Board of Directors

Stephen Dooley
Simon Fraser University – Surrey (SFU)
sdooley@sfu.ca

From Our 54th Board Chair – Chief Governance Officer

I am humbled and honoured to be the 54th chair of the Surrey Board of Trade during the 100th year of this proud organization. I follow in the footsteps of many amazing leaders, most recently Dr. Greg Thomas. I’m thrilled to have the opportunity to roll up my sleeves with fellow board directors to support and further the needs and interests of the business community in Surrey.

For those who do not know me, I have been the Executive Director of the SFU Surrey campus for the past 5 years, and have worked in Surrey for more than 20 years while at KPU.

The City of Surrey is growing and so too is the membership of the Board. With more than 2600 members, with more than 200 programs and services provided, the SBOT is the voice of business, for all of Surrey – from north to south (Bridgeview to Grandview) and from east to west (Campbell Heights to the Delta border).

Through the tireless work of CEO Anita Huberman and her team, the Surrey Board of Trade maintains a strong leadership role in the transformation of Surrey. Working closely with our members, government and community leaders, the SBOT has, and continues to, create policies, organize events and advocate for the day-to-day needs of new and established businesses in Surrey. The Board is here for all businesses; from the large head office organization to supporting the recent refugee who wants to open a small shop.

Indeed, these are exciting times for Surrey, a city that is clearly on the move in so many ways. With two border crossings, a port serving international trade, and a soon-to-be-developed Light Rapid Transit (LRT) system, Surrey is uniquely located to serve local, national and international business interests. Surrey is growing by nearly 1,000 people a month and will, in the very near future, have a population base larger than Vancouver. Geographically, the city of Surrey takes up a lot of acreage: it is as large as the cities of Vancouver, Burnaby and Richmond combined. Our amazing city is defined by six unique, but increasingly integrated, town centres. With more than 104 languages spoken Surrey, it is a very diverse city, and let there be no mistake, the diversity of this great city is a key strength. Surrey is poised to become the next major Metro hub, the go-to place to live, work and play. If the future lives here, the future is now!

Building on the legacy of previous chairs of the SBOT, I will continue to work with our team to advocate for much needed support and resources in health, education, affordable housing and transportation, as well as emerging opportunities in sectors such as the health tech, clean tech, agro-innovation and creative economies. In sum, my goal is to ensure the Surrey Board of Trade continues to be strong voice for its members and the business community at large.

As the Surrey Board of Trade turns 100 years young, let’s celebrate a city that is thriving and arriving.