2018 Annual Report for the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta
You turn up the heat and grab a glass of clean tap water, before researching a project on the internet or tracking your fitness on your phone. You walk the dog past a stormwater management pond and admire the blackbirds flitting between cattails. You catch the train to the big game. Whenever you use or connect with the human-built world, you’re relying on the work of APEGA’s members. Our members are at the vanguard of the renewable energy boom. Just as important, they’re discovering and processing the traditional resources Alberta and the rest of the world continue to rely upon. They’re testing, developing, and commercializing amazing products and technologies that improve and save lives. They’re propelling the economy. They’re protecting the public. And all of this is being accomplished under a time-tested system of self-regulation that their predecessors devised. APEGA’s roots are in the early 1900s, when engineers recognized that a lack of regulation of their profession—whose ranks in those days included geoscientists—was endangering the public. Way back then, they did something impressive and innovative. Turning a crisis into an opportunity, they proposed, to the Government of Alberta, that engineers regulate themselves. Almost 100 years later, it’s the model that APEGA continues to successfully use and improve. Our members created the path that got us here. And our members are creating the path forward. T h e P a t h F o r w a r d
2 0 1 8 A p e g a A n n u a l R e p o r t
T h e P a t h F o r w a r d
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
You turn up the heat and grab a glass of clean tap water, before researching a project on the internet or tracking your fitness on your phone. You walk the dog past a stormwater management pond and admire the blackbirds flitting between cattails. You catch the train to the big game. Whenever you use or connect with the human-built world, you’re relying on the work of APEGA’s members. Our members are at the vanguard of the renewable energy boom. Just as important, they’re discovering and processing the traditional resources Alberta and the rest of the world continue to rely upon. They’re testing, developing, and commercializing amazing products and technologies that improve and save lives. They’re propelling the economy. They’re protecting the public. And all of this is being accomplished under a time-tested system of self-regulation that their predecessors devised. APEGA’s roots are in the early 1900s, when engineers recognized that a lack of regulation of their profession—whose ranks in those days included geoscientists—was endangering the public. Way back then, they did something impressive and innovative. Turning a crisis into an opportunity, they proposed, to the Government of Alberta, that engineers regulate themselves. Almost 100 years later, it’s the model that APEGA continues to successfully use and improve. Our members created the path that got us here. And our members are creating the path forward.
A History of Success
APEGA 101
6 7 8
Introduction
Our Membership
38 Summit Awards 40 Centennial Leadership Award 41 Environment and Sustainability Award 42 APEGA: The Path So Far
Operational Highlights Self-Regulation 10 APEGA’s Council 12 Message from the President 14 Message from the RCEO 16 Legislative Review 18 Introduction 20 Becoming an APEGA Professional 24 Discipline 24 Appeals 25 Compliance 26 Professional Practice 26 Authentication Standard 26 Practice Reviews 27 Continuing Professional Development 27 Examinations 29 Membership Services 29 Career Services 30 Membership Experience Project 32 Induction Ceremonies 32 Diversity and Inclusion 33 PD for Teachers 34 Innovation in Education Awards 22 Investigations 23 Enforcement
Volunteer spotlight
44 Amir Fardi, E.I.T. 45 Dr. Tatiana Goulko, P.Eng.
Public Members
financials 49 Practice Review Board 50 Investigative Committee 50 Appeal Board 51 Discipline Committee 46 Introduction 48 Council 48 Board of Examiners
55 The Path Forward—Revisited Conclusion 52 Auditor’s Letter 53 Summary Financial Statements
36 Corporate Services 37 People and Culture 37 Finance 37 Information Technology
Apega 101
In Ex P
APEGA serves the public by regulating engineers, geoscientists, and the organizations they practise under. We licence them. We direct and guide them. We make sure they are competent, and that they conduct themselves professionally and ethically. When necessary, we investigate and discipline them. We also protect the public from non- members who contravene the legislation that guides us—those people and companies who illegally use our protected titles or practise when they aren’t licenced. As a self-regulator, we are funded through member dues rather than taxes, while the Government of Alberta (GOA) provides us with broad direction through the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act. Members elect fellow professionals to sit at our Council table. The public is represented during Council meetings, too, by three Councillors appointed by the GOA. APEGA will celebrate its centennial in 2020. With almost 75,000 members, we are the largest organization of self-regulated professionals in Western Canada. From academia to industry, from governments to not-for-profits, from oil and gas to solar power, from the health sciences to high tech, APEGA’s members are making ethical, skilled, forward-looking decisions that protect and serve the public.
Leaders. Innovators. Experts. Professionals.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Our Membership
ovato perts ofessio 0 10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000 50,000 60,000 70,000 80,000 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 0 1,000 2,000 3,000 4,000 5,000 4,587 4,584 4,554 4,623 4,617 Professional Member (ENG.) Professional Member (GEO.) Member-in-Training (E.I.T.) Member-in-Training (G.I.T.) Others Corporate Permits to Practice
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A P E G A 1 0 1
What does the self-regulation of engineering and geoscience do for Alberta?
