Canada's Top 100 Employers (2025) Magazine - Flipbook - Page 24
24
( 2025 )
SPONSOR CONTENT
BCI is rooted locally while growing globally
E
laine Yuan was working
for a major international
bank in Hong Kong and
Canada when she saw the
job posting she had been waiting
for at British Columbia Investment
Management Corporation (BCI).
“I had my eye on BCI for some
time. After working internationally
for a couple of years, I really wanted
to work for a Canadian company,”
says Yuan, now an associate in infrastructure and renewable resources
for BCI. “It’s a public sector asset
manager, securing financial futures
for our British Columbia clients. It’s
making a real impact on people. I
think it’s the perfect spot.”
“We’re working for one of
the biggest Canadian asset
managers investing globally
on a beautiful island, and
I think that’s quite an
opportunity.”
— Elaine Yuan
Associate, Infrastructure and
Renewable Resources
BCI, created in 1999 by the
provincial government as a statutory
corporation to manage funds for
public sector pension, insurance,
and special purpose fund clients,
has been growing, opening new
offices in New York City in 2022 and
London in 2023 to service its clients’
portfolios. For Yuan, this is another
big advantage of working for BCI.
“It means there’s lots of opportunities for young professionals like
me,” she says. “I can really utilize
my skills at a global investment
firm with institutional clients and
a global portfolio. It’s intellectually
stimulating work with a purpose as
well.”
The investment returns BCI
generates contribute to paying
pension benefits, assisting insurance
clients in offering more affordable
premiums and fulfilling claims, and
financing government programs
focused on arts and culture, sports
development, and training and skills
development.
For David Morhart, executive vice
president of corporate and investor
relations, this growth presents an
opportunity for leadership to make
sure that the Victoria-based company’s corporate culture is shared
among all its offices.
This means that employees
across the time zones are kept in
touch through the Bull & Bear, BCI’s
company intranet site, and through
frequent visits and secondments of
colleagues to different offices.
“New York and London were set
up originally with secondments or
relocations of existing employees,
and then we looked into doing some
local recruitment,” Morhart says.
“We’re a 24/7 operation given that
we invest around the world for our
clients, so we try to cover as many of
those time zones and opportunities
as we can and remain connected that
way.”
There are also team-building
exercises and community
engagement opportunities to build
connections. Yuan recalls team
members who visited Victoria from
London taking part in a recent
volunteer event for Power To Be,
a non-profit that creates access to
nature for people with physical or
David Morhart, executive vice president of corporate and investor
relations, speaking to a group of BCI employees at the annual Town
Hall.
financial barriers.
Morhart says the company’s
CEO/CIO, Gordon J. Fyfe, put out
a 2,000-hour challenge this year to
encourage teams to take advantage
of the 14 hours of paid volunteer
work the company offers employees
annually.
“We’ve seen such amazing
take-up,” Morhart says, “whether it’s
sitting on boards, serving meals or
helping clean up an environmental
issue. We’re trying to be very
visible, and offering our skills within
4
weeks (maximum) work from
anywhere policy
communities is very rewarding.”
Yuan speaks about volunteering
with JA British Columbia at a middle
school to help educate students
about financial literacy and career
success skills.
“This is quite an opportunity for
me,” Yuan says, “and even though it’s
been three years, I don’t take it for
granted. We’re working for one of
the biggest Canadian asset managers
investing globally on a beautiful
island, and I think that’s quite an
opportunity.” ¢
906
staff volunteer hours between
March 2023 to March 2024
