At the January 15, 2018 council meeting, the following items were discussed:
Council Motions
- Council approved the revised Nominations Review Committee Terms of Reference. Of note, the committee is comprised of two LG appointees (Michelle Rupp, Chair; Barbara Brink), the immediate past-president (Darryl Condon), a council member-at-large (John Bass) and a member-at-large (Pierre Gallant). The purpose of the reactivated committee is to fairly and objectively seek, evaluate and assess qualified candidates to be recommended to the AIBC membership for election to the council. The committee is tasked with establishing an evaluation criteria, process and tools which will be in place for this year’s council elections.
- Council Policy 2.25 Role of the Registrar in Maintaining the Register and, Council Policy 2.23 Role of the Liaisons to Council were introduced and revised, respectively.
- Proposed Council Rules 8: Terms and Conditions for Mandatory Professional Liability Insurance, supported in principle by council, are before members during a Jan. 18–Feb. 22 notification period. Feedback shared during this time will be presented to council prior to their final approval of the rules.
President Report
- The president participated in the AIBC Recognition Ceremony and represented the AIBC at the Real Estate Institute of BC annual luncheon.
- In her welcome remarks, at the AIBC Holiday Open House, the president spoke to the many accomplishments of 2017, and outlined initiatives projected for 2018 including the development of the next five-year strategic plan, review of the Tariff of Fees, efforts to support a CHOP refresh and continued relationship building with regulators, government and other key stakeholders.
Governance Committee
- Key areas covered and/or reviewed by the governance committee include the newly relaunched Nomination Review Committee, Strategic Plan 2019-2023, CALA Future of the Profession, council liaison policy, annual meeting agenda, and council (self) evaluations.
Finance Committee (FICOM)
- As a reminder, Deloitte will be undertaking the five-year review of AIBC’s Financial Risk Assessment, to be completed by the end of this council year.
Human Resources Council Committee
- In compliance with good governance practices, the HR committee provides advice to council on matters relating to the CEO performance and compensation, salary benchmarking and other matters related to staff as a whole, and oversight of the policies related to staff.
- The HR Committee’s annual performance evaluation concluded, and was supported by council, that in his third year as CEO, Mark Vernon continues to provide exceptional leadership and clear strategic direction.
Public Outreach Committee
- The committee met on Nov 28, 2017 to finalize the value proposition framework, a resource that focuses on increasing stakeholder and public understanding of architecture, what architects do, and the value they offer to society.
- With this assignment complete, the committee will be “suspended” until further developments from CALA’s Future of the Profession initiative.
CEO Report
External Items
November/December were busy months filled with a number of meetings and events.
- Nov 16 Intern Architect Committee Mission Possible – Another well-attended, information-driven event, with nearly 50 students and intern architects in attendance. The panel included council’s own Marianne Amodio Architect AIBC and was moderated by Gavin Schaefer Architect AIBC.
- Nov 18 Canadian Architectural Certification Board (CACB) – Invited to attend to represent CALA, a number of national initiatives were presented at this first formal presentation to the CACB.
- Nov 23 Recognition Ceremony – One of AIBC’s most enjoyable events, this year magnificently emceed by AIBC’s LG representative Michelle Rupp! Nearly 150 guests were in attendance to honour seven Architects AIBC for their professional and volunteer achievements.
- Nov 8-9 CACB Standing Committee – Work continued on the BEFA (Broadly Experienced Foreign Architect) review (initial meeting regarding a national survey on behalf of the committee) and planning for the review of the education continuum to be done with CCUSA (the schools).
- Dec 14 AIBC Open House – Although a somewhat smaller turnout than previous years, the additional gallery space enabled an improved set-up, which made for better circulation of the guests.
Internal Operations
- Council Policy & Staffing Changes – After an extensive and lengthy search, the AIBC welcomed Greg Cavouras as Legal Counsel and Director of Professional Conduct & Illegal Practice who previously was the general counsel of the College of Dental Surgeons for the past five years.
- Tariff of Fees Update – Work on this is ramping up, with a role call soon to be issued to populate the working groups.
- Strategic Plan Refresh – McLaughlin &Associates were the successful proponent of the publicly-posted RFP for a project facilitator. Council, staff and registrants will be participating in the refresh which looks to develop the next five-year plan (2019-2023)
Registration and Licensing
- Healthy membership update – The AIBC continues to observe increasing membership numbers. As of December 31, 2017, there are:
- 2102 Architects AIBC
- 1174 firms; out of which 959 have certificates of practice
- 653 Intern Architects AIBC
- Broadly Experienced Applicant (BEA) program – One more applicant enrolled under the program bringing the total to 14 since lifting the moratorium in September 2016. Other BEA applicants who were in the system prior to 2016 are actively completing various components of their requirements.
- Intern Architect Course Refresh – The Registration Board conducted a brainstorming workshop in December to begin planning the Internship in Architecture Program (IAP) Course Redesign Project. The project aims to review the IAP PD course offerings. Deliverables include redesign of course structure and update of content consistent with good instructional approaches. In addition, training for presenters will be developed.
Professional Services Department (PSD)
- City of Vancouver Building By-Law Update Seminar – The AIBC is hosting the City of Vancouver on February 7, 2018 for a lunchtime seminar on the recent and upcoming building by-law updates, floor area exclusions and Passive House relaxations. The session will be delivered by City of Vancouver staff.
- CES Compliancy Update–As of Jan 1, 2018, only 30% of CES Participants (Architects AIBC and Architectural Technologists AIBC) have met their CES requirements for the Jul 1, 2016 – Jun 30, 2018 reporting period. Reminders with pertinent information are shared regularly with participants in order to keep this regulatory obligation top of mind.
- The 2018 Course Schedule was made available mid-Dec. As nearly 50% of the courses are already sold out, further offerings are being considered.
Outreach (Registrants and External)
- AIBC publications – “AIBC Authorization Stickers / CCDC Electronic Documents, Publications & Copyright Stickers (Seals)” order form has been updated to a new auto-calculating fillable PDF.
- Annual Conference – Planning is well under way, with the goal of opening registration in mid-Feb, two weeks earlier than 2017.
- Architectural Awards Program – The awards.aibc.ca site has been updated in preparation for the opening of submissions and jury call on Jan 11, 2018. 2018 will see a change in location with the event being held in the AIBC gallery on Apr 19, 2018.
- Stories and Profiles – The Use of Combustible Materials in the Building Envelope Regulatory Review article was posted online. The piece has performed strongly. It is the second most viewed page on the corporate site for the month of December.
Canadian Handbook of Practice (CHOP)
- At the Nov 13 CHOP Steering Committee meeting, the project timeline and budget were confirmed, and the Editorial Board selected from the 35 expressions of interest. Of note, the quality of candidates was exceptional. Brian Palmquist Architect AIBC is one of the eight members of the Editorial Board.
Other Business
- Motions were also passed for AIBC council meeting minutes, policy compliance, committee changes, examination results and register amendments.
- Read adopted Nov 14, 2017 council meeting minutes.
Next Meeting
The next regular meeting of AIBC Council is scheduled for Mar 19, 2018. It will be held at the AIBC office between 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. For those interested in attending an AIBC Council Meeting, please confirm your attendance in advance by email to ttough@aibc.ca.