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2018 APEGA Annual Report l t
It leverages the specialized expertise, skills, knowledge, and experience of people who practise the professions. This gives our regulatory decisions real-world relevance and validity, which means the public is protected by sound science and peer- developed standards. It harnesses the power and knowledge of volunteers. APEGA relies on the experience and expertise of volunteers to make regulatory decisions with staff, and to share science with the public. Without volunteers participating in regulation, the government would have to use taxpayer dollars to fulfill these duties. It saves taxpayers even more money. APEGA operates on funds raised from members through fees. Without APEGA, this money would come from provincial coffers. It defines, maintains, and advances a community of qualified professionals. All professional engineers and professional geoscientists in Alberta have APEGA in common. That means they adhere to the same Code of Ethics , follow the same guidelines and standards, are investigated and disciplined in the same way, and must achieve the same level of education, experience, and good character. Think of it as a type of consumer protection—when companies and individuals hire APEGA professionals, they know what they’re getting. All forms of regulation are designed to protect the public. But only self-regulation ties public protection directly to the people performing the regulated services. It’s effective and publicly affordable, and it’s backed up by nearly a century of APEGA service to the public.
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A P E G A 1 0 1
APEGA’s Council and what it does
From left, front row: President-Elect, George Eynon, P.Geo., FGC, FEC (Hon.), President, Nima Dorjee, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.), Past-President, Jane Tink, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.), Vice-President, Timothy Joseph, P.Eng, PhD, FCIM Middle row: Jennifer Enns, P.Eng., Dr. Brad Hayes, P.Geol., FGC, FEC (Hon.), Claudia Villeneuve, P.Eng., M.Eng., Georgeann Wilkin, RN, LL.B, MBS, Emily Zhang, P.Eng., Jason Vanderzwaag, P.Eng., Walter Kozak, P.Eng. Back row: Darren Hardy, P.Eng., RaeAnne Leach, P.Eng., Bob Rundle, P.Eng., PMP, Tim Hohm, P.Eng., Natasha Avila, P.Eng.
Not pictured: Manon Plante, P.Eng., MDS, CD1, Mary Phillips-Rickey, FCA
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
APEGA’s Council—19 people strong—applies teamwork, professionalism, and a diversity of perspectives to its duties. This group provides governance and guidance to APEGA’s members and staff, and it’s a fundamental component of self-regulation.
Although APEGA has about 140 employees, Council directs just one of them, the Registrar & CEO, whose job it is to turn Council’s strategic direction into actions and outcomes. Three of those councillors are called public members. Appointed by the Government of Alberta, part of their role is to bring differing perspectives to discussions and decisions. The other 16 members of Council are professional engineers and professional geoscientists elected by their peers. Twelve are regular councillors serving three-year terms, and the other four are members of the Council Executive. Every year, APEGA holds an election to freshen Council by replacing four of the regular positions with new faces, and to vote two new members onto the executive. Councillors set the direction for APEGA, providing oversight throughout the year. Council’s responsibilities include: -- developing and driving APEGA's strategic direction -- ensuring responsible use of resources to effectively execute APEGA's strategic plan -- providing guidance on APEGA’s function and activities -- providing financial oversight
-- making decisions that affect the professions and the membership
Council is a critical element in maintaining and enhancing self-regulation, creating the path forward as we continue to serve the public into the next century.
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Message From The President
The APEGA President segment of my personal and professional journey is about to end, and I leave the position confident that I’ve played an important role in charting APEGA’s future. In many ways, that future is now. Engineers and geoscientists are practising in a new world. APEGA’s job is to keep current and relevant in this changing professional landscape, as one of Canada’s—and the world’s—premier self-regulators. We’ve earned our reputation, but we must continue to prove ourselves. Reliance on the work of professionals in other countries is a reality for many of Alberta’s industries. Engineering and geoscience oversight must be consistent and thorough, no matter where the work is done, and APEGA must continue to address the regulatory challenges this presents.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
“ I t h i n k o f o u r d u t y t o t h e p u b l i c a s s o m e t h i n g b i g g e r t h a n o u r s e l v e s , o u r i n c o m e s , a n d , d a r e I s a y i t , o u r p r o f e s s i o n s . ”
Globalization (and the internet) do not go in one direction, however. Our members need to embrace the concept of off- shoring. Opportunities for our members exist on the world stage, and we have a surplus of engineers and geoscientists who have excelled in a demanding professional environment. The leadership and mentorship our members can provide are marketable, and APEGA has helped members reach that level of professionalism. The new world also offers opportunities in homegrown projects. Oil and gas, I believe, will never return to its past glory. But the skills our members have can be used in a variety of industries, emergent and otherwise. It’s one of my major calls to action for the membership: be creative in the way you apply your skillset. Your experience, expertise, and professional approach are transferrable.
