds, with markedly little experience in entrepreneurship, small business or the private sector.

Finally, we look at the single most troubling of all the Labour Code reforms the NDP would like to implement – elimination of a secret ballot for union certification. Encouragingly, this one is a bridge-too-far for the Greens, and one we hope they’ll prevent the NDP from crossing.

As to the rest of the NDP’s agenda and how this all unfolds, we’ll be watching carefully and intervening forcefully if we see construction sector and major provincial interests jeopardized – as we already have in recent weeks with our campaign to support Site C. And if you haven’t already joined us in the effort, please be sure to sign up as part of our #Get2Yes Community: http://get2yes.icba.ca.

Major Projects Check In

These four energy and infrastructure projects all have their environmental approvals, and construction was either underway or on the cusp of proceeding at the time of the election.

Site C Clean Energy

A $9B investment in clean power designed to operate for 100+ years has now been sent back for yet another review. Best case? Delays that cost taxpayers. Worst case? 2,500 people currently working on the project get pink slips.

Trans Mountain Pipeline

In what experts have called a violation of the rule of law, the NDP has pledged to use “every tool available” to stop this $7B project. Recent speculation has focused on making it “prohibitive” for the project to get provincial permits.

Pacific NorthWest LNG

Global market dynamics and skepticism on the part of the new government – the threat of increased regulation and taxation – contributed to the collapse of the business case for what might have been the largest-ever private sector investment in B.C.

George Massey Tunnel

The province is leaving this $3B project up to regional mayors – most of whom oppose it, except for the mayor of Delta. If the bridge is cancelled, extending the life of the existing tunnel will come at a high cost.

Who and What: NDP Minister and Their Marching Orders

The NDP front benches are dominated by trade union organizers, environmental activists, community organizers and other special interests, with sparse representation from outside Greater Vancouver and Victoria. Government MLAs are short on experience in small business or the private sector. Further, a bleak outlook for the construction and responsible resource development sector emerges from a close look at the Green and NDP platforms, the accord between the two parties, the mandate letters issued to ministers, and other indications of next steps.

Stacking the Deck with Card Check Unionization

Joining a union is a deeply personal and very important decision – one that can impact the competitiveness and viability of a business. The BC Liberals and Greens favour the current democratic approach to determining whether a union gets certified – employees get to vote using a secret ballot. The governing NDP is determined to turn the clock back to “card check.”

The card check approach removes the secret ballot and opens the union certification process to intimidation and coercion.

Vote or Sign: Two Different Paths to a Crucial Decision

Harassment at work is an unfortunate occurrence, but it can be dealt with and prevented. Our new breakfast session in Burnaby on September 13 will offer some valuable knowledge to employers.

The presenter will cover the following issues:

• What is bullying and harassment and what are the risks?
• What should an Employer do when faced with a potential bullying and harassment situation?
• Employer’s duty to investigate
• Workplace training
• Disciplinary responses
• Complaints made for improper reasons
• Creation of policies
• Access to information
• Workplace training
• Proactive steps to help protect the workplace

Participants will be provided with real life examples involving the above topics together with practical business-based solutions.  There will also be time for questions, so bring your pressing concerns. You will also earn 2 Group A Continued Professional Development points from BC Housing.

For more information about this course or any of ICBA’s other training sessions, visit www.icba.ca/training. Or, send our training team a message at training@icba.ca. They’d love to chat with you.

Interested in getting bi-weekly updates on our courses in your area? Subscribe to our newsletter at www.icba.ca/trainingnewsletter.