October 2016
BACK to
VALUES
ALSO IN THIS ISSUE Going Out to Play
9 DIY Strategies for Workplace Gratification Coming Events
Strategically managing employee-to-employee (mis)conduct
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CONTENTS
OCTOBER 2016
MUNICIPAL WORLD – CANADA’S MUNICIPAL MAGAZINE
volume 126, number 10
BACK TO VALUES
DIGITAL ACCESSIBILITY
With cases of employee-to-employee misconduct seemingly on the rise, a shift in focus to promoting excellence and core principles can help reduce complaints and frustration.
Strict regulations and high standards mean municipalities must work to get ahead of the curve to make their websites fully accessible. 21
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ATTRACT, RETAIN, DEVELOP People working at city hall are some of the greatest assets for a municipality – how they are developed will have a huge impact on a municipality’s 11 success.
INCLUSIVITY FOR NEW CANADIANS Requiring Canadian experience may be discriminatory, and the organizations who demand it may be missing out on qualified candidates. 13
GOING OUT TO PLAY Developing community sport can pay huge dividends for municipalities – and tools exists to help make that happen.
15
BUILDING A SUCCESSFUL COMMUNITY
ACCOUNTABILITY AND TRANSPARENCY Joint service agreements for municipalities are becoming increasingly popular, but higher levels of transparency and accountability are required for constituents. 19
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ENERGY USE IN PUBLIC BUILDINGS New data shows that our public buildings can significantly improve their energy consumption.
23
BECAUSE IT’S 2016? The quest for gender equity at the council table continues – while progress is being made, do we need to rethink the rules of political engagement? 25
to access great feature articles like these, plus our must-read ANTI-SLAPP LEGISLATION A recent legalcolumns case brings upeach issues surrounding regular month! newly-enacted anti-SLAPP legislation in Ontario.
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INSIDE THIS ISSUE With cases of employee-to-employee misconduct seemingly on the rise, a shift in focus to promoting excellence and core principles can help reduce complaints and frustration.
Going Out to Play Jumpstart harnesses the power of community sport In this first of a series of articles, MW is engaging in a Q&A with Landon French, President of Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities, to find out about the program and its relationship with municipalities.
Online Exclusive!
Editor’s Flashback This online-only feature column highlights select articles from past issues of Municipal World’s monthly print magazine. In this issue, we share “DIY Workplace Gratification: Nine strategies to increase your happiness & productivity at work” – from the October 2012 issue.
Coming Events
OCTOBER 2016
Back to Values
human resources by Richard D. Hart
Back to Values Strategically managing employee-to-employee (mis)conduct Over the past several years, elected officials, executives, and senior managers of various local governments in Canada have expressed a high level of distress over complaints of employeeto-employee misconduct in their organizations. Most often, there are concerns about worsening workplace behaviour that can trigger employee complaints, about the possibility of employees making frivolous and vexatious complaints against each other, and about the immense drain on time, money, and other resources that comes from dealing with employee-toemployee complaints. Not infrequently, these complaints are entwined with frustrations regarding the policies and processes intended to receive and address employee complaints – that they are overly bureaucratic, paternalistic, legalistic, and ineffective. Of course, these concerns are not unique to local government. It is important for leaders of all organizations, including local governments, to consider them – after all, good leaders constantly stop to ask questions, and reflect on what is happening in their workplaces, in order to identify important trends – and identify corrective action where appropriate. However, it is troubling when local government leaders latch on to such concerns without question, reflection, or examination. Individuals who wring their hands in angst over employee-toemployee complaints are often fixated on risk and risk avoidance, instead of the optimization of their organization’s performance. At best, these individuals see each complaint as a cost or a
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burden, rather than embracing each as Worsening Behaviour, More Often? an opportunity to foster alignment with “I can’t believe the sorts of things that critical organizational values that will people say and do toward each other drive enterprise performance; at worst, these days. I wouldn’t expect to see their focus on risk and risk avoidance these behaviours in a kindergarten leads these individuals to behave in class, let alone among a group of adults ways that actually contribute to an in a workplace! These things never increase in the number of employee-towould have happened when I first startemployee complaints. ed working.” – HR Director in B.C. This article explores the common Many local government leaders suggest concerns and frustrations of organizathey are concerned that a rise in worktional leaders in relation to employeeto-employee complaints, and the limits of focusing primarily on risk and risk RICHARD D. HART is a Founding Director of ProActive avoidance in any approach to managReSolutions Inc., a leading ing them. Instead, leaders best serve international consultancy that their organizations through an uncomworks with public and private sector organizations around promising focus on aligning behavthe world to create respectful iours with core organizational values in workplaces, including Fortune service of mission, vision, and strategic 500 companies and many muobjectives. Such a focus offers colnicipal governments. Richard’s passion is working with groups embroiled in intense conflict, and he lateral benefits of reducing both the has extensive experience in helping to prevent frequency and impact of employee-to- and manage extreme behaviours, including haemployee misconduct. rassment, bullying, and threats of violence. October 2016
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place misconduct underlies the increase in employee-to-employee complaints in their organizations. Their worry is that employees are behaving badly more often and in more significant ways than in the past, and that this reflects the disintegration of social norms in their workplaces, or even the broader community. Are employees actually engaging in misconduct more frequently in the modern workplace? Are workplace behaviours worse now than they used to be?
