People of PacifiCan: Jo Ann Sandhu

Meet Jo Ann. When she’s not tending to her garden, socializing with pals, or on promenade with her canine companion, she’s crunching stats as a Senior Policy Advisor for PacifiCan.

How did you arrive at PacifiCan?

I had been working for the B.C. government for quite awhile, most recently doing regional economic policy and program work, and was looking for a new challenge. When a current PacifiCan employee who I had worked with in the past found out that I was looking for a new opportunity, they connected me with the Policy team.

What interested you about PacifiCan?

I was interested in PacifiCan because it was a new iteration of Western Economic Development, and I had always been interested in the type of economic development that they supported and the new direction it was taking.

What do you do in a typical day?

There really is not a typical day; that’s one of the great parts of the job! I do a lot of work with economic data from Stats Can, B.C. Stats and other sources to create snapshots of communities being visited by the Minister or President, and to analyze reports on economic trends. We support the work of other team members by providing perspectives about how the B.C. economy operates.

What do you find most rewarding about your work?

Working with my team and others to untangle knotty problems in order to understand the important factors impacting B.C’s economy, especially at the local level.

A few “quick facts”

Location: Victoria

Education: Masters in Agriculture Economics focussing on marketing and trade from the University of Alberta

Started at PacifiCan: December 2022

Favourite project or experience at PacifiCan: I really appreciated our PacifiCan meetings during National Public Service Week. It helped me to ground my perspectives about the ethos of the organization.

Any advice you have for people who may want to join PacifiCan?

Don’t be shy, get out there even virtually to know your colleagues and what they are working on.