Credit Union boss takes top airport job
Longtime president and CEO Tamara Vrooman is disembarking from Vancity and will hop on board the Vancouver Airport Authority.
On Wednesday, it was announced Vrooman would be stepping down from the credit union after 13 years at the helm, to succeed Craig Richmond as president and CEO of the airport authority.
She will also be the first woman to lead the Vancouver airport.
Vrooman will remain at Vancity until June 30, at which point an interim CEO will take over.
“Leading this amazing institution these many years has been a privilege,” Vrooman said in a statement issued through Vancity.
“From our innovative and talented employees to the commitment of our members, Vancity’s values-driven purpose and culture makes it a very special place.”
Vrooman isn’t entirely new to the Vancouver airport, having served on its board of directors for the past nine years. She will begin her new role with the airport authority July 1.
“By applying deep strategic, operational and financial abilities, matched by bold positions on sustainability and inclusion, (Vrooman) has led transformative change resulting in global recognition and commercial success, all while doing good,” said Annalisa King, chairwoman of YVR’s board of directors. “This ... will enable her to reimagine YVR as a benchmark airport of the future. With a career-long commitment to the betterment of British Columbia, she is the ideal person to lead YVR forward.”
Vrooman steps into the airport leadership role at a challenging time. In November 2019, it was announced that Richmond would be leaving the airport after seven years of overseeing its massive growth. The announcement came just months before the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 that has effectively halted YVR’s multiyear, $9.1-billion expansion, cut passenger forecasts for the coming years by more than half, and grounded airlines and travel providers around the world.
Last year, the airport welcomed a record 26.4 million passengers. Earlier this spring, Richmond forecast a 40 to 70 per cent drop in air-passenger traffic over the next three years. In recent days, the airport authority has also begun issuing layoff notices to a quarter of its 550-strong workforce, after concluding an earlier round of voluntary departures. “Our current workforce is sized to operate a 26-million passenger airport, and that is simply no longer sustainable,” the airport authority said in a statement this week.
However, Vrooman appears well-equipped to handle the challenge, having first assumed leadership of Vancity in 2007 at the start of the global financial crisis.
“I look forward to working with (YVR) as we reimagine our business and how we operate in this challenging new environment as the world adapts following the COVID-19 crisis,” Vrooman said in a statement issued by the airport authority.
“I know from experience that crises provide an opportunity for innovation, creativity and renewal. I am eager to get to work as we chart a path forward that supports safe and efficient passenger and cargo travel, while recognizing YVR’s important role in the Lower Mainland, B.C. and the global markets we serve.”
Vrooman has served as B.C.’s deputy minister of finance and was named B.C.’s CEO of the Year in 2015 by Business in Vancouver. Last year, she was recognized with the Order of B.C.