Baker Elected President of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators
Marie-Hélène Lajoie, CAMA Past President
& Janice Baker, CAMA President
Janice Baker, City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer for the City of Mississauga, ON was elected President of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) at the Association’s Annual General Meeting held on May 30, 2017 in Gatineau, QC. She most recently served as First Vice-President for the Association and is the CAMA Representative for Ontario.
Baker will lead the 575-member national organization of senior municipal management professionals for the next year. She will succeed outgoing CAMA President, Marie-Hélène Lajoie, City Manager for Gatineau, QC who was CAMA’s first woman President and a former CAMA Director-at-Large.
“I am extremely honoured to have been elected President of the CAMA Board of Directors,” said Baker. “Through my work with the Association over the past few years, I have come to value the role this organization plays in enhancing the work of professional municipal administrators across the country.”
Ms. Baker is the City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) for the City of Mississauga. Janice brings with her an extensive background in both the private and public sector. She has 30 years of municipal government and fiscal administration experience, serving as Director of Finance and City Treasurer for the City of St. John's, Newfoundland and Commissioner of Corporate Services and then Commissioner of Public Works for the City of Oshawa, Ontario.
She joined the City of Mississauga in May 1999, as Commissioner of Corporate Services and Treasurer and was promoted to City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer in 2005.
Janice has received a number of awards including: three-time Women’s Executive Network (WXN) Top 100 Award winner in the Public Sector Leaders category in 2005, 2007, and 2009; inducted into the WXN Canada’s Top 100 Most Powerful Women’s Hall of Fame in 2010; the Fellow Chartered Accountant (FCA) designation from the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Ontario (ICAO) in 2011; and the Excellence in Municipal Finance Award from the Municipal Finance Officers Association of Ontario (MFOA) in 2011.
She currently serves on a number of other Boards and Committees including the Living Arts Centre (LAC), the Healthy Cities Stewardship Centre, and has a long history of community and professional volunteer service. Janice earned a Bachelor of Commerce (Honours) degree from Memorial University of Newfoundland in 1979 and went on to become a Chartered Accountant in 1982.
Three new professional municipal administrators were also elected to the CAMA Board of Directors: Tony Kulbisky, CAMA Representative for Alberta / Chief Administrative Officer, Town of Devon, AB; Beverly Hendry, CAMA Director-at-Large / Commissioner, Corporate Services Department, City of Oshawa, ON; and, Cory Bellmore, CAMA Representative for Northwest Territories, Yukon Territory and Nunavut / Chief Administrative Officer, Village of Carmacks, YT.
The 2017-18 CAMA Board of Directors includes:
Janice Baker, President / CAMA Representative for Ontario / City Manager and Chief Administrative Officer (CAO), City of Mississauga, ON
Marc Landry, First Vice President / CAMA Representative for New Brunswick / City Manager, City of Moncton, NB
Jeff Renaud, Second Vice President / CAMA Director-at-Large
Jake Rudolph, Treasurer / CAMA Representative for British Columbia / Deputy City Manager, City of Abbotsford, BC
Marie-Hélène Lajoie, Past President / CAMA Director-at-Large / City Manager, Gatineau, QC
Rodney Cumby, CAMA Representative Newfoundland and Labrador / Chief Administrative Officer for the Town of Paradise, NL
Louis Coutinho, CAMA Representative for Nova Scotia and Prince Edward Island / Chief Administrative Officer, Town of Windsor, NS
Jack Benzaquen, CAMA Representative, Quebec / City Manager, City of Dollard-des-Ormeaux, QC
Jean-Marc (JM) Nadeau, CAMA Representative for Manitoba and Saskatchewan / City Manager, City of Portage la Prairie, MB
Tony Kulbisky, CAMA Representative for Alberta / Chief Administrative Officer, Town of Devon, AB
Beverly Hendry, Commissioner, Corporate Services Department, City of Oshawa, ON / CAMA Director-at-Large
Cory Bellmore, Chief Administrative Officer, Village of Carmacks, YT / CAMA Representative for Northwest Territories Yukon Territory and Nunavut
CAMA Introduces Free CAO Performance Evaluation Toolkit
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The Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA) has introduced a three-step CAO Performance Evaluation Toolkit that will benefit municipalities across the country. Developed and piloted over a two-year period, the toolkit will enhance the CAO / Council relationship and help Council achieve their strategic goals and objectives. It is available for free to member and non-member municipalities.
“An effective working relationship between local elected officials and their Chief Administrative Officer can be one of the most critical prerequisites for municipal government success,” said Janice Baker, President of CAMA, Chair of the CAO Performance Evaluation Task Force, and CAO/City Manager for the City of Mississauga, ON. “We are excited to give back to our profession by making this toolkit available to Canadian municipalities.”
