Peter Shokeir | [email protected]
Municipal council is considering what skills would be needed by a board of directors for the recently approved Jasper Municipal Housing Corporation (MHC).
Administration presented council with a draft board skills matrix during its committee of the whole meeting on Tuesday.
鈥淭he board members selection process is critical for maintaining the integrity and effectiveness of an organization鈥檚 governing body,鈥� said Leanne Pelletier, municipal housing co-ordinator, during the presentation.
鈥淚t is important to determine what qualities and areas of expertise to seek in board members that will contribute most to the board鈥檚 success.鈥�
In August, a public hearing was held to establish the Jasper Municipal Housing Corporation, with council approving the incorporation.
The corporation will be a legally separate entity governed by the appointed board of directors and formalized through a unanimous shareholders agreement and articles of incorporation.
鈥淪o, the next steps to incorporating registry the MHC include establishing the board of directors,鈥� Pelletier said.
鈥淭his process will be undertaken by the Municipality of Jasper and council.鈥�
The board will consist of an odd number of directors, of up to seven directors at the discretion of
the municipality, all of which are appointed by the municipality.
The Jasper Community Housing Corporation, which will be dissolved with the incorporation of the JMHC, received a draft JMHC board skills matrix last month and forwarded its amended version to council for consideration.
鈥淎board skills matrix is a valuable tool for organizations, particularly board of directors to ensure that they have the right mix of skills, knowledge and experience among their members,鈥� Pelletier said.
鈥淓ssentially, the board skills matrix tool illustrates that a board as a collective entity has expertise and experience in all required areas by ensuring individual directors who are appointed to the board have complementary skills that highlights areas of strength and identifies potential gaps that may require attention or recruitment of directors with specific expertise.鈥�
The main categories of expertise and experience that were identified as being beneficial to the board included industry and domain experience, affordable housing, leadership skills, legal and regulatory knowledge, financial acumen, and community and stakeholder engagement.
Applicants would be rated on a scale of low, medium and high.
The goal would be to have all desired skills represented within the collective board rather than to have all the skills within individual board members.
Mayor Richard Ireland asked if a skillset could be identified relating to the recognition and awareness of emerging trends and how the housing needs of Jasper may evolve.
鈥淲ith housing, we鈥檙e looking at buildings that will stand for 50 years or more and not easy to change or retrofit necessarily,鈥� Ireland said.
鈥淪o, when we look at building housing, we want to be sure that it鈥檚 the housing that we鈥檙e going to need, not just today but tomorrow, next year and onwards.鈥�
He added that some board members should also be knowledgeable about process, while others should have knowledge about building diversity, equity and inclusion.
Committee recommended council approve the JMHC board skills matrix with amendments as discussed to include leadership skills, policy development and inclusion, diversity and equity knowledge.