Finally, I’d like to talk about universal responsibility. I think of our duty to the public as something bigger than ourselves, our incomes, and, dare I say it, our professions. Many of our members agree with me, and they prove it every day through the wonderful things they do for the greater good, whether in Alberta or elsewhere in the world. I encourage them to continue in these pursuits, and I encourage others to follow their example. Thank you, people of Alberta, for placing your trust in us. And thank you, APEGA members, for giving me this platform. You’ve allowed me to do something special for engineering, geoscience, and the public, and it’s been a pleasure. Nima Dorjee, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.) APEGA President
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Message From The Registrar & CEO
When I look back at 2018, I see results that build upon a proud history and set us up for future success. Self-regulation is a journey of continuous improvement, and we intend to thrive tomorrow in the same way we have in the past. Welcome to APEGA Annual Report 2018: The Path Forward . The theme resonates with me, because it relates directly to my role as Registrar & CEO. Essentially, here’s what my Executive Leadership Team and I focus on: - - aligning our work with Council’s strategic direction - - finding new opportunities to improve - - responding to new information - - measuring APEGA’s success - - adjusting our course
What does all this mean on the ground? You’ll find out in the coming pages. For example, you’ll learn all about a new assessment system we developed with the help of a grant from the Government of Alberta. We now rely upon objective, comparable competencies, when we assess the experience of applicants. This is a huge step forward in making the system more relevant for everyone and intuitive for applicants. We’re part way through our Member Experience Project, which will make our online world more user-friendly. With the support of a federal grant, we’re studying workplace barriers for women and other groups in our membership. We’ve created the Innovation in Education Award to fund selected K-12 projects in science, technology, engineering
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
“ W h e n I l o o k b a c k a t 2 0 1 8 , I s e e r e s u l t s t h a t b u i l d u p o n a p r o u d h i s t o r y a n d s e t u s u p f o r f u t u r e s u c c e s s . ”
These and many other projects are all leading us into 2020, a big moment in the life of APEGA: we’ll celebrate our first centennial. The story this report tells will show you that we’re ready for 2020—and the years that follow. Thank you for supporting APEGA and joining us on this journey. Jay Nagendran, P.Eng., QEP, BCEE, FEC, FGC (Hon.) APEGA Registrar & CEO
and math. We’ve expanded our mentoring program into rural Alberta. We are also revising some important practice standards and guidelines, including: - - Authenticating Professional Work Products (the new version is nearly ready for Council approval) - - Relying on the Work of Others and Outsourcing - - Professional Practice Management Plans Many of the professional practice challenges our members and permit holders discuss with us involve these three documents, so we know this work is extremely important and relevant to our role of serving the public interest.
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Legislative Review
APEGA’s legislative review is all about meeting the needs of the future. We hope to be better equipped than ever to protect the public interest in our second century, as we keep our self-regulatory system relevant and vital. We began the review of the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act ( EGP Act ) and General Regulation in 2014. This resulted in a multi-year, deep dive into the legislation. In 2018, we concluded two critical phases of this ambitious project. The consulting phase and the submission phase—to the Government of Alberta (GoA)—are now complete. We also continued our conversation with the GoA and stakeholders, by creating a government relations program. Our ultimate objective is to obtain a modernized EGP Act . This has included continued conversations with our engineering and geoscience technology partners at the Association of Science & Engineering Technology Professionals of Alberta (ASET), elected officials, and various ministries and regulators. Also on our to-do list: aligning current APEGA bylaws with our proposed new legislation.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
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Rounds of legislative review consultation
sessions (spring and fall) Stakeholders shared their input on legislative change through: face-to-face meetings, surveys, email, webinars, videoconferencing
4,240
Stakeholders who participated in consulting sessions
3,930
Stakeholders who completed legislative review surveys
200 40 80
Proposed legislative changes under consideration
Professional Engineers and Geoscientists who make up the champions collaborative a group of professionals engaging members and permit holders in the legislative review process and leading discussions on proposed changes
Proposed recommendations examined during consultations and endorsed by Council
7
Communities where in-person consultation sessions were held: -- Calgary -- Edmonton
-- Fort McMurray -- Grande Prairie -- Lethbridge -- Lloydminster -- Red Deer
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Operational Highlights
Describing a year’s worth of ground-level activity would fill more pages than our annual report could possibly provide. We have a lot going on, as these highlights demonstrate in their representation of lofty words and plans—translated into actions. Some of these activities are underway day in and day out, regardless of the year. Some are specific to 2018. Others began in 2018 but will continue. All of them are helping us create a path forward, as APEGA nears its second century of service.
2018 APEGA Annual Report reating a p
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19 th forwar
O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
it’s a big
Becoming an APEGA professional
Registration is about people and their future in the organization. And it’s about our future as an organization. Each APEGA applicant is attempting to complete a life-changing transition. It’s a big deal, and we get that. We treat our potential members with respect. We honour their needs and dreams by processing their applications honestly and fairly, and as promptly as possible. But also at play is something bigger than any individual applicant or member. Registration is a critical component in APEGA’s service to the public interest. We must be certain that members have the education, experience, ethical and professional knowledge, and English- language competency required for a high standard of professional practice. All this drives us, as we create the path forward into our next century of service to the people of Alberta.