Arriving at conclusive answers is difficult. Numerous research studies exist that purport to measure the rates and significance of workplace misconduct; however, it can be extremely difficult to arrive at any unequivocal conclusion that misconduct is actually increasing or worsening over time. There are few studies that track and compare data on workplace misconduct over extended periods. Differences in research methodologies make it hard to compare results across studies. Also, unless a study is very rig-
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orously structured, the resulting data is just as likely to reflect changes in awareness and reporting, as it is to track actual rates of change or significance. Further, statistical analysis yields conclusions that are valid in relation to a population as a whole, not necessarily to all individuals within that population. For instance, were a study of all local governments to conclude that workplace misconduct had, in fact, declined across the population of all local governments, that conclusion would not eliminate a temporary spike – or even a prolonged increase – in misconduct in one specific local government. For leaders who are concerned about the realities of their own workplaces, it is therefore unhelpful to focus on arguments about changes across society, or local governments generally, in terms of the frequency or significance of employee-to-employee misconduct. At the same time, the experiences of different stakeholders suggest a major shift in awareness of changes in legislation, regulation, and policy amongst employees. For instance, lawyers and organizational leaders in both B.C. and Ontario report seeing formal complaints of employee-to-employee bullying and harassment increase as much as two-fold in local governments since the enactment of occupational health and safety regulations that allow for injury claims relating to bullying and harassment. “From our work with different employers, it seems pretty obvious that the past decade has left employees with greater awareness of their rights, and employers with an awareness of their increased exposure for employee-to-employee misconduct,” says lawyer Sandra Guarascio of Roper Greyell, a leading employment law firm in B.C. “Occupational health and safety legislation has broadened the scope of potential bullying and harassment claims by employees in many jurisdictions and has increased the requirements for addressing such conduct in workplaces. Our local government clients are seeing the results of these changes.”
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“People can take every little thing personally, get ‘hurt feelings’ over
anything, and then make a formal complaint that leaves us embroiled in investigations and mediations for months – over essentially nothing. We end up pandering to these individuals.” – General Manager of Public Works in Manitoba Some leaders are concerned with the irrationality, unreasonableness, and unfairness of the complaints they receive; they believe that the system may be evolving in ways that increasingly allows querulous employees to hold organizations hostage by unwarranted complaints. If there has indeed been an increase in employee awareness regarding employee-to-employee misconduct and a simultaneous increase in the number of related complaints, doesn’t it make sense to wonder just how many cases are due to people simply whining, leveraging processes to “game the system,” or worse, to victimize others? Are we giving so much voice to the “squeaky wheels” in our workplaces that employees are losing their perspective and resilience in relation to normal social bumps and bruises? At their root, such questions imply a concern that complaints are inherently problematic because of difficulty the employer faces in determining which ones are worthy of attention. From this perspective, employers should only have to attend to complaints that are “valid.” While it seems difficult to make an authoritative statement about the frequency of vexatious complaints, every misconduct complaint warrants attention. This is not because every complaint is conclusive that misconduct has occurred. Rather, every complaint is an indicator that at least one of the following problems exists. There is misconduct – The complainant is honestly raising a concern about another employee’s behaviour that is factually correct. There is dishonesty – The complainant is knowingly and intentionally misrepresenting the facts in complaining about another person. There is a misapprehension of critical facts – The complainant is honestly raising concerns that are factually errone-
ous, due to mistake, or perhaps even to a distorted sense of reality. No matter which is true, the complaint itself can be hugely valuable in surfacing a problem that is affecting the relevant workgroup in one form or another. Typically, when someone takes the time to file a complaint, significantly more time and productivity has been lost due to the drag in relationships or time spent focusing on perceived harm. When an employee brings forward a claim, consider it an opportunity to address underlying conduct that may otherwise never have come to the surface. In the rare instance that the same employee launches multiple unfounded or vexatious complaints, you now have the opportunity to use performance management tactics.