Mayors and councillors rely on their CAO to be the connecting link between elected officials and municipal operations; to implement the municipality’s policies and programs; and, to help them achieve their strategic goals and objectives. For some time now, however, CAMA has been aware from their members that meaningful performance evaluations didn’t seem to be taking place.
With that in mind, in a survey conducted by CAMA in 2014, while a majority of elected officials and CAOs indicated they participated in a performance evaluation process, far less reported they feel prepared for the process or that the outcomes are tied to actual results. Overwhelmingly, both parties identified the need to establish a performance evaluation system benefiting each.
As a result, CAMA spent two years developing a three-step CAO Performance Evaluation Toolkit. It was prepared using surveys and best practice research, with input and support from CAMA members, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities (FCM), public sector / human resource experts, and the International City/County Managers Association (ICMA). It was piloted in almost 15 communities and further tested by a number of other municipalities in 2016.
The result is a toolkit that uses a “pick and choose” format, which can be adapted to support existing evaluation processes. It builds on foundational steps and core competencies to help set clear goals for the success of the municipality, to guide and support the evaluation process, and to foster open conversations between Council and the CAO.
The first step sees the CAO create a Handbook for Performance Evaluations. The handbook is then provided to elected officials for their input and the creation of a Final Performance Evaluation Report as step two. In the third step, elected officials and the CAO sit down to discuss the performance evaluation report, establish new goals for the CAO to meet, and sign on off on the final CAO Performance Evaluation.
“As a national association focused on administrative excellence in local government, this toolkit is about building better municipalities together,” added Baker. “I encourage elected officials and CAOs to take advantage of this free resource.”
The toolkit is available by visiting the CAMA website at www.camacam.ca/CAOevaluation or by contacting the CAMA National Office at 1-866-771-2262 or [email protected].
CAMA Presents Long Service Recognition Awards for 2017
Municipal administrators from across Canada have been recognized by the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrator’s (CAMA) with the Association’s 2017 Long Service Recognition Awards.
The awards for 20, 25, 30, and 35-years of service were presented at a luncheon held as part of CAMA’s national conference in Gatineau, QC on May 29th, 2017. In total, 26 municipal administrators from across Canada were recognized.
Five chief administrative officers were also recognized for 40-years of service at the CAMA President’s Dinner on May 31 at the Canadian Museum of History. They include:
- Paul Benedetto, City Manager, City of Leduc, AB
- Terry Hager, County Commissioner, Lacombe County, AB
- Tony Martens, Chief Administrative Officer, Mountain View County, AB
- Larry McCabe, Clerk/Chief Administrative Officer, Town of Goderich, ON
- Ronald Campbell, Chief Administrative Officer, Village of Port Alice, BC (was unable to be in attendance).
“I am really pleased that we are able to recognize so many professional municipal administrators with long service awards,” said Marie-Hélène Lajoie, President of CAMA and City Manager for Gatineau, QC. “It is indeed a rewarding career and these individuals are a great resource to assist the next generation of leaders in our profession.”
Letters of congratulations and recognition pins were mailed to municipal administrators having completed 10 and 15 years of municipal service in April 2017.
The breakdown of 2017 Long Services Awards is as follows: Ten Years of Service – 21 awards; Fifteen Years of Service – 20 awards; Twenty Years of Service – five awards; Twenty-Five Years of Service – 11 awards; Thirty Years of Service – five awards: Thirty Five Years of Service – five awards: and, Forty Years of Service – five awards. For a complete list of the recipients, visit the CAMA website.
CAMA’s Long Service Recognition Awards program, which was implemented in January 2011, is based on the number of years of full-time, paid employment in a local government in a management capacity, either as a Chief Administrative Officer (CAO) or reporting directly to a CAO.
The Long Service Recognition Awards are granted after ten years of service and are then given in five year increments. The Distinguished Member Award recognizes any CAMA member who has been in the position of a Chief Administrative Officer or City Manager position for 25-years or more, and who has been a CAMA member for at least 10 years.
Nine Canadian Municipalities Win National Awards of Excellence
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Nine Canadian municipalities have won national awards of excellence from the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA). The awards were presented in the areas of innovation, environment and professional development during CAMA’s national conference held in Gatineau, QC.
Winning efforts included a water treatment plant, an online platform for pickup sport games, a digital city initiative, a solar project, a micro hydro project from sewer effluent, a textile landfill diversion strategy, two municipal employee leadership programs, and a priority based budgeting process.
“I am extremely pleased that CAMA is able to recognize the excellence being demonstrated by communities across Canada with our awards program,” said Marie-Hélène Lajoie, president of CAMA and City Manager for Gatineau, QC. “There is no doubt that the winning projects are helping to building better municipalities.”