20 2018 APEGA Annual Report deal Regulatory Key regulatory functions, the responsibility of our Regulatory Group, are described in the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act . These represent the nuts and bolts of public protection through self-regulation.
Volume of Applicants: Canadian vs. International
Canadian Applicants
6,000
International Applicants
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,000
1,000
0
2016
2017
2018
Application Processing Times
250
Mean Days
232
Median Days
200
179
156
141
150
100
50
0
Canadian Applicants
International Applicants
Competency-Based Assessment In 2018, APEGA launched a robust system for reporting and examining the work experience of applicants applying for professional engineer and engineering licencee designations, called competency-based assessment (CBA). CBA features a list of core competencies that measures and explains their applicants’
engineering work experience. This transparent, quantifiable and equitable process makes it easy for applicants to understand how their skills are recognized and evaluated. CBA also means objective and comparable information is presented to APEGA’s Board of Examiners, for its determination of whether applicants meet Alberta’s experience standard for qualification as an engineer.
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Investigations We do our best to give members the extra knowledge and tools they require to perform their duties professionally, ethically, and within their skillsets. When we do receive complaints against members or permit holders, it’s up to the Investigations Department and the Investigative Committee to decide whether a complaint has sufficient grounds to proceed. Through the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act , APEGA has the authority to investigate unprofessional conduct and unskilled practice for engineering and geoscience in Alberta. A thorough and objective approach means evidence-based complaints can be resolved through an equally rigorous discipline process.
W h e n c o m p l a i n t s c o m e i n a g a i n s t m e m b e r s , w e i n v e s t i g a t e
Investigations at Year End
80
71
70
70
63 *
62
59 *
60
58
56
55
52 *
50
40
30
20
10
0
2016
2017
2018
Newly Opened year-to-date
Closed year-to-date
In Progress year-to-date
*does not include adjournments
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Enforcement W E M A K E I N F O R M E D D E C I S I O N S A G A I N S T M E M B E R S —A N D N O N -M E M B E R S Alberta’s Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act and General Regulation, along with APEGA’s bylaws, must be enforced to ensure the public is protected. This is true for members and, interestingly, non-members. Two regulatory areas make up our Enforcement Department—discipline, which involves members and permit holders, and compliance, which involves non-members who appear to be illegally using our protected titles or practising without licences.
discipl ine
Cases Closed
Processing Time
500
40
37
434
35
35
400
380
30
339
25
300
22
20
200
15
15
12
12
11
11
11
11
10
8
100
70
71
5
5
52
2
1
0
0
0
2016 2017
2018
2016 2017
2018
Discipline Hearing
Terminated Withdrawn
Number of Cases Closed
Mediated Recommended Discipline Order
Median Number of Days to Close
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Discipline
9 RDOs completed 11 RDOs received from the Investigative Committee
11 Hearings scheduled 3 Hearings completed 5 Hearings adjourned
Complaints often proceed through recommended discipline orders (RDOs), which, if accepted, mean that a formal hearing is not necessary. Investigated members or permit holders agree to the findings against them and the proposed disciplinary actions. A case manager from the Discipline Committee decides whether to recommend acceptance to the committee of an RDO. Case managers also manage and execute the full hearing process. Our main staff focus in 2018 was to schedule and hold a backlog of hearings.
2-3 M O N T H S
Average completion time for RDOs
appeals
2 0 1 8
Filings to APEGA’s Appeal Board are appeals of: -- registration refusals -- investigative dismissals -- discipline decisions
10 Cases
opened
158 D A Y S Average time to render decision
9 Cases closed 3 Backlog cases
2 0 1 6
9 11
Cases closed Cases opened
Average time to render decision 193 D A Y S
2 0 1 7
11 11
Cases closed Cases opened
Average time to render decision 163 D A Y S
2018 DECISION OUTCOMES 7 Decisions upheld 2 Appeals withdrawn
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Compliance
The compliance team engages with individuals, companies, or other entities that are: -- using reserved titles—titles only engineers, geoscientists, and legally practising organizations are allowed to use—without a licence or permit -- representing themselves as entitled to practise when they aren’t -- practising engineering or geoscience in the province of Alberta without an APEGA licence or permit Why does this matter? It’s a form of consumer protection. When members of the public hire engineers, geoscientists, or the companies that employ them to practise APEGA’s
professions, they need to know they’re hiring real, self-regulated professionals. In 2018, our focus was on recruiting and training new staff and continuing to address compliance cases. A significant success was working with a major company to ensure title compliance. Often, companies unknowingly give staff who aren’t APEGA members titles that contravene the Engineering and Geoscience Professions Act . We also retained an expert witness in geoscience to assist us on long-term outstanding cases that required expert opinions in the area.