conducted appropriately,” says Shana French of Sherrard Kuzz. “In many cases, particularly for smaller employers who may not have the internal expertise or resources necessary to facilitate these investigations, this will likely result in an increased reliance on external investigators and, accordingly, an increased cost.” Similar concerns arise in relation to both the direct and indirect costs of workforce training intended to prevent employee-to-employee misconduct, as well as associated complaints, investigations, and grievances – even when the training is done using internal resources.
Focusing on Risk Is Risky
Given the above, it is perhaps not completely unexpected that some leaders react to individual complaints of employee-to-employee misconduct with a focus on risk and risk avoidance. This, Drain on Resources in turn, can lead to the development of a “litigation mindset” that can ultimately “We’re spending more and more of our time and money trying to sort out contribute to the frequency and signifiissues between people … and getting cance of such complaints. “It is not uncommon that, at the start less and less of the work done!” – HR of a case, the leaders of an organization Manager in Saskatchewan will feel strongly that they need to ‘fight’ The impact that complaints of employee-to-employee misconduct have on complaints on the basis of principle, or out of a concern that any other response organizational budgets and deliverables are yet another common concern of lead- will lead to the floodgates opening and additional claims being filed,” says ers in local government. They worry about being forced to make a fundamen- French. This reflexive response can often be tal reallocation of internal resources, one seen in organizations that struggle with that actually detracts from their organia history of poor relationships with their zations’ capacity to do the “real work” staff or unions. Typically, the proliferaof delivering infrastructure and services tion of individual complaints is the result into their communities. The time, effort, and money involved of fighting individual complaints, case by case, instead of recognizing and addressin grievances and workplace investigaing the systemic challenges contributing tions are just two examples to which leaders can legitimately point. Certainly, to the workplace tensions. The effect is exacerbated when politiit is not unusual to hear of even simple cians, executives, and senior managers – grievances costing local governments sensitive to the complexities and risks of between $15,000 and $35,000 in comemployee-to-employee complaints – bebined direct and indirect costs, and come hypervigilant. This can manifest in significantly more in complex cases; simple workplace investigations involv- over-attentiveness to individual cases at a tactical level and decision making based ing external investigators can run from on a fear of losing or “getting it wrong.” $20,000 to $40,000 in combined direct French asserts, “There are certainly and indirect costs. some cases that do need to be litigated; “With Bill 132 coming into effect but, in most situations, the best result for this September, employers in Ontario will face an additional pressure to ensure all parties involved is to try to reach a resolution. In those cases that do need to that their workplace investigations are
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aligned to the organization’s core values, or that impedes performance at the individual, team, or enterprise level as defined by mission, vision, or strategic objectives, deserves attention. This sets standard best practices driving organizational excellence. This, in turn, demands that you identify and address any behaviour that affects the consistent, ongoing achievement of the organization’s mission, vision, values, and strategic objectives. Such an approach creates an early warning system that has the potential of The Alternative: Focus nipping problem behaviours in the bud in on Excellence a timely manner in the majority of cases. And, in keeping with this higher-levBest practices in the strategic manel, more strategic, and values-based apagement of an organization’s behavioural proach, leaders would be well advised to culture demands that leaders not wait avoid getting too wrapped up in tactical until they are concerned that behaviour considerations in order to “win” when may satisfy the definition of “bullying” individual complaints of misconduct do or “harassment” under policy, laws, or arise. Instead, leaders should embrace regulation. the surfacing of each allegation of misInstead, leaders must foster an unconduct as an opportunity to further the compromising demand for excellence establishment of a behavioural culture across the organization. From this focused on outcomes of organizational perspective, any behaviour that is not be litigated, the smart organization learns from the process to put themselves in the best position to avoid future litigation, if possible.” The legalistic mindset ultimately results in a bureaucratic “check the box” approach to managing behaviour at a preventative level, one that invites inattention until behaviours have escalated to legal definitions of “bullying” or “harassment,” the team’s productivity has reached critical lows, or someone has launched a formal complaint.
