Maple Ridge’s second economic summit took place last week in the Arts Centre Theatre as business and tech leaders brainstormed.

Tony Geheran, VP with Telus, Ralph Wright, with Cisco Systems and Michelle Scarborough, VP with the Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation, were just a partial list of the presenters.

Summing up the day-long session, titled Best Practices for Connected Communities, Rochelle Grayson noted a few recurring themes.

“We all need to build an ecosystem,” both a literal and imaginative one.One point she took from the discussion was that business parks should be extensions of the downtown core and shouldn’t be islands or business counterparts of suburbs.

“Let’s be globally competitive,” said Grayson. “Let’s be competitive with those out there.” The gap isn’t as wide as people think it is, she added.

She also heard people remark about the life-long learning.

“Everyone up there really talked about learning throughout their lives.”

Planning is also important in growing a business or economy. That’s tedious but, it pans out, she said.

MeadowsRidge Collision wins award

Meadowridge Collision and 20 other collision repair shops across British Columbia will be recognized for their customer service with a 2009 AutocheX Premier Achiever Award.

To be eligible for an AutocheX Premier Achiever Award, the facility must track customer satisfaction results on a monthly basis to monitor and improve performance.

Key factors include tracking the shop’s ability to keep the customer informed, providing on-time deliveries and quality repairs, and the customer’s willingness to recommend the shop to friends and family.

“ICBC is committed to providing our customers with a hassle-free claims experience, and we can only do this if our c.a.r. shop VALET partners provide excellent customer service from start to finish,” said Craig Horton, ICBC’s senior vice-president of claims.

“Each of these 21 shops are consistently providing our mutual customers with outstanding service while their vehicles are being repaired.”