2 0 1 6
2 0 1 8
346 Cases closed
2 0 1 7 189 427 464 748
Cases closed
Cases outstanding
341 5 Cases
Cases outstanding
Cases closed
successful in the Courts
Cases outstanding
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Professional Practice F A C E - T O - F A C E E N G A G E M E N T W I T H M E M B E R S A N D P E R M I T H O L D E R S The Professional Practice Department is all about contact with professionals. We do this through information and feedback sessions on new practice standards and guidelines. Through seminars for permits to practice. Through practice reviews. Through counselling members on how to properly meet APEGA’s requirements for continuing professional development. Authentication Standard Understanding and properly implementing authentication, particularly in the digital space, is one of the most talked-about challenges licenced professionals face in their practice. The Professional Practice Department, through the Authentication Standard Subject-Matter Panel (consisting of subject-matter experts and a select group of permit holders), updated APEGA's Authenticating Professional Documents Practice Standard . We even updated the name. Now titled Authenticating Professional Work Products , this standard improves definitions and adds clarity to this important professional responsibility. Practice Reviews The main objective of our practice review effort in 2018 was to collect data on the time, effort, and resources required to complete reviews. This will inform our decision- making process on the appropriate level of practice reviews to be conducted annually to demonstrate the due diligence serving the public interest requires of us. APEGA initiated 27 practice review this year. Feedback from permit holders was mostly positive, with many thanking us for our insights and recommendations. Those interactions add up. In 2018, we talked to more than 4,000 licenced professionals.
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Continuing Professional Development
Our mandatory Continuing Professional Development Program is the keystone in demonstrating an APEGA commitment to maintaining member competency. Professional Practice has been able to increase CPD compliance—and reinforce the importance of doing and recording ongoing learning as a critical component of self-regulation and professional due diligence.
Examinations APEGA delivers about 7,000 exams a year to applicants and professional members, most of them online. Exams are used to assess and confirm the knowledge and education of applicants, and sometimes to provide a first step for members towards licensure in the U.S. APEGA is a national leader in the development and continuous improvement of the National Professional Practice Examination (NPPE), which is used by 11 other engineering and geoscience self-regulating organizations in Canada. It confirms knowledge of areas such as professionalism, law, regulations, and ethics, and all APEGA applicants must pass it in order to obtain their professional license. In 2018 a great deal of work was undertaken by the APEGA Examinations team to improve and enhance the NPPE program. We successfully implemented a new syllabus (exam blueprint) for the NPPE. The new exam syllabus improves the exam’s organization of content, while providing added detail and clarity to applicants preparing for the exam. Additionally, in partnership with the University of Alberta, we conducted original research in the area of Canadian work experience and how the NPPE relates to Canadian culture. Our findings were well received when we presented them at the 2018 Canadian Network of Agencies for Regulation Conference. This research could lead to improvements in the way Canadian regulators approach exams for both newcomers and all applicants. We successfully implemented two important policies related to the number of attempts and time allowed for applicants to pass the NPPE. These improvements enhance application processing and provide further security of exam content.
A C A N A D I A N L E A D E R I N T H E C O N T I N O U S I M P R O V E M E N T O F T H E N A T I O N A L P R O F E S S I O N A L P R A C T I C E E X A M
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rograms, ervices nd tools
to and mai a succ
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
MEMBERSHIP SERVICES Membership Services is an invaluable support and development system for our current and future members. Strictly speaking, the work we do in Membership Services is not regulatory. There are no investigations of complaints going on this group. Nor are there practice reviews launched or panels struck to update practice standards. Membership Services is not disciplining members or asking them to correct their processes. But APEGA believes that good regulation has a whole other component: strong and appropriate services for members and permit holders. This group is about all the other things that go into being a well-rounded professional. It’s here to provide members trusted programs, services, and tools to create and maintain a successful career and balanced life.
reate ntain ssful
Career Services APEGA offers a variety of career services to meet the needs of our members and future members. In 2018, we launched student mentoring pilot programs at the University of Alberta and the University of Calgary. We continued to improve our mentoring program, and enrollment continues to grow. We made mentoring more efficient, started new initiatives, and reached out to members more often with news stories and refreshed advertising. Coming soon: speed mentoring. PD sessions have grown in number and attendance. Group registrations are more common than they used to be—which means our messaging is reaching larger groups of peers and colleagues.
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Membership Experience Project
We plan to transform the digital experience of members and permit holders, whenever they interact with APEGA. So we kicked off our Membership Experience Project—we call it MEx for short—in 2018. The year focused on discovery and planning. We continued to learn more about what members want and expect from us, and came up with a plan to fully execute MEx. We interviewed about 80-plus staff in 17 departments. We conducted five online and in-person focus groups with members. And we launched a membership survey.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
7,700 t o t a l m e m b e r s r e s p o n d e d 4,851 p r o f e s s i o n a l m e m b e r s 1,193 R e s p o n s i b l e M e m b e r s (members charged with extra regulatory responsibility within permit-holding companies)
400 More than
2,853 p a r t i a l c o m p l e t e s (data still used for analysis)
R E Q U E S T S F O R I M P R O V E M E N T S R E C E I V E D
The year 2019 will be critical for MEx. Our goals are to select a platform that meets our requirements and start detailed planning of our launch and implementation.
