Collaboration

GO DEEPER · LEADERSHIP & EXECUTION · How will you get it done?

L01 · question 1 of 10

Tell us about a time you accomplished something important by working with people who initially disagreed with you. What did you do?

Quick version: S11 · Name one time you got something done with people who disagreed with you.

Answer

Susan Chapelle

One accomplishment I am proud of was helping pass Healthy Communities in Squamish, linking municipal land-use planning with the healthcare authority during our Official Community Plan review. It brought health into decisions about how our community would grow. Council, planners and healthcare partners approached the work from different perspectives. My role was to help connect those priorities: housing, transportation and access to services are planning decisions, but they also affect people’s health and independence. Rather than expect everyone to approach the issue as I did, I focused on where our responsibilities overlapped. We could make better land-use decisions by bringing healthcare knowledge into the planning process early. That gave people with different priorities a practical reason to support the work. Passing Healthy Communities was a shared accomplishment. It depended on staff, healthcare partners and Council colleagues working together, and it strengthened the connection between municipal planning and community well-being. I would bring that approach to Ward 14. I would ask what colleagues need to support a proposal, address their concerns and change the design when their objections reveal a weakness. Building agreement means finding a shared purpose and turning it into a decision people are prepared to support and implement.

Jason Stevens

McMaster as president built a coalition against tuition fee increases

Maria Voutsinas

There was a time when a project was dependant on many people within my organization to collaborate. Time was of the essence and towards the deadline, participants started to disagree with particular suggestions that I proposed. I asked questions, listened and then we collectively came up with solutions that made all agree. It came down to listening and collaboration. When people feel heard, it leads to better decisions.

A concrete example from their experience

Susan Chapelle

During Squamish’s Official Community Plan review, I helped advance and pass Healthy Communities, connecting municipal land-use planning with the healthcare authority. This brought health considerations into discussions about housing, transportation and access to services. Planners, healthcare partners and councillors had different responsibilities, but a shared interest in a community that worked better for residents. I helped connect those interests so health could inform planning decisions rather than be considered separately. The concrete accomplishment was securing Council support for that connection. It showed how collaboration across institutions can change the way a municipality plans for growth and supports its residents’ well-being.

Supporting sources

Susan Chapelle

District of Squamish, “Squamish Learning Lab – OCP Health Lens Project Update & Draft Collaboration Protocol with Vancouver Coastal Health,” October 2014. Documents the work linking the OCP review with health priorities and a proposed collaboration agreement. Vancouver Coastal Health, “Collaboration and partnership at the heart of a healthy community,” 2015. Confirms the endorsed agreement and access to health data, expertise and resources for municipal planning. Vancouver Coastal Health Squamish2040 Official Community Plan, 2018. Documents collaboration with Vancouver Coastal Health and BC Healthy Communities to incorporate health into the plan’s development.

Responded, but not to this question

Denise Walcott

No response yet

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