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excellence as defined by mission, vision, and strategic objectives. “While it can be much easier these days for an employee to bring forward a claim,” says Guarascio, “this can be an opportunity for employers to address underlying conduct that may otherwise never have come to the surface. The proactive measures that employers can take, including establishment of respectful workplace skills and awareness training, implementation of behaviour support programs, and managing with respectful workplace values in mind, can have very positive impacts on workplaces by improving morale and productivity while also demonstrating due diligence in the event that a complaint does escalate into some form of litigation.” At its essence, such an approach is essentially a learning approach, one in which each case is seen to allow for achieving greater alignment of behaviours with core organizational values, as well as with policies and procedures, furthering the enterprise’s success. MW
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Presented by Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities
Going Out to Play Jumpstart harnesses the power of community sport Over the next year, Municipal World is partnering with Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities to raise awareness about the program and the value it can bring to communities, and to showcase the power of sport in effecting positive social change. In this first of a series of articles, MW is engaging in a Q&A with Landon French, President of Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities, to find out about the program and its relationship with municipalities.
What is Jumpstart? Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities is a nationally registered charity that helps kids from financially-disadvantaged families participate in sport and physical activity by helping cover the costs associated with registration, equipment, and transportation. Jumpstart delivers support to children and youth through a Canada-wide network of over 300 local Chapters and over 2,000 Community Partners, which include parks and recreation departments for the vast majority of municipalities. Local Chapters work to identify the needs of children in low-income families and to fund programs designed by Community Partners to meet those needs. So, although the program is national in scope, it is hyper-local in focus – because 100 percent of the funds raised by a local Jumpstart Chapter is reinvested in that community.
What is your relationship with Canadian Tire and other corporate partners? Canadian Tire Corporation’s community giving is concentrated through Jumpstart, and every Jumpstart Chapter is led by a representative from one of the Canadian Tire Family of Companies.
Connor McDavid makes surprise appearance at Jumpstart Games for hometown kids in Newmarket, Ontario. Pictured from left to right: Landon French, President, Canadian Tire Jumpstart Charities; Connor McDavid, Canadian Tire Jumpstart Ambassador and Centreman, Edmonton Oilers; John Taylor, Deputy Mayor, Newmarket; Wayne Ford, Canadian Tire Dealer, Newmarket, and his family.
Employees across the Canadian Tire Family of Companies coordinate fundraising activities, mobilize volunteers to support events like the Jumpstart Games, and help us recognize the Community Partners, community leaders, and local donors who support Jumpstart in their communities. Jumpstart also benefits from its relationship with Canadian Tire to provide unique opportunities for kids across the country. Whether it’s an opportunity to meet one of the company’s partner athletes, to attend sporting or cultural events, or to attend special events organized by our employees.
What initiatives are in place across the country? Jumpstart has a number of programs that can be accessed at the community level. Families with children in financial need who wish to participate in sport and recreation programs can apply directly to Jumpstart for support.