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
Professional Member Induction Ceremonies Every year, APEGA celebrates one of the most important milestones in our members’ lives: the achievement of professional status. We do this by inviting new members to ceremonies and receptions across Alberta. Many of these they can enjoy with their families and colleagues. For many years, it’s been difficult to accommodate all the members who wished to attend. But through a series of format modifications, we’ve eliminated our backlog of invitees. More members are able to attend ceremonies—sooner rather than later. Diversity & Inclusion Earlier this year, APEGA created and publicized a formal diversity statement to inspire our permit holders and members to champion diversity and inclusion in their workplace:
Centennial 2020 Y o u ’ l l b e s e e i n g a l o t o f u s i n 2 0 2 0 . T h a t ’ s b e c a u s e A P E G A w i l l b e c e l e b r a t i n g i t s 1 0 0 t h a n n i v e r s a r y. Planning hit high gear in 2018. Our centennial is an opportunity to delve into the association's long and storied past in a number of engaging and interesting ways. We’ll highlight the intertwining of APEGA with engineering and the geosciences, tell stories of members who’ve made valuable contributions to Alberta and the world, and use a variety of media platforms to engage our many stakeholders.
E n c o u r a g e a b u s i n e s s c u l t u r e o f b e l o n g i n g , i n c l u s i o n , a n d d i v e r s i t y f o r e q u i t y w i t h i n t h e e n g i n e e r i n g a n d g e o s c i e n c e p r o f e s s i o n s .
Great words. Are we living up to them?
Yes.
In 2018, we were awarded a three-year, $350,000 grant from the federal government’s Status of Women Canada (since renamed the Department for Women and Gender Equality, or WAGE). The grant was awarded for building partnerships to address systematic barriers, with a specific focus on promoting economic security for women. With this grant, APEGA will collaborate with permit holders and community organizations to develop, test, and release a workplace culture guideline. It will address retention and advancement barriers that affect women’s economic prosperity. Among its topics will be inclusion, hiring practices, wellness strategies, pay equity, training and advancement opportunities, and the creation of employee resource groups.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
PD for Teachers This year, APEGA launched its first professional development conference for teachers, aimed at helping them foster a love of learning about engineering and geoscience through real-world connections. We shared our unique perspective on experiential, project-based engineering and geoscience education to 69 Alberta educators from four school districts. After two immersive days of collaborating, creating, and brainstorming, participants walked away with industry-focused classroom activities, community-based project ideas, and a new way of thinking about STEM education.
We got some great feedback from participants.
“ T h a n k y o u s o m u c h f o r p r o v i d i n g t h i s o p p o r t u n i t y f o r m e
“ T h e t o p i c s w e r e r e l e v a n t . A P E G A i s o n t h e c u s p o f e m e r g i n g t r e n d s t h a t e d u c a t o r s n e e d t o b e r e s p o n s i v e t o . ”
t o r e f i n e m y s k i l l s i n t e a c h i n g S T E M t h i n k i n g . O h w h a t p o s s i b i l i t i e s
l i e a h e a d f o r t h e s t u d e n t s I t e a c h ! ”
“This was new information, not just rehashed stuff from other sessions. Loved the examples, the activities to get people thinking and sharing. Really a great succession in terms of scaffolding information.”
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
APEGA Innovation in Education Awards
APEGA’s Innovation in Education Awards celebrate and boost exceptional teachers and their initiatives in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). This new program awarded money to a first cycle of projects for the 2018/2019 school year.
