Success Beyond the JA Company Program

This year, many staff within the Pender organization participated in the Junior Achievement (JA) Company Program, an opportunity that provides students with the business knowledge to organize and successfully create a company. Guided by the leadership and business acumen of Pender staff, twelve students successfully designed, marketed, and organized a business of their own within just a couple of months. With this newfound education provided by Pender, many of these students went on to individually pursue ventures beyond the JA Company Program.

On May 10, 2023, three alumni of the program (Simon Ing, Benjamin Zhang, and Ken Wang) won first place and fan favourite in JABC’s Discover Your Pitch, a provincial investor pitch competition hosted at Terminal City Club in Vancouver. With the guidance and mentorship of Pender chairman and founder, Kelly Edmison (as well as other Pender staff), the students pitched a green solution to provide globalized sustainable energy using ocean currents. Ken Wang said the following about his experience with Pender:

“[Working with Pender] was an exceptionally unique experience that allowed me to solidify my business knowledge and discover my potential in sales. [This experience was] more than just learning how to operate a company, as it gave me the opportunity to grow as a person, to learn from industry leaders and, most important of all, to have lifelong skills that will help me in my personal and professional life.”

(From left to right: event judges Laura Cassin and Kirsten Sutton, Pender Company Program students Ken Wang, Simon Ing, and Benjamin Zheng, President/CEO of JABC Sheila Biggers, and event judge Joel Hansen)

In addition to this achievement, Pender Alum and Discover Your Pitch winner, Ken Wang, won JABC’s prestigious Junior Entrepreneur Award. This award acknowledges exceptional business skills, leadership and success within the JA program. Upon receiving the award, Ken shared highlights of his experience with Pender at the Business Laureates of British Columbia Hall of Fame Gala with over 770 business leaders from across the province.

We are inspired by the achievements of Pender’s Company Program students, and we look forward to reaching great heights with our next group of students in September!