Jumpstart will provide up to $300 per activity and up to $600 per year. A list of over 70 activities we support can be found online at <jumpstart.canadiantire.ca>. Our Community Partners can apply to Jumpstart for the funds needed to run community development programs. These programs help to support large numbers of children in new or existing community programs. For example, through the City of Ottawa, Jumpstart has been operating the “I Love To” program, which includes swimming, soccer, and skating, among others. The city registers children in these Jumpstart-funded programs and runs the programs itself. Jumpstart provides the funds needed to run the program, as well as equipment, where it is needed. JAMES WILSON is the Assistant Editor at Municipal World. He has 15 years of experience involved in coaching and mentoring youth in community sport. He can be reached at <james@municipalworld.com>.
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Jumpstart also has a number of national partnerships that provide local opportunities for children: ►► in partnership with Hockey Canada, Jumpstart runs “The Big Play,” which allows kids to play recreational hockey with their local minor hockey associations; ►► in partnership with the Canadian Paralympic Committee, Jumpstart provides support to community groups to design programs for underprivileged children with physical limitations, and Jumpstart also provides direct support to underprivileged children with physical limitations who want to choose their own activity; and ►► in partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs across Canada, Jumpstart supports a number of local community development programs.
What are you most proud of in the project’s 10+ year history? In 10 years, Jumpstart has continued to grow to the point where it has been able to help over one million
kids in communities across Canada. Our growth is a testament to the importance of supporting sport and recreation for kids in need; and, it also shows the unwavering commitment of Canadian Tire employees across the country, who help us reach kids in every community from coast-to-coastto-coast.
What do you see as being the greatest opportunities for Jumpstart to continue making a difference?
munities to use sport as a means of improving academic attendance and performance. The greatest opportunities lie in our ability to have significant and meaningful impact through our existing programs, as well as these new programs designed for very specific challenges that our partners are trying to address in their communities.
What funding is available for municipalities and how is it distributed?
As we think about the social impact of sport and recreation, we are starting to work with Community Partners to address very specific needs in their communities. For example, Jumpstart is supporting youth crime prevention programs run by the City of Montreal police services. We are partnering with many municipalities to help new Canadian children feel more welcome in their new homes. And, we are working with community leaders in rural and remote com-
Every Jumpstart Chapter has funds available to support individual families and to support programs designed by our Community Partners. To access these funds, municipalities must first become Jumpstart Community Partners and then apply to their local Chapter for support. To find out how they can become a partner, municipalities can contact <jumpstart@cantire.com>. Watch for articles in upcoming issues showcasing practical examples from communities across the country. c
ONTARIO MUNICIPAL HUMAN RESOURCES ASSOCIATION • Represents over 400 members in almost 200 organizations in Ontario. • Ontario's premier municipal HR Association that provides leadership and
direction on Human Resources issues.
• Networking opportunities with other HR professionals to exchange information. • Municipal voice on emerging HR legislation, policies, and programs. • Relevant education and training opportunities, and professional development
of HR practitioners.
For information on becoming a member or a sponsor of OMHRA, visit our website:
www.omhra.ca
October 2016
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by Tracey Seitz Polowich
ne Onli ve usi Excl re u Feat
DIY Workplace Gratification
Nine strategies to increase your happiness & productivity at work Feeling stagnant at work? Demotivated? Unsatisfied? Happiness is identified as the key to improving productivity at work and creating an environment conducive to intrinsic motivation and happiness. Sounds simple, doesn’t it? Why then, do we become unhappy and unproductive? Realistically, it is difficult to “create” this euphoria that employees long for and that employers strive to provide, but often come up short. The challenge of assimilating the multigenerational workforce – selfreliant, achievement-oriented Boomers; work hard/play hard Generation Xers; and the recently emerged Generation Y, with their narcissistic attitudes – has introduced an even more demanding dynamic in creating happiness in the workplace. There seems to be a misconception that the employer is responsible for the employee’s happiness in the workplace. Indeed, one could wait a long time for an employer to fulfill their happiness. The reality is that both the employer and employee are responsible for generating an enjoyable, productive work environment. It is not a one-way proposition. However, if your employer is unaware of, or not fulfilling their responsibility, the following are actions you can take to improve the working conditions and impact the factors that lead to hap-
pier employees and a more productive workplace.