$50,000 we awarded
to eleven exciting initiatives
$5,000 each receiving up to
7 from
reaching an expected 850 students in grades 2 to 12
different school boards across Alberta
Initiatives are being carried out by 12 schools
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Recipient teachers will use their awards to incorporate meaningful, hands-on, student-led experiences into their classrooms. Projects have students:
creating a turbine to charge cell phones __________________________________ developing multimedia displays in a community observatory __________________________________ programming sensors to optimize plant care in Martian soil __________________________________ participating in a new robotics program __________________________________ prototyping technologies that can withstand natural disasters __________________________________ installing interpretive trail signs to showcase geological, ecological, and Indigenous Peoples’ learnings
Like other activities in APEGA’s K-12 Outreach Program, the awards strive to excite young people about engineering and geoscience topics and associated careers, while also boosting their awareness. A few more points:
-- each chosen initiative relates to realistic applications that could positively impact the students’ communities -- APEGA members will be mentoring students and acting as subject-matter experts
-- the awards will help promote diversity within STEM fields, because of their impact on students who would not necessarily choose a STEM path
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O p e r a t i o n a l H i g h l i g h t s
The highlights here peek into the machinery that runs APEGA. Members, Council, and staff rely on the smooth operation of the association to do their jobs. For APEGA to serve the public interest, we need Corporate Services—a largely unseen hand in everything APEGA does—to work properly and efficiently. CORPORATE SERVICES
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Information Technology
People & Culture This initiative of the Human Resources Department centres on modernizing and standardizing the types of staff positions, responsibility levels, and lines of authority. It will allow for fair and transparent advancement, and equitable salary levels and comparisons. Employees and managers attended workshops on their role descriptors, which were drafted and sent to a consultant for review. Also under the People & Culture banner, APEGA’s vacation policy was updated, and a new whistleblower policy and procedure were created. Finance We streamlined our accounts payable process in 2018, moving from a stamp-and- paper system to an online workflow. We also eliminated cheque payments by converting to electronic fund transfers. We achieved: -- faster vendor approval and payment cycles -- a reduction in administration work for management and staff -- savings on paper, mailing, reconciling, follow-up, and more We’ve enhanced our forecast and budget templates, customizing them for each department. A user-friendly layout helps staff clearly understand what they are forecasting and budgeting for. This results in an intuitive, clean, and easy-to-follow process for management, and reduces budget-time stress. We also integrated our business planning and budgeting cycles in 2018, creating a streamlined process that brings together staff expertise from the Business Performance and Finance Departments. This has resulted in a more efficient and meaningful system, putting business thinking into planning.
We cut our cybersecurity risk score in half, by implementing 50 mitigation plans. These included putting a system in place to monitor the APEGA computer network. The system learns normal behaviours and alerts us about suspicious activity. We also strengthened our password systems and added protections to keep staff and guests away from bad internet locations. A new staff intranet portal was put in place in 2018. Called OWL, this is an online centre for employees to communicate and collaborate. It includes news, staff directories and information, departmental and divisional pages, and easy-access links for common tasks. OWL, the third intranet site in APEGA’s history, offers up an improved method of communicating across our organization. So far, so good, say APEGA staff members. Work continued to modernize our member management system, which stores member and permit holder information. This is the central system for delivering a host of services to our members and permit holders. Work underway will put into use the latest software from the vendor and open the door for many improvements. The path forward is that we’ll be leveraging those improvements in 2019. Our new system of examining the experience of engineering applicants, called competency- based assessment, has a huge information technology component, so our IT staff were there to make it part of our online application system. This new method of self-reporting competencies helps APEGA become a better regulator. You can read more about it elsewhere in this report.
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f Succe The first-ever Summit Awards gala was held in 1991, honouring high-achievers among our membership—while recognizing their contributions to the public and the APEGA professions. Before that, APEGA awarded members less conspicuously, over lunch at each year’s Annual General Meeting.
APEGA is still at it today. The awards gala is held in conjunction with the APEGA Annual General Meeting and Conference as a stand-alone, formal (but fun!) event. Our list of Summit alumni keeps growing, as the engineers and geoscientists of Alberta keep reaching greater and greater heights. Award categories range from sustainability and research to leadership and mentoring. Each winner receives a teardrop-shaped statuette, like the one pictured here. In 2018, seven members and the representatives of one project took to the stage, to accept accolades from their association and their peers.
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
s C ent enn i a l L ead e rsh i p Award
Leah Lawrence, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.) In recognition of the highest distinction relating to engineering or geoscience as an executive or director of a continuing enterprise. Outstand i ng Mentor Award Brian Thicke, P.Eng. In recognition of exceptional achievement as a mentor. Ear ly Accomp l i shment Award Nashaat Nassar, P.Eng., PhD In recognition of exceptional achievement in the early years of a professional career.
R e s earch E xc e l l enc e Award Yang Gao, P.Eng., PhD
In recognition of innovative research in the professions that improves our economic and social well-being.
Env i ronment and Susta i nab i l i ty Award Fort McMurray Wildfire Cleanup In recognition of excellence in the preservation of the environment and the practice of sustainable development. Commun i ty S e rv i c e Award Reza Nasseri, CM, AOE, P.Eng. In recognition of an outstanding contribution made to society. E xc e l l enc e i n E ducat i on Award Simaan AbouRizk, P.Eng., PhD In recognition of exemplary contributions to teaching and learning. Women i n Eng i ne e r i ng and G eosc i enc e Champ i on Award Lynne Cowe Falls, P.Eng., PhD In recognition of achievement as a champion of women in engineering and geoscience.
