October 20, 2010

Partnerships BC’s new CEO well-versed in public-private partnerships

RICHARD GILBERT

staff writer

VANCOUVER

The new CEO of Partnerships BC may not be as well known to people in the construction industry as its first leader, Larry Blain, but the woman selected as his replacement has been involved in some of B.C.’s largest public-private partnership (P3) projects.

Sarah Clark took over as the CEO of the provincial P3 agency on Oct. 7. She is currently the vice-president of partnerships development and delivery and will succeed Blain, who built up the organization as its CEO since January 2003.

“In my current role, I have an oversight of all projects, including health, corrections and transportation,” said Clark. “It is a good position for preparing to take on this new role because you see all aspects of the business. I am very tuned in to the delivery of all projects, as well as interacting with clients and partnerships.”

In the three years that Clark was in the position, she worked very closely with Blain. She said Partnerships BC is moving forward in a way that provides a lot of continuity, as Blain will remain with the organization as the new chair of the board.

Clark has a passion for using the P3 model. “How the model can be applied to different projects and made to fit to different sectors is very interesting,” she said.

Clark started her work with Partnerships BC in 2005. She was responsible for management of current projects; development and resourcing of new partnership structures and opportunities; and the management of client relations and service quality for all projects.

Prior to joining Partnerships BC, Clark worked for Bombardier delivering large transportation projects.

Her responsibilities included proposals for public private partnership projects and project management of rapid transit projects, such as the Millennium Line.

She moved to B.C. to work for Bombardier, after working as an engineer in training with the Ontario Ministry of Transportation.

Clark is a professional engineer and is a member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of British Columbia.

She holds a bachelor of science degree in civil engineering from Queen’s University.

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