The Industry Insights panel sessions are described at UBC’s Sauder School of Business website as “a chance to provide students with insight into the variety of roles, opportunities, and areas for growth within your sector.”

Forest products marketing, sales and distribution was the focus of Friday’s session. I joined presenters Marc Saracco, Executive Director of the North American Wholesale Lumber Association (NAWLA), Ian McLean, Marketing Coordinator at Spruceland Millworks, Gerry Pankratz, President of Olympic Industries, Chris Gatson, Senior Scientist at FP Innovations, and Tracey Arnish, Senior VP of People and Culture at Canfor. BCom students with wide-ranging career aspirations ranging from organizational behavior and human resources to accounting and finance attended.

It’s evident that a sensitivity to resource sustainability – stewardship of the forest – factor heavily into general interests and potential forest industry careers. I especially enjoyed a brief time of networking with students after the presentations. Many had insightful questions about a career in lumber trading. I was able to share a little bit about my own experience with trading floor pressures, while being reminded that university classrooms still hold plenty of pressures of their own.

~2014 NAWLA Traders Market~

As the Organizing Committee Chair for next year’s NAWLA Regional Meeting in Vancouver April 2nd, I had the pleasure of meeting Executive Director of NAWLA Marc Saracco for dinner Thursday evening. Ian McLean, Organizing Committee Chair of the NAWLA Leadership Summit, also attended. Marc confirmed the show floor for the upcoming NAWLA Traders Market November 12-14 in Chicago is sold out – 235 exhibitors are registered. A Traders Market attendee list is available here.

Chris Gatson, Ian McLean, Paul Harder, Marc Saracco, Tracey Arnish, Gerry Pankratz