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Leah Lawrence, P.Eng., FEC, FGC (Hon.), FCAE President and CEO
Sustainable Development Technology Canada 20 18 AP EGA C ent enn i a l L ead e rsh i p Summ i t Award R e c i p i ent
Alberta has long been an incubator of remarkable leaders and innovators who have changed the province—and the country—for the better. Leah Lawrence, P.Eng., is among the many APEGA members on that list. After starting her engineering career in Calgary in the mid-1990s, Ms. Lawrence spent two decades building her reputation as a cleantech innovator and entrepreneur, focusing her attention on sustainable technology development in the oil and gas and electricity industries. She stepped into the spotlight in 2012 to serve as APEGA’s President, only the fourth woman to take on the role since the association’s founding in 1920. She also served as the fourth female chair of the Calgary Chamber of Commerce in 2014, before moving to Ottawa to take her career to a whole new level. In 2015, she was appointed the President and CEO of Ottawa- based Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), a foundation that manages nearly $1 billion in clean energy research, development, and demonstration projects for the federal government. Her ties to APEGA and Alberta’s engineering and geoscience community remain strong, though, and in 2018 she was recognized with APEGA’s Centennial Leadership Summit Award, the association’s highest honours. “APEGA and its history embody the importance of upholding a set of higher ideals and ethics,” notes Ms. Lawrence. “To be recognized by my peers as one who has been able to do this is, in some small way, very humbling.” Serving as an APEGA volunteer and as President were valuable learning experiences for her, allowing her to meet and work with hundreds of students, other professionals, and members of the public. “I learned that leadership is mostly about listening, learning from other people’s perspectives and experiences, and understanding that there are a multitude of worldviews that must come together if we are to make progress,” says Ms. Lawrence. Not only that, it’s about building a framework that enables and encourages others to effect change towards a common goal, and, hopefully, a greater good.
“When I was APEGA President, this greater good was an engineer’s and geoscientist’s duty of care to the public,” she says. “At SDTC, it’s about nurturing an ecosystem of entrepreneurs developing transformative environmental technologies.”
“I learned that leadership is mostly about listening,
For Ms. Lawrence, leadership is a continually evolving journey. Her advice to other professionals looking to grow as innovators and influencers is summed up these words, which she aspires to daily: - - Be courageous - - Never settle - - Resist dogma - - Follow your curiosity and intuition, but at the same time be rigorous in your facts and thinking - - Don’t be afraid to fail, and when you inevitably do, try and do it graciously - - Passionately believe that change can happen, if you work for it. Know that it can happen at any level, anywhere, anytime learning from other people’s perspectives and experiences, and understanding that there are a multitude of worldviews that must come together if we are to make progress.”
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2018 APEGA Annual Report
Fort McMurray Wildfire Cleanup Team 20 18 AP EGA Env i ronment and Susta i nab i l i ty Summ i t Award R ec i p i ent Steve Taylor, P.Geo., Project Director Gregory Parker, P.Eng., Project Manager Josh Ruud, P.Eng. Project Coordinator
a project team of more than 100 people resolved to get homes cleaned up as quickly as possible, so reconstruction could begin before winter. “The project progressed at break-neck speed, with endless unexpected twists and turns. Having a group of that size work with such purpose and focus, to cleanup the houses as quickly and as professionally as possible, made me really proud of all the people involved,” says Mr. Ruud. Over the next two months, the team worked closely with 50 subcontractors to remove ash and recycle waste from 980 damaged properties. Of the nearly 203,000 tonnes of waste removed, more than 70 per cent was reused or recycled. To keep the project on track, a database was developed to efficiently allocate resources and streamline communication with contractors, local government, and utility companies. Over two months, 71,000 milestones were tracked, or about 580 a day. But all the hard work was nothing compared to what residents had gone through, says Mr. Ruud. “Seeing how the thousands of citizens were able to persevere, through what I can only imagine were some of the most challenging months of their lives, really gave me insight to the resiliency and resolve that people are capable of.”
For Josh Ruud, P.Eng., working on the Fort McMurray wildfire cleanup was an amazing experience—but also one he hopes will never be repeated. He was an engineer-in-training when the disaster struck in May 2016, forcing the evacuation of the city’s 88,000 residents and destroying 2,500 homes. Along with colleagues Steve Taylor, P.Geo., and Gregory Parker, P.Eng., he led the Fort McMurray Wildfire Cleanup Team, whose outstanding efforts to quickly remediate fire damaged homes, with minimal environmental impact, was recognized with APEGA’s 2018 Environment and Sustainability Summit Award. Before joining the team, Mr. Ruud got involved in relief efforts as a so-called “highway angel,” helping evacuees stranded after running out of fuel. His logistical skills also came in handy when he signed up as a volunteer with Edmonton Emergency Relief Services, helping design a system to quickly and efficiently process the flood of donations that poured in immediately after the fire. When Mr. Ruud returned home to Edmonton, he thought his involvement with the disaster was over. It wasn’t. In early July, he got a call from Mr. Taylor, his former boss, who was directing a mass cleanup of Fort McMurray homes for Specialized Property Evaluation Control Services. They needed a project coordinator. “Of course, I couldn’t say no,” says Mr. Ruud. “Being asked to manage a project of such immense importance and scale was a massive honour.” Living in a Fort McMurray hotel for he next few months, he was deeply struck by the destruction around him. He and focus, to cleanup the houses as quickly and as professionally as possible, made me really proud of all the people involved.” “Having a group of that size work with such purpose and
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