1. Challenge yourself ►► Determine if there are any gaps in the skills required for your position and the skills you possess; make a plan to close the gaps. ►► Work towards acquiring new skills: learn someone else’s job tasks; and take courses to enhance your current position or to facilitate a promotion. ►► Ask yourself “Am I doing the best I can with what I have?” Are you using the resources available to you most efficiently? ►► Before complaining about an issue or challenge, be sure to develop a solution idea. ►► Emulate the professional colleague you most admire and respect.
2. Control ►► Determine what you like/love to do in your job and what you are not crazy about – discuss both with your manager/supervisor and ask if there are any opportunities for more of what you like and reassignment of tasks you don’t prefer. ►► Focus your efforts on changing the things within your control; let go of the rest. ►► Create a personal mission and vision statement and update it annually. ►► If you set goals with your employer, review your goals regularly; docu-
ment goals met to date or the action taken toward attaining them and ensure this information becomes part of your annual performance evaluation. ►► If you do not currently set goals, start; ask your manager/supervisor to review these goals with you.
3. Cooperation ►► Say “Yes” when asked to help or participate. ►► Ask for help when you need it. ►► Start a cross-functional focus group or team to generate ideas for process improvement; and list challenges in your department/ municipality and generate ideas for overcoming them. ►► Form a user group within your geographical area or with personnel in the same organizational capacity to share best practices and discuss common issues/challenges.
4. Recognition ►► Say “Thank you.”
TRACEY SEITZ POLOWICH, Contigo Business Services Inc., is a CPA-CMA providing services to municipal clients throughout Alberta. Services include interim management, mentoring, strategic planning, organizational structure, productivity, and process improvement, and performance management. Contact Tracey at <contigobusiness@ shaw.ca>.
This article was originally published in the October 2012 issue of Municipal World.
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►► Acknowledge when someone has done something well. ►► Thank your employer when opportunities are provided.
5. Happiness ►► Bring and make happiness a priority, in your life and in your work. ►► If, after a genuine effort, you are not feeling improvement, consider changing employment. ►► Always know you have a choice; it may not be the choice you love, but there will be choices in every situation.
6. Trust ►► Share information and knowledge with co-workers. ►► Follow through on your commitments. ►► Let others shine, too.
Figure 1 Time Management Matrix Urgent Not Urgent Important
1
2
Not Important
3
4
Strive to spend the majority of your time in Quadrant 2; this reduces the amount of time and stress involved with Quadrant 1. Based on concept by Dwight D. Eisenhower.
arrange training opportunities; and organize a fun activity. ►► Start a social club if your municipality does not have one; if the organization already has a social club, get involved.
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►► Review and evaluate your position and tasks using the productivity ma►► Review corporate/municipal comtrix shown in Figure 1. munications – newsletters, council ►► Review the purpose and benefit of meeting minutes, website, etc. participating in each meeting you ►► Attend a council meeting. currently attend to determine if your ►► Ask questions – many questions. attendance is necessary; are there ►► Develop your communication skills alternatives to attending (receiving/ through taking a course or workreviewing minutes; conference callshop. ing into meeting, web-based meeting ►► Where conflict arises, refrain from attendance, etc.)? “gossiping” about it – go to the source and address the issue, profes- ►► Assess the deliverables you provide throughout your municipality (resionally and courteously. ports, documents, data, etc.): 8. Socialization Who uses your deliverable? If no ►► Set up a meeting/lunch with someone looks at the report you produce, one in your municipality whose podoes it really need to be produced? sition you do not know very well to: Is what you are providing what the determine how they fit in the orgauser needs? nization; When is it required? Could the task inquire about what challenges they be executed more efficiently, moving face; it from quadrant 1 to quadrant 2 (see ask what skills/background and productivity matrix in Figure 1)? education are required for their po In what format? Could a paper docsition; and ument be provided electronically? question what the person likes and No matter who you are or what dislikes about their position. position you hold in your municipality, ►► Arrange a monthly “lunch and learn” each individual has an obligation to for your municipality/department: contribute to productivity and gratifi bring guest speakers in to discuss cation in the workplace. Whether you topics you feel you and others are a Baby Boomer, Generation Xer, or could benefit from; Generation Yer, there are many actions invite a community member to available to increase your own happispeak on the history of the munici- ness and satisfaction at work. Do your pality or their significance within part and see how your municipality the community; reacts. MW 16
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MUNICIPAL, PLANNING AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAW SECTION V.F. MURATORI S.J. PREMI
T.A. RICHARDSON* R. VACCA M.D. ATHERTON
W.B. McKAIG J.P. MALONEY
* Certified Specialist Municipal Law (Local Government/Land Use Planning)
Engineering, IT and business consultants
1852 Angus Street Regina, SK S4T 1Z4 Telephone: 306.545.9242 Toll: 877.539.2663 18
MWDigest
Email: info@lexcom.ca Web: www.lexcom.ca October 2016
November 3 – Metro Vancouver’s Zero Waste Conference Vancouver BC. www.zwc.ca November 3-4 – Association of Municipalities of Ontario Energy Now and into the Future symposium Toronto ON. www.amo.on.ca/Events/ES November 9-10 – Waste & Recycling Expo Toronto ON. www.messefrankfurt.ca November 9-10 – Saskatchewan Association of Rural Municipalities Midterm Convention Saskatoon SK. http://sarm.ca November 14-15 – Canadian Council for Public Private Partnerships 24th Annual Conference Toronto ON. www.p3-2016.ca November 15-17 – AAMDC 2016 Fall Convention Edmonton AB. www.edaalberta.ca November 21-23 – Association of Manitoba Municipalities 18th Annual Convention Winnipeg MB. www.amm.mb.ca/events November 21-23 – Municipal Communications Conference Toronto ON. http://summersdirect.com/conference/municipal-communicationsconference-2016/
November 22-25 – fmi*igf Professional Development Week Ottawa ON. www.fmi.ca/ events/pd-week December 2 – Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing 2016 Ontario West Municipal Conference London ON. www.amo.on.ca/ Events/OWMC December 6-8 – National Groundwater Association Groundwater Week and Expo Las Vegas NV. www.GroundwaterWeek.com
2017
January 10-12 – Landscape Ontario Congress conference Toronto ON https://locongress. com/conference January 23-26 – U.S. Composting Council annual conference and trade show Los Angeles CA. http://compostingcouncil.org/compost2017 January 29-31 – ROMA Annual Conference Toronto ON. www.roma.on.ca/Events/2017.aspx January 29-February 1 – Manitoba Water and Wastewater Association annual conference
and tradeshow Portage la Prairie MB. www.mwwa. net/events.php February 1-3 – HRPA Annual Conference and Trade Show Toronto ON. www.hrpa.ca/ Conf2016/Pages/2017-Call-for-Speakers.aspx February 1-4 – Ontario Library Association super conference Toronto ON. www.olasuperconference.ca February 5-8 – Saskatchewan Urban Municipalities Association 112th Annual Convention Saskatoon SK. www.suma.org February 26-March 6 – OGRA Conference Toronto ON. http://ograconference.ca March 13-16 – Saskatoon Association of Rural Municipalities annual convention Saskatoon SK. http://sarm.ca/events April 21-22 – International Conference on Climate Change Cambridge UK. http://onclimate.com/2017-conference May 2-5 – Ontario Small Urban Municipalities Conference and Trade Show Blue Mountains ON. www.osum.ca/Events
www.municipalworld.com/coming-events people engineering environments Guelph
Owen Sound
Kitchener
Listowel
Hamilton
GTA
w w w. g m b l u e p l a n . c a
MUNICIPAL ENGINEERING
Infrastructure Planning & Asset Management
cjdl@cjdleng.com
Water Resources & Stormwater Management Engineering Surveys & Construction Layout
4H8
460
Exeter
Land Development & Site Servicing
Water & Wastewater Treatment Structural Design of Buildings, Bridges & Buried Structures Materials Testing & Inspection Environmental Management Municipal Infrastructure
To simplify Change
Contact: Peter de Jager pdejager@technobility.com 905-792-8706
October 2016
MWDigest
19
GIVE YOUR NEXT MEETING A BREATH OF FRESH AIR • Customized packaging to suit your budget • 40,000 sq. ft. meeting space
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START PLANNING:
deerhurstresort.com/rfp
1.800.461.6522