Laith Wardi, CEcD, is president of ExecutivePulse, Inc. He has worked in the economic development profession for over 20 years. Laith has comprehensive experience in business retention & expansion that includes outreach to hundreds of value-added client companies, work as a resource provider, and 15 years of regional program management. In 1994-95, Laith pioneered the first web based system for business retention. Today, the ExecutivePulse™ Business Intelligence System is the most widely used database for business retention & expansion in North America. As a founder and President of ExecutivePulse Inc., Laith provides skills training, survey development, technology development and management consultation to clients seeking to implement a systematic and sustainable customer outreach program. He is a regular instructor on business retention for the professional certification program sponsored by the International Economic Development Council (IEDC). Laith also speaks to community, economic and workforce development audiences throughout the United States, Canada, and Europe on customer retention, one-to-one database marketing and technology assimilation. Laith is a graduate of Mercyhurst College and received his economic development certification through IEDC in 2002. In addition to his work in the field of economic development, Laith has experience in real estate management, media sales, and as a strategic planning consultant for both public and private-sector clients.

As President and CEO of the Economic Development Association of British Columbia, Dale brings over 24 years of knowledge along with a varied background in economic development and local government, both in small and large communities. Previously Dale received his Certificate in Economic Development from the University of Waterloo. He has served as President of the Economic Development Association of BC and as a Director of the Economic Developers Association of Canada. In 2000, Dale was the recipient of the Economic Development Officer of the Year Award from EDABC. While with the Chilliwack Economic Partners Corporation, Dale managed a team of professionals resulting in the attraction of several new companies to the community, development and implementation of an award winning business retention program, and gained the reputation of having one of the most successful economic development structures in Canada. Dale has been involved in the development of various strategic planning processes over several years. He has facilitated the development of several strategies including physician recruitment, airport business attraction, business retention and expansion, economic development strategies for small and large communities, associations and more. Dale and his team have created BC Business Counts, a provincial wide program designed with Executive Pulse to encourage communities throughout BC to implement BR+E. His wealth of experience aids him in understanding the importance of gathering community and stakeholder input and he has the ability to gather that information through group discussions ending with a buy-in from a majority of the constituency.