International Women's Day 2022

#BreaktheBias: Women working at the City

Meet the inspiring women working at the City to #BreaktheBias by promoting diversity and inclusion.

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  Amy Sidwell

  Superintendent, Manager Street Operations

  Advice for your younger self

  I would give myself the advice to schedule one-on-one time with the key people in my life, whether it be a check-in with a colleague or a direct report, or a good friend. I received this advice from a previous manager about 5 years ago, and wish I had learned it earlier as I saw huge benefits almost immediately after implementing. It was not only a great way to connect, but it also enabled a time to check in on current initiatives, have more strategic conversations about future plans, and also to learn about each others goals and challenges which made it easier to support each other going forward. The time isn’t usually overly structured, but it allows me to fully invest my energy in those key relationships, as opposed to just getting together when an issue comes up.

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  My favourite thing about working for the City of Vancouver is that we are continually pushing ourselves to deliver more innovative and resilient services that support citizens, the environment, and the local economy. There are so many examples of this throughout our organization. I find it extremely rewarding to work with so many wonderful people achieving so many great things.

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  I would say this has definitely been a challenge given that there is so much change in the world right now. My approach has been to try to do the things I love as much as possible and focus on my health so that I can be as ready as possible to take each new day head on. For me my health is really influenced by sleep, food, exercise, and spending time with family and friends, so I have been really focused on prioritizing those things.

  Theme for IWD2023

  My theme for 2023 would be #degreesofchange, and the idea would be to celebrate all the small and large degrees of change we have made thus far to advance our workplace culture in support of diversity and inclusion; and to think about how those changes in direction will impact where we end up in the future. Building on past successes, I also think it would be great to share ideas on what new degrees of change are we going to commit to next.

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Teamwork

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  Armin Amrolia

  Deputy City Manager

  Advice for your younger self

  It is really simple; it will be alright. Anything that you think is going to be insurmountable actually usually ends up just fine.

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  Having the ability to make a positive impact for people in the City and working with a truly amazing dedicated group of people.

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  I’ve tried to create as much serenity as I can. I’ve tried to be a really good corporate citizen, and at the end of the day, I’ve just tried to take care of myself and my family.

  Theme for IWD2023

  Break the bias so that we embrace change.

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Break the Bias.

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  Cathy Palmer (she/her)

  Branch Manager, Parking Operations and Enforcement
   

  Advice for your younger self

  ‘Don’t hesitate to take every opportunity that is afforded to you.' Many women (including myself on occasion) tend to think they may not be as qualified as others, are not fully ready, don’t know it all, and hesitate to take the next step instead of remembering that new opportunities build all of the above. Believe in yourself!

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  My favourite thing about working for the City is that everything we do creates one of the most beautiful, sustainable, and diverse cities in the world.  

  Favourite thing about working in my department  - beyond the people? Hard to choose. It’s a tie between when a citizen who received a parking ticket writes in to say our staff did a wonderful job in professionally performing their duties or educating them to not get another ticket (imagine that!) – and the other is that my team and I have the ability to influence public safety, support climate initiatives by improving traffic flow, provide access to parking for our citizens, and can meaningfully contribute to our city’s liveability and business sustainability. 

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  That has been challenging. My department serves the public 18 hours a day, 7 days a week, and my team has been physically at work every day of the pandemic. The impacts of COVID on the public, our staff, safety, and programs has not stopped as yet. Upon reflection, as Branch Manager I haven’t been successful with that juggling act. Hmm.

  Theme for IWD2023

  Women of colour who impact leadership and change – environmental or social movements.

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Flash

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  Justine Clift

  Civil Engineer, Transportation Planning
   

  Advice for your younger self

  Slow down and enjoy the process.

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  The range of people I get to interact with on a daily basis, as I work to plan for the City’s long-range transportation needs. 

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  Raising a toddler and expecting a baby this spring, while working full-time has been a lot to balance. Support from family, friends, and colleagues has been instrumental to keeping everything somewhat manageable! 

  Theme for IWD2023

  Resilience

  2022 so far

  2022 has been full of changes, with more on the horizon. It’s been a lot to keep up with!

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  Kelsey LePard

  Firefighter, Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services
   

  Advice for your younger self

  Set goals sky high and go after them! 

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  I like working with the Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services because it is the busiest department in Canada. I love getting to serve a very diverse and inclusive city with a department that’s a leader in the fire service. I’m passionate about coming to work every day and working with an incredible group of people. 

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  I have balanced my work and personal life during COVID by staying connected with friends and family, staying active, and leading a healthy lifestyle. I've really enjoyed mountain running and cooking over the last couple of years!

  Theme for IWD2023

  Dream big!

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Encouraging

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  Siobhian Heaney

  Program Manager, Elections, City Clerk’s and Council, Technology Services                                                          

  Advice for your younger self

  Be willing to step up – try things, put up your hand for projects. Broaden your experience – try different types of work and departments. Build relationships in and outside of the organization. There are experiences and relationships that I draw on still to this day, even though the work I’m doing may seem very different.

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  With my current role leading voting technology for City’s election in October, it is amazing to be a part of the democratic process in a very real way. Ensuring voting runs smoothly and the results have credibility is quite a profound experience.

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  I’m not sure I achieved balance.  The ability to work from home was great - no commuting and fewer distractions, perhaps more hours working than usual. Early on in the pandemic, I found it helpful to focus on the present and near-term, not try to plan too far into the future, and to assume that plans would inevitably change.

  Theme for IWD2023

  Coming out of the pandemic, