BC Business
LEARN HOOTUPBCBUSINESS In 2012, McDonald’s sponsored the Twitter hashtag #McDStories, hoping patrons would share positive experiences with the fast-food chain. Instead, tweeters told horror stories. The lesson: understand your social audience. BCBusiness teams up with Hootsuite for HootupBCBusiness: How to disaster-proof your business’s social media, a panel featuring social media gurus from Vancouver’s biggest organizations. Learn from them, not the hard way. Hootsuite (5 East 8th Ave.), May 21, 5.45 p.m. Free; bcbusiness.ca/hootup
LISTEN STARTUP PODCAST by Alex Blumberg When Blumberg, producer of public radio show This American Life and podcast Planet Money, decided to start his own podcast business last year, he documented the process in, you guessed it, a podcast that anyone can listen to and learn from. He shares every step of the experience in entertaining half-hour episodes starting with “How Not to Pitch a Billionaire.” gimletmedia.com/show/startup
INVEST CANADIAN INVESTOR CONFERENCE VANCOUVER Canvest 2015 will focus on resource, technology and diversified investment opportunities related to mineral exploration, oil and gas, agriculture, energy, metals and more. Get a wealth of information from hedge fund managers, industry analysts, trend forecasters and other top financial experts. Vancouver Convention Centre, May 31 to June Pre-register online for free admission or pay $20 at the door; cambridgehouse.com
CELEBRATE BUSINESS LAUREATES OF B.C. GALA Marking the 10th anniversary of this black-tie event, Peter Mansbridge of CBC News will emcee and 10 B.C. pioneers will be named to the Hall of Fame along with Canfor chairman emeritus Peter Bentley, A&W chairman Jefferson Mooney and London Drugs president, chairman and CEO Brandt C. Louie. Proceeds from the gala support Junior Achievement of British Columbia in developing and maintaining business education programs. Fairmont Hotel Vancouver, May 20 businesslaureatesbc.org
CONNECT FUEL VANCOUVER 2015 The Future of Urbanity, the Environment and Our Lifestyle is back for a second year. The two-day event, full of thought-provoking talks, workshops and activities, brings together an eclectic mix of business, cultural and political types. Among the keynote speakers this year: Matthew Stinchcomb, VP of Values and Impact at Etsy.com, the peer-to-peer ecommerce phenomenon. Vancouver Playhouse, May 27 and 28 $58 for the evening sessions, $250 for a full day; fuelvancouver.com
HEAR WEALTHY & WISE 2015 Not one but two former CBC dragons will speak at this BCBusiness event. Venture Communications CEO Arlene Dickinson and Wealthy Barber author David Chilton will talk about finding smart investments in tough economic times and transforming marketing departments into results-driven powerhouses. The Orpheum, Vancouver; May 19, 5 p.m. Tickets start at $79; BCBusiness.ca/wealthywise
READ DO LESS BETTER by John R. Bell In a business culture centred on expansion, former CEO John Bell did the opposite. Early in his career at Nabob Foods, Canadian subsidiary of global coffee and chocolate maker Jacobs Suchard, Bell turned the company around by cutting product lines to focus on the strongest ones. Now retired and living on the Sunshine Coast, he has drawn on his experience at Nabob and as a consultant for some of the world’s most respected blue-chip consumer goods organizations to write Do Less Better: The Power of Strategic Sacrifice in a Complex World. Palgrave Macmillan USA
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