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PRESS RELEASE 

For Immediate Release

Mississauga's business community gathers to attend board of trade Annual General Meeting and to hear keynote speaker 

Mississauga, Ontario (December 13, 2012) - Mississauga Board of Trade was pleased to welcome over 150 of its members and guests to its Annual General Meeting, which featured a keynote address from Charles Sousa, Ontario Liberal Leadership candidate and MPP Mississauga South (recent Minister of Citizenship & Immigration; former Minister of Labour).

 

The event began with opening remarks from MBOT President & CEO, Sheldon Leiba.

 

"As we near the end of the year, and term of office for our 2012 Board of Directors, we combine our Annual General Meeting with GMM, so that we can formally report to you, our members, on the activities and financial performance of the organization over the past year, and elect our 2013 Board of Directors," explained Leiba.  

 

He also noted special thank you to the event's sponsors, International Centre and Century Audio Visual. 

 

MBOT 2012 Chair, Grant Clark, was then welcomed to the podium to commence proceedings for the Annual General Meeting, which included the election of 2013 Chair Karen Ras (of Enersource) and new members of MBOT's Board of Directors.

 

"Firstly, let me begin by extending a very sincere thank you to everyone for their support during my year as Chair of the Mississauga Board of Trade: our Board of Directors, committee volunteers, members, sponsors and especially our exceptional team of Board of Trade management and staff," said Clark.   

 

"This past year has been an extremely busy and active year for MBOT, as we embarked on implementing a very ambitious three-year Strategic Plan to position our organization."

  

Clark noted highlights from the past year included: MBOT taking a leadership role with Mississauga's Innovation agenda through Advantage Mississauga; aligning MBOT staff resources to deliver on more and higher quality level of programs and services offerings; enhancing MBOT's "Connector" brand, and levering social media technology to better communicate with and about our members; the closure of the ServiceOntario office at Square One, which MBOT has owned for over 30 years.   


"It is important that you all know that your Mississauga Board of Trade is making a difference in Mississauga and for our members," said Clark.

 

Syd Martin, Treasurer, presented the Treasurer's Report, along with the 2011-2012 audited financial statements.  

 

"For the current fiscal year, our Board has developed a surplus budget and after three months into the current fiscal year, we are on track," noted Martin.

 

"Long-term financial sustainability is a strong focus of our organization moving forward, and MBOT is in a healthy financial position."

 

MBOT concluded its 2011-2012 fiscal year in a healthy financial position, well ahead of budgeted expectations, as a result of strong event attendance and sponsorships, other non-dues revenue activities and maintaining membership levels.    

 

The election of directors was the AGM's next item on the agenda. Pursuant to the By-laws of Mississauga Board of Trade, the immediate Past-Chair typically chairs the Nominating Committee. Due to the early retirement of Ian MacFadden, Business Development of Canada, the current chair, Grant Clark, chaired the committee in his place.

The Nominating Committee developed a slate of nominees for election and appointment as Board of Directors for the Mississauga Board of Trade.  The Nominating Committee's slate was reported electronically to members on November 30.  Click here to view report
 
The 2013 Chair, Karen Ras, Enersource, was introduced.

"It's an honour and a privilege to have the opportunity to serve this prestigious organization as its 2013 Chair, and I look forward to it with great optimism and enthusiasm," said Ras. "MBOT is truly an outstanding team of organizations and professionals committed to enhancing the economy and quality of life in our city, and this support is needed more now than ever, to ensure that Mississauga remains a great place to do business, work and live." 

 

The keynote speaker of the event was Charles Sousa, Ontario Liberal Leadership candidate and MPP Mississauga South (recent Minister of Citizenship & Immigration; former Minister of Labour). 

Sousa's remarks to MBOT's membership included an explanation of why he is running for Liberal Leadership, citing inspiration from his father. 

    

Sousa went on to explain his main motivation for running is to make a difference in Ontario, saying the province is all about opportunity, growth and giving back.  

 

"I am running to be Ontario's Jobs Premier because unemployment is too high and we need to do better. We need to take decisive action to get things done." 

 

Sousa says the areas he will focus on include focusing on the economy, specifically the creation of jobs.

 

The AGM Nominating Committee Report ia available at mbot.com and a listing of the 2013 Board of Directors will be available in the February 2013 issue of MBOT magazine.   

 

MBOT would like to extend its sincerest thanks to event sponsors International Centre and Century Audio Visual for ensuring the event ran smoothly.

 

As the voice of business since 1976, Mississauga Board of Trade is a private-sector, not-for-profit business organization representing approximately 1,500 businesses, employing 65,000 people in Mississauga.  MBOT is well positioned to meet the needs of business by using its considerable influence at all levels of government.  As the forum for business, MBOT works together to influence public policy and promote a better understanding of the marketplace among policy makers, media and the general public. 

 

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Media Contact:

Sheldon Leiba

President & CEO
Mississauga Board of Trade

905-273-6151 ext. 27

sleiba@mbot.com
www.mbot.com