The hunt is one for two plum positions at the city, as I see by reading the career ads in the Globe and Mail this morning: General Manager, Engineering Services and Director, Corporate Communications.
For those not in the know, those positions are vacant because 1. Tom Timm retired as head of engineering recently. He gave two weeks’ notice and is now gone. 2. Ryan Merkley, who had been filling in as interim director after decamping from Toronto Mayor David Miller’s office to come to Vancouver temporarily, has decided not to stay on in the position. (He tells me it was a hard decision, but in the end, he and his family decided to stay in Toronto, where his wife runs a successful magazine.) You’ll recall that prior to Merkley (who had also worked for Vision Vancouver on their election campaign), the director was Laurie Best, now running the web operations. For past history there, check my blog archives and Sean Holman’s publiceyeonline.com.
Okay, history lesson over. Now on to the exciting new jobs.
“Can you imagine a more exciting place to give to your community? Have you reached the point in your career when you’re ready to align your values and ambitions with something bigger? Maybe that ‘bigger something’ is the continued emergence of one of the world’s exceptional cities. After hosting the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, the city’s international reputation has grown for its warmth, hospitality, accessibility and a remarkable sustainability agenda. Here’s a chance to join a vibrant organization, to take the opportunity to participate in the strategic decision-making process and help to shape the future of this great city.
GENERAL MANAGER, ENGINEERING SERVICES As the Chief Engineer, here is an incredible leadership opportunity as you coach, direct and inspire 1,900 staff towards the strategic vision of Vancouver’s public works. Working with the City Manager, to support the Mayor and Council, you have responsibility for the engineering agenda as well as play a critical contribution to Vancouver’s drive to be the greenest city in the world. Fostering positive working relationships with City of Vancouver stakeholders, aligned agencies and professional associations, you will encourage among your engineering team, innovation, responsiveness and leadership. In addition to your P.Eng. and extensive senior management credentials, you have earned a reputation as a progressive leader and one with a strong track record for successful transformational change.
DIRECTOR, CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS You will join the City in the afterglow of its most visible and successful celebration and build on its global acclaim. In this front and centre strategic role, you will further develop the international profile for Vancouver, by inspiring a high performance in-house team and robustly managing across the full spectrum of contemporary media communication tools. Reporting to the City Manager, and supporting the Mayor and Council, this role is critical in moving forward Council’s agenda and the city’s strategic business plan while positively enhancing community and civic engagement..
An accomplished senior communications strategist and leader in a public or private corporation, you have earned a university degree in a relevant discipline. We are waiting for you! All responses to The Caldwell Partners are confidential.