Rosebush>>Season's Greetings!

 

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

Blair McNaughton

It seems to me that this is an exciting time to be a P2 professional in Canada. With the launch of the IAP2 Canada affiliate and the election of its Board in June, IAP2 has for the first time a national presence committed to promoting and improving the practice across Canada. It’s been interesting to follow a number of online conversations and see how the Canadian affiliate has spurred new interest in starting new IAP2 chapters across the country!  And why not? After all, we hear time and time again that members look to our organization’s local presence and events for much of their membership value.

Here in Alberta we’ve been lucky to have the membership numbers and commitment that have allowed us to offer a number of local activities in both Calgary and Edmonton as well as online. Coming off of a two-year period when a number of our offerings related to the IAP2 international reorganization and the subsequent establishment of the IAP2 Canada affiliate, this year’s Board has committed itself to a strong and sustainable focus on building membership value at the local level.

At our Board retreat July we identified four key areas to focus on:

  • Member Appeal and Value: identifying member interest and offering a variety of events and opportunities for involvement that are accessible to all members.
  • Advocacy and Outreach: broaden our relationship and involvement with groups and organizations that have a P2 interest.
  • Professional Development: provide and promote continuous learning in the field of P2 through a range of PD opportunities for members at different times and locations through a variety of delivery methods.
  • Innovation and Research: identify areas for research and promote research and to share experience and learning among members.


So how will see the Wild Rose Board’s focus in action?  Here are just a few things to look for:

  • Membership update: it’s good to have accurate contact information if you want to stay in touch with members; and with IAP2 Canada now responsible for Canadian records, we figured it was a good time to get them up to date. In October and November a contract consultant will be contacting all IAP2 members to update membership information
  • IAP2 Wild Rose Display: we have already purchased a display to take to conferences, trade shows, and employment fairs. Watch for its debut at the Synergy conference in Red Deer October 24-26, and if you have an event you would like to see it at, let us know.
  • Professional Development: IAP2 WR will continue to promote the certificate courses when they are offered, but watch for additional advanced courses in both Calgary and Edmonton; we’re shooting for two in each between now and June 2012.
  • Research: a multidiscipline/sector (IAP2, academia, business) committee will identify research priorities and opportunities for research and we are moving to creating simplified opportunities for members to submit case studies.


Okay, so to make these and other initiatives sustainable you may see the odd call for volunteers, starting with a call for PD committee members in this Rosebush. It’s been my personal experience that volunteering is a great way to get a lot of value out of my professional organizations. The time commitment is your decision, and volunteering lets you share or build you skills and interests while getting to know other professionals in the field.  With today’s technology, you don’t have to live in Calgary or Edmonton to volunteer, and your involvement might even help find chances to achieve another goal and see more activities in cities other the big two.

I started this message by say that this is an exciting time to be a P2 professional in Canada. While much of the country is finding new enthusiasm and commitment and new IAP2 chapters are emerging, here in Alberta it feels more like we are the big brothers and sisters exploring new ground, approaches, and strategies. I look forward to working with the talented and committed individuals on the Wild Rose Board and with members from across the province as we strive to make IAP2 Wild Rose more relevant and more accessible to all of you.

IAP2 WILD ROSE MEMBERSHIP PROGRAM AND IAP2 CANADA WEBSITE

Membership Program: With the transition to IAP2 Canada, our national affiliate is now responsible for all membership records. What has quickly become apparent over that last year is that a number of records are incomplete and out of date, and Wild Rose relies on those records to provide our member services.  The contractor we hired to contact members and update records has completed the first round of contacts and updated contact information for over 1/3 of all members who responded.  If you haven’t yet responded you should receive a follow-up email or phone call in December confirm your membership information. If you are not contacted, please take the time to log into the members only section of www.IAP2Canada.ca (instructions below) and update your member profile.

IAP2 Canada Website:  Even if you are contacted, it’s worth taking the time to sign into the IAP2 Canada website and updating your profile. The new member profiles and directory are significantly expanded over what was available from IAP2.org. Along with some private demographic information that helps us know more about our members (educational background for instance), your IAP2 profile includes opportunities to share your P2 interests, areas of practice, and other information with IAP2 Canada members. You can even post an image and company logo. Over time you may even have an opportunity to share your profile, or specific elements of it, with the public.

Other features of the IAP2 Canada website include a number of online communities of practice, IAP2 event listings from across Canada, and the latest IAP2 Canada news and blogs. The site is still relatively new and we expect that the features will become more active widely used as people become familiar with them so watch for the site to become more and more active over the coming months.

 

Logging into IAP2 Canada members only section for the first time:

    Go to www.IAP2Canada.ca . The member login is in the orange box at the bottom of the menu.
    Email: enter your email address that is on record with IAP2
    Password: leave blank
    Click login button.  You will be prompted to create a password.

To edit your profile click view profile (appears in the orange login box after you log in) then click the Edit Profile button at the top of the profile page.

CALL FOR VOLUNTEERS

Since the AGM last April, the board has experienced the departure or unexpected demands on several members and has struggled to achieve some of its member service objectives.  To continue delivering the service our members want in Calgary and Edmonton as well as (hopefully) other Alberta cities on occasion, we are looking to you, our members, to volunteer for two different committees.

Professional Development Committee:  general responsibilities will be to contribute to the identification and selection of chapter sponsored PD and learning opportunities, and to help organize the PD, learning, and related events. The time requirement is flexible and your commitment can be general or project-based. If you are interested volunteering or in finding out more, email bmcnaughton@maze.ab.ca.

Communications Committee: general responsibilities for the committee will be to maintain and update the Wild Rose  the website, release bimonthly Rosebush newsletter (assemble the newsletter and possibly writing some small articles or features), maintain/develop content for  Wild rose social media tools,  and to provide communications support for various Wild Rose projects, events and initiatives. The time requirement is flexible and your commitment can be general or project-based. Most of the communications are electronic so contributions do not require volunteers be in Calgary or Edmonton.

Volunteering can be a great way to boost the value you get from organizations such as IAP2. It lets you share or build you skills and interests while getting to know other professionals in the field.  With today’s technology, you don’t have to live in Calgary or Edmonton to volunteer, and your involvement might even help find chances to achieve another goal and see more activities in cities other the big two.

If you are interested volunteering for in finding out more, email bmcnaughton@maze.ab.ca.

IAP2 Wild Rose Café, Creating Value Through Integration of Public Consultation Within Municipal Decisions, October 27, 2011


IAP2 Wild Rose Chapter and the Canadian Trainers Collective (CTC) www.canadiantrainerscollective.ca co-sponsored this Wild Rose Café in Edmonton featuring Michelle Chalifoux, Public Involvement Project Manager, and Susan Meunier, Office of Public Involvement with the City of Edmonton. Participants learned more about the City of Edmonton public involvement "Involving Edmonton Policy and Framework" that guides consultation processes for all municipal decisions, from major policy reforms to infrastructure projects. Susan identified implications and lessons learned in transforming public input into value for communities and municipalities, including:

  • Bringing corporate consistency to public consultation initiatives.
  • Building awareness around consultation scope, purpose and objectives.
  • Translating long term objectives and public input into action.

Michelle shared examples of how the Involving Edmonton Policy and Framework was successfully used in recent consultation projects in the City, including the SE/West LRT Concept Planning Project.