ICBC head Jon Schubert is just the most recent provincial Crown corporation head to walk in a year of scathing reviews, executive compensation cuts and pre-election politics.
But while the dust has yet to settle on leadership shakeups at ICBC, BC Hydro and BC Ferries, the jury's still out on whether the string of recent Crown corporation regime changes will help or hinder the province.
Jordan Bateman, B.C. director of the Canadian Taxpayers Federation, posits that many of the past year's Crown regime changes are being driven by:
- a series of government reviews of Crown corporations, including BC Hydro and ICBC;
- a recent clampdown on Crown executive salaries; and
- a potential transition to an NDP government following next spring's provincial election.
"Some of these people are long-time public servants who have worked with the BC Liberals reading the tea leaves, saying, 'Geez, if I've got another opportunity to move on, I'd better take it.'"
But Bateman added that the leadership overhaul is a gain for taxpayers.
"I don't think the way Crown corps are operating right now reflects the values of most taxpayers," Bateman said, citing last August's review that lambasted BC Hydro for a "gold standard" corporate culture.
"There needs to be a transition in the philosophy of leadership for most of these corporations, and that comes from the top."
Bruce Ralston, NDP finance critic and chairman of public accounts, characterized the shakeup as a political problem for the BC Liberals.
"It does send a message of mismanagement, but I think that's self-created," he said. "I don't think that there's much that they can do other than to do a review and hope that they can move away from some of the problems that they've created for themselves."
However, while Crown corporation executive pay remains under the microscope (see sidebar), executive recruiters say B.C. faces barriers to landing top talent for Crown leadership roles.
Ken Werker, Vancouver-based managing partner at executive recruiting firm Odgers Berndtson, said executive compensation at B.C. Crown corps has long lagged behind Alberta and Ontario.
However, he noted that Ontario has started to clamp down too.
"I can't say the gap has narrowed yet [between Ontario and B.C.], because it takes a while for things to ripple through the system," Werker said. "But there might be a ray of hope that we become competitive ... because other jurisdictions are recognizing they don't have the ability to pay."
Werker added that B.C.'s sky-high housing costs add a further barrier for landing out-of-province talent. "If you want fresh blood, which any organization does, then you do face that challenge because of competition and the cost of living here."
However, both Bateman and Ralston downplay concerns that B.C.'s Crown corporations might fail to attract the best leaders.
Bateman said that while every public servant in Canada likes to compare their salaries with Alberta's, B.C. has plenty to offer.
"No one making half a million dollars is scraping by," he said. "If you can make more somewhere else, but you're sacrificing style of living ... that's your choice. But clearly there's no lack of people applying for these jobs or being recruited into them."
Werker, however, added that compensation isn't the only consideration in a B.C. Crown leadership position. He said that, if B.C. wants to attract the best leadership, it needs to focus on making Crown corporations desirable places to work.
"I think what people fear now is more government control over Crown corporations, especially those that operate in a market environment. That's something that we have to keep an eye on."