The following municipalities and projects were recognized, in three categories, based on their population size:
2017 CAMA Willis Award for Innovation
Town of Inuvik, NT, (Under 20,000 Population Category) – East Channel Water Treatment Plant
City of Waterloo, ON, (20,001 to 100,000 Population Category) – Waterloo's Own PickUpHub
City of Kitchener, ON, (Over 100,000 Population Category) – Digital Kitchener: Kitchener's Approach to a Smart City
2017 CAMA Environment Award
Northern Sunrise County, AB, (Under 20,000 Population Category) – Fire Hall Solar Project
City of Fort St. John, BC, (20,001 to 100,000 Population Category) – Micro Hydro Project
City of Markham, ON, (Over 100,000 Population Category) – Markham SMART Textile Diversion Strategy
2017 CAMA Professional Development Award
District of Squamish, BC, (Under 20,000 Population Category) – Hardwired for Leadership
Strathcona County, AB, (20,001 to 100,000 Population Category) – Priority Based Business Planning and Budgeting
City of Coquitlam, BC, (Over 100,000 Population Category) – “Leading with Purpose” Leadership Development Program
“CAMA received a total of 59 award submissions for this year’s awards program – the most in our history as an association,” said Jean-Marc Nadeau, Chair of CAMA’s Awards Committee, CAMA Representative for Manitoba, Saskatchewan & Nunavut, and City Manager for the City of Portage la Prairie, MB. “It is exciting to see the ingenuity being exhibited by our members. Congratulations to the winners and all those who took time to enter a submission.”
The Willis Award for Innovation, awarded in recognition of Jack Willis for his contribution to CAMA, is presented for programs, projects or services that demonstrate exceptional innovation or meritorious initiative. CAMA’s Environment Award recognizes the commitment of a municipality to environmentally sustainable governance, to protecting the environment and to combating climate change. The Professional Development Award recognizes a community that has developed a unique and innovative program for their staff and can be replicated in other communities.
Since Canada has a unique mixture of small and large communities, awards are granted according to population – for municipalities under 20,000, for those between 20,001 and 100,000 and for those over 100,000.
Campbell Recognized for Contribution to Local Government Administration
.jpg) Duncan E. Campbell, Eng., retired Director General for the City of Westmount, QC, has been recognized for his contribution to excellence in local government administration with an Honorary Membership for Life Award from the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators (CAMA). The presentation was made during CAMA’s national conference in Gatineau, QC.
“CAMA is pleased to recognize Mr. Campbell for his extraordinary contribution to the field of municipal administration, our professional association and to his community,” said Marie-Hélène Lajoie, president of the Canadian Association of Municipal Administrators and City Manager for Gatineau, QC.
After 14 years working for Canadian National Railways in a number of operational and administrative positions across the country, Duncan Campbell joined the Town of Mount Royal, QC in 1988 becoming its Director General in early 1989. He held this position until his appointment as Associate Director General of the new City of Montreal following the municipal mergers of 2001. During his time with the City of Montreal, he managed a number of significant portfolios including the coordination of 11 of its newly formed boroughs and the implementation of SIMON, Montreal’s first integrated management system.
In 2008, he accepted the position of Director General of the City of Westmount, Quebec, a position he retired from on January 9, 2015. During that time, he directed the renewal of Westmount’s administrative departments and services through innovation, organizational and technological change. He also managed the design, construction and implementation phases of the Westmount Recreation Centre project, the first underground arena in the world, which received LEED Gold certification. The Westmount Recreation Centre won a 2015 CAMA Willis Award for Innovation, the Union des municipalités du Québec (UMQ) award in the Heritage and Sports division and was a finalist in three other competitions.
In April 2015, after having been retired for only three months, Mr. Campbell accepted a six-month position as Director General for the Town of Hudson, QC. He brought stability and guidance to a community affected by mismanagement and fraud.
Mr. Campbell has been active in municipal management organizations such as CAMA (where he served as its president in 1995-1996), the Association des directeurs généraux des municipalités du Québec (ADGMQ) and the International City/County Management Association (ICMA), where in 2009 he acted as Chair of the Host Committee for its Montreal conference and in 2014 was Conference Planning Chair for its 100th anniversary in Charlotte, NC. In February 2013, he was awarded the Queen's Diamond Jubilee Medal in recognition to his long service to the communities he had served.
He is a professional engineer and holds an MBA from the lvey School of Business at Western University. Always active in many charitable, educational and sports organizations, he currently serves as the president of the Weredale Foundation, which runs a summer camp for disadvantaged youth from Montreal's English community. He is also a Level Ill ski instructor at Mont Tremblant.
Mr. Campbell and his family have deep roots in Westmount as many generations have lived here through the years and his great grandfather, George Hogg, was mayor from 1926 to 1930.
“Thank you very much for this honour. I am deeply touched and feel very privileged to have been selected,” said Mr. Campbell. “CAMA has always been an important asset for CAOs and senior municipal staff across Canada. I hope that I made a small contribution to the success it enjoys today as well as to the communities where I have served”
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