CNAM Webinar

Communicating with the Public

Telling the asset management story and building support in your community

Date:

January 15, 9:30am PT / 10:30am MT / 11:30am CT / 12:30pm ET / 1:30pm AT

Brief Overview:

• Communicating needed investment in community infrastructure
• Making the case for investment in AM
• Techniques and tips for communicating effectively with your public

Presenter

Christina Benty, Principal Consultant, Strategic Leadership Solutions

Moderator

Russell Crook, Asset Management, City of Red Deer

Panelists

Christina Benty, Principal Consultant, Strategic Leadership Solutions

Kirn Dhillon, Manager of Infrastructure, City of Vernon

Susan Higdon, City Manager, Town of Stellarton

Khaled Shahata, Manager of Corporate Asset Management, City of London

Cost

CNAM Members:  FREE

(you will require your membership number found on your recent membership renewal invoice).

Non-Members:  $50 plus GST

Non-Members:  If you plan to attend at least three of the six CNAM webinars scheduled for this year (3 x $50 =$150) and attend the Annual Conference in St. John’s Newfoundland ($125 savings) the discounts you receive by being a CNAM member pay for itself.  Join CNAM today!

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Presenter and Panelist

Christina Benty, MA is a former politician who loves to talk about all things invisible… such as sewer, water, and strategy! She owns Strategic Leadership Solutions, a consulting service designed to assist teams in building a culture of excellence in governance. Christina considers herself an asset management evangelist by inspiring local governments to take their stewardship responsibilities seriously and injecting enthusiasm into this complex topic.

Christina is passionate about leadership development, organizational culture, asset management and community engagement.  She believes in the importance of cultivating boards and councils that lead by governing and not managing.  With a combination of applicable experience and formal education, she prides herself on being creative, and dynamic in her approach to helping governing bodies engage in meaningful conversations that lead to systemic change.

Check out Christina’s TED talk on leadership here

Panelists

Kirn Dhillon was born and raised in the Yukon and received his civil engineering degree from the University of Waterloo in 2000.  He has been working with public sector infrastructure for the last 11 years. Most of that time was spent with the Government of Yukon helping small communities with their infrastructure projects. Recently, Kirn joined the City of Vernon to take on a role as the Manager of Infrastructure. Vernon is a medium-sized municipality of about 42,000 that serves as a hub for the North Okanagan region of the south central interior of British Columbia.

 

Susan Higdon has over 20 years’ experience, primarily in the Municipal government, economic development and tourism development sectors. Since February 2018, she has been the Town Clerk/Treasurer for the Town of Stellarton, Nova Scotia, where she is responsible for the management of all departments within the Municipality.  From 2004 to 2018, she held positions within the neighbouring community, Town of Trenton, initially in marketing and communications, then to Deputy Clerk. After graduating from Mount Saint Vincent University in Halifax, NS, Susan worked with Tourism Development Associations in Labrador as well as Pictou County, where she held various positions, including customer service trainer, membership coordinator, and executive director.

Susan also has diverse experience with community involvement and volunteering, having been involved with the Minor Hockey Association, Figure Skating, 100 Women who Care, and her family is heavily involved with volunteering for the Annual Race on the River Dragon Boat Festival.

Along with Susan’s Bachelor of Tourism and Hospitality Management Degree from Mount Saint Vincent University, she also has a Certificate in Local Government Administration from Dalhousie University. Susan resides in New Glasgow, NS,  is married to Chris, has two children Sarah (17) and Jack (14) and a mini Golden Doodle, Duke.

 

Khaled Shahata is Manager of Corporate Asset Management at the City of London, Ontario. He has over 15 years of academic, consulting and municipal experience in the area of infrastructure asset management. Dr. Shahata has steered the initiative to develop an effective corporate asset management program at the City of London since its launch in April 2011.

Prior to joining the City, he was an Asset Management Leader at UEM Inc. and an Infrastructure Management Engineer at AECOM. Dr. Shahata is a professional engineer with a Ph.D. in Construction Management, continually contributing to the engineering profession through publications and teaching.