Senior staff with the Ktunaxa Nation Council are being reassigned to different sectors for six months, in an effort to increase collaboration and leadership development.
Directors of the Ktunaxa Nation’s five main sectors will be swapping roles, which include the Lands and Resources, Education and Employment, Social Investment, Economic Investment, and Traditional Knowledge and Language sectors.
“This is an exciting opportunity and a key step in the CAO succession planning and mentorship goals the nation council has identified,” said Shawna Janvier, Chief Executive Officer of the Ktunaxa Nation Council. “The sector directors have expressed a desire for better cross-sector collaboration for many years—this will create the day-to-day reality, and the new space, for this to be able to happen.”
The Ktunaxa Nation said each director will be taking on new portfolios as they bring a fresh set of eyes to each sector. According to Janvier, the reassignments were made so the directors could develop strengths in new areas.
“When they return to their sectors again in February, they will have a better understanding of how other sectors work—and a better understanding of themselves as leaders.”
These are the following reassignments as part of the initiative:
- Donald Sam from Traditional Knowledge & Language will be going to Economic Investment
- Codie Morigeau from Education & Employment will be going to Traditional Knowledge & Language
- Justin Paterson from Economic Investment will be going to Social Investment
- Debbie Whitehead from Social Investment will be going to Lands & Resources
- Ray Warden from Lands & Resources will be going to Education & Employment
“The directors will be fully immersed in their acting director roles for the duration of the reassignment and be participating in their new sector councils as of their start date,” said Janvier.
“We are all here for the same reason–QÌ“api qapsin kin ‘itkin hin ‘isti Ktunaxa– and doing everything with the intention of improving the lives of the Ktunaxa people,” Janvier added. “This collaborative venture will create new opportunities for growth and truly make the KNC a learning environment for everyone. I am looking forward to supporting them and I know that staff are also looking forward—maybe with some trepidation, but also with some excitement—to what’s ahead, and what could be ahead in these next six months.”
Janvier said the Ktunaxa Nation Council is emphasizing leadership as opposed to authority and looking to develop each of their senior staff’s leadership capacity.