Cover Story
Fostering Head Office Growth in BC
A lesson from the high-tech sector
By Marlyn Chisholm
H
ead offices are crucial contributors
to an area’s economy, stimulating
the growth of local small businesses
and allowing for the creation of industry
clusters, which can, in turn, generate and/or
attract more head offices.1 Here in British
Columbia, where small and mid-size businesses are still the norm, the economy only
stands to benefit by attracting new head
offices2 to set up shop and by supporting the
growth of those already established here.
The recent establishment of several high-tech
head offices in Metro Vancouver highlights the
fact that head offices can stimulate the local
business environment. The presence of major
tech brands such as Microsoft, Sony Pictures
Imageworks, and Amazon in Vancouver has
encouraged more start-up high-tech companies to set up shop in BC. In fact, BC is widely
considered the start-up capital of Canada,
and is attracting an increasing number of
angel and venture capital investments.3
Business Council of BC, “Canadian Head
1
Office Survey: How Do Metro Vancouver
and British Columbia Stack Up?” Policy
Perspectives, Vol. 23: 1, January 2016.
In this article, “head office” does not refer
2
solely to national or global “legal”
headquarters; it can be a corporate office
that provides support and leadership to
the various components of a business.
Conversations for Responsible Economic
3
Development, Is BC poised to be the next
tech hot spot? Exploring the role of
advanced technology industries in BC’s
provincial economy, February 2015
(credbc