ASSOCIATION NEWS O H BA n ews , v i ews a n d eve n t s
BLAST FROM THE PAST Former president steps into the void to help steer OHBA
E
BY TE D M C I NT Y R E ven before the Ontario Home Builders’ Association experienced a leadership transition last summer, there were challenges to address. Structural decisions had to be made, housing policies advocated for, relationships forged. OHBA needed someone to step in on an interim basis who was comfortable in the heat. Very comfortable. And so the association turned to ohba.ca
@onhomebuilder
Neil Rodgers, a former OHBA president and long-time member—someone whose loyalty could be tapped and whose résumé checked all the boxes, having previously served as president of development firm Collecdev, executive vice-president of land acquisitions at Tribute Communities, and president of the Urban Development Institute of Ontario, where he was the co-architect of the merger of GTHBA and UDI/ Ontario that formed BILD in 2006.
“Neil was the perfect fit,” says OHBA President Dave Depencier, one of several insiders who asked Rodgers last September if he would consider the Interim CEO role. “Neil is well versed in government relations and has a great reputation in that space. He’s also very familiar with OHBA staff and the inner workings of the association. He has the motivation and the passion to navigate and guide OHBA through this transition period. And with him being a past president of OHBA, it was just icing on the cake. It’s seriously an honour to work alongside him.” As a presidential appointee on OHBA’s 2022 Board of Directors, Rodgers was aware of the hurdles facing the association during the transition period, and he couldn’t turn his back. “It was the board member, the past president, the association volunteer in me and someone who’s very passionate about this industry,” he says. “It was important that the industry and the association not lose a beat regarding issues affecting our members. We have some incredible executive committee and board members who also have their own jobs to tend to. But running the dayto-day affairs of the association is a full-time business. “The early conversations with President Dave were about restoring stability to the organization, from staffing to the financial long-term sustainability of the association and restoring the OHBA’s reputation in the sector. The industry in general has taken some significant hits with the media, the public and elected officials,” Rodgers says. “There are a lot of things that require some time and attention. My job here is to help clean those things up and make the association and this position as attractive as possible for the next CEO.”
THREE-PHASE APPROACH Step one last autumn was to address concerns voiced by BILD concerning its relationship with OHBA whose 9 WINTER 2024 | ONTARIO HOME BUILDER
