InBC appoints Jill Earthy as first CEO
The BC business stalwart will start her new role at the $500 million strategic investment fund mid-December.
After a lengthy recruitment process, BC business stalwart Jill Earthy has been appointed the first chief executive officer of InBC Investment Corp. (InBC), the province’s newly created Crown corporation responsible for a $500-million strategic investment fund meant to help scale promising BC companies.
InBC was announced last year on September 17, 2020 as part of StrongerBC, the province’s economic recovery plan. InBC is modelled after strategic investment funds in other jurisdictions including the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund, Danish Investment Fund and the Scottish National Investment Bank.
The province has previously said that InBC will have a “triple bottom line” investment mandate, aiming to: establish BC as a globally competitive low-carbon jurisdiction; promote values that make life better for people in BC, including job creation, advancing reconciliation with Indigenous peoples, promoting diversity and inclusion; and achieve a financial return on investment.
In setting up InBC, the province said they canvassed the BC business community through over 200 engagements in order to help shape the corporation’s mandate.
Earthy will start in the role effective mid-December and will have her hands full, setting up operations — and hiring a chief investment officer — for what InBC’s executive search firm recently referred to as “largely a startup.” She was not made available for an interview, however, in a statement, she shared the following: “I am incredibly excited to be joining InBC as the CEO and look forward to achieving its mandate to position British Columbia as a front-runner in the innovation economy. InBC’s vision to create a world-class, sustainable and inclusive economic recovery for the province is inspiring and I am excited to have the opportunity to support BC businesses and entrepreneurs through this innovative new fund.”
Earthy is currently the CEO of WeBC (formerly Women’s Enterprise Centre) and former chief growth officer of FrontFundr. She has a psychology degree and an MBA with a focus on entrepreneurship. She also serves on the boards of Sustainable Development Technology Canada and The Forum (formerly the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs). Earthy has been recognized by the Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion as a Community Champion, by Business in Vancouver as an Influential Woman in Business, by WXN as one of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Canada and by Vancouver Magazine as one of the Power 50.
“On behalf of the Board of Directors, I want to welcome Jill to InBC. She brings a wealth of experience as an influential organizational leader with proven success in building strong relationships with stakeholder groups,” said Christine Bergeron, board chair, InBC. “Her passion for empowering entrepreneurs coupled with her inspirational, visionary and compelling track record of supporting and helping new businesses grow will be a tremendous asset to InBC and the Province of BC.”
InBC’s board was announced in May of 2020, and includes senior people from Haywood Securities, First Nations Bank Trust and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, among other organizations.
“InBC is vital to stimulating innovation in BC, creating family-supporting jobs, and building a resilient and sustainable economy that works for everyone,” said Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Jobs, Economic Recovery and Innovation, in a statement. “Jill is an accomplished leader in the investment, community and social sectors, and I’m confident that her experience in mentoring young women and future entrepreneurs will lead to meaningful partnerships with potential investors, businesses and communities while establishing BC as a location of choice for investment and as a globally competitive low-carbon jurisdiction.”