NOTES & NEWS
Scorecard 2018: Evaluating Metro Vancouver’s Progress
H
as Metro Vancouver 1 made economic and social progress
over the past two years? Is the region on the right track to
thrive as an international business hub? How can it better
compete on a global scale?
The Greater Vancouver Board of Trade explored these questions
through its public policy initiative, Greater Vancouver Economic
Scorecard 2018 (Scorecard 2018), produced in partnership with the
Conference Board of Canada. The findings were then shared on May
10, at an event held at the Fairmont Hotel Vancouver. CPABC was
pleased to be a “Scorecard Champion” sponsor of this event.
Scorecard 2018 analyzed the social and economic progress made by
Metro Vancouver since the launch of the economic scorecard initiative
in 2016, using 38 indicators to measure the region against 19 other in-
ternational regions. Overall, Metro Vancouver received a “B” grade and
a seventh-place ranking. First place went to Singapore, which was fol-
lowed (in order of rank) by Calgary, Seattle, San Francisco, Copenhagen,
and Toronto. Metro Vancouver’s ranking was an improvement over the
ninth-place position it secured in 2016.
Business competitiveness, business productivity, and housing afford-
ability were cited as major areas of concern for Metro Vancouver, while
the region’s venture capital investments and Pacific Gateway location
were identified as areas of economic strength and opportunity.
These findings were compiled in a summary report presented to attend-
ees at the May 10 event. In its conclusion, the report states: “…success
will require concerted effort by the region’s political, business and civic
leaders…. It will take dedicated, collaborative effort to first acknowledge
and then work to solve the challenges of housing, transportation, reg-
ulatory inefficiency and taxation. However difficult and complex the
task, meaningfully addressing these challenges will support wealth
creation by growing business activity and attracting new investment
to our region.” 2
L to R: Scorecard 2018 presenters Iain Black, president and CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, and
Daniel Muzyka, president and CEO of the Conference Board of Canada. Photo by Matt Borck for Sarah Borck
Photography.
Scorecard 2018 was presented by Daniel Muzyka, DBA, president and
CEO of the Conference Board of Canada, and Iain Black, president and
CEO of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. If you’d like to review the
summary report, go to boardoftrade.com/scorecard2018/assets/pdf/
summary-report.pdf.
1
In this recap, “Metro Vancouver” is synonymous with “the Greater
Vancouver region,” which is the terminology used in the GVBOT
summary report.
2
Greater Vancouver Board of Trade and the Conference Board of
Canada, Greater Vancouver Economic Scorecard 2018, page 34.
Australia to Host 2018 World Congress of Accountants
M
ore than 6,000 professionals from over 130 countries are
expected to attend the 2018 World Congress of Accountants
(WCOA) in Sydney, Australia this fall. Themed “Global
Challenges | Global Leaders,” the four-day event (November 5-8) will
cover topics such as digital disruption, automation, sustainability,
ethics, and global tax.
The WCOA is a global conference for policy-setters and business
and finan