Many councils are now turning to develop a strategic plan whereas others may be struggling with how to stay on track given the number of issues that have popped up over the last two years. Strategic planning provides clarity, direction, and focus for an organization. Facilitated by one of Canada’s most respected municipal advisors, this session will help councils and staff in their challenging task of selecting, setting, and sticking to strategic priorities.

Gordon McIntosh has served as both a CAO and a researcher focused on the political/administrative interface and the CAO leadership role. He has delivered conference keynotes and sessions, executive workshops and customized programs for Indigenous, Métis, local and regional governments as well as municipal associations and corporations throughout Canada, Palestine, the United States, Caribbean, South America, Sri Lanka, Africa and The Philippines, receiving positive reviews for his, fast paced, interactive, humorous and practical sessions.

Join other elected officials and staff in local, regional, and Indigenous governments for this deep dive into solution seeking techniques and priority setting criteria to’ real time’ matters. Learn how to create a strategic dashboard for council priorities and operational strategies that align with organizational capacity. Equally important, implement practices to keep your organization’s eye on the ‘ball’ and changing ‘game’ conditions.

What you’ll learn in this Municipal Master Class

• Solution seeking steps to convert strategic goals and objectives into action

• Priority setting process to complement strategic planning efforts

• Priority setting criteria to select strategic choices for implementation

• How to create a strategic dashboard

Why you should attend this Municipal Master Class

Setting realistic priorities is a core organizational competency. It is crucial to think strategically, set proper priorities, manage capacity and assess urgency, assign responsibility, and administer strategic priorities throughout the term. But this can be challenging, and councils are often thrown off track—this class will provide the tools to translate goals and objectives into strategic possibilities, turn strategic possibilities into action-oriented priorities, and sustain ongoing attention to strategic priorities.

Who should attend?

Anyone involved or interested in strategic planning in their municipality:

• New municipal councillors

• Returning municipal councillors

• CAOs, clerks, and other staff

• Municipal affairs staff at the provincial and federal orders of government

• Students and others interested in municipal government

About the Master Class Leader

Dr. Gordon McIntosh has over 40 years of executive, consultant and educator roles in local government. He received the Professional Award for Excellence while serving as the Islands Trust Executive Director for the 470 Gulf Islands in the Georgia Basin. Gordon has conducted 1,400 sessions for associations, local governments and universities involving 150,000 elected and appointed civic leaders throughout Canada and overseas.

Event Cancellation Policy

If a registration fee was paid, cancellations must be received 24 hours prior to the start time of the webinar for a refund less a processing fee. If MW cancels the webinar due to low attendance or other unforeseen circumstances, all registration fees will be refunded.

MW may, at its sole discretion, choose to cancel a webinar due to low attendance or other unforeseen circumstances. In this case, we will notify you via the listed email address provided at registration.

MW reserves the right to substitute alternative presenters due to unanticipated situations.

Technology Failure

In the event there is a technology failure during a webinar and the session cannot be completed, MW will look to reschedule the webinar. If rescheduling is not possible and a registration fee was paid, a refund will be issued within four (4) weeks of the program date based on the following scenarios:

• Partial Refund – If 50% or more of content was delivered, MW will issue a partial refund.

• MW is not required to refund fees due to technology issues caused by a participant using non-supported devices/software, or due to connectivity issues on the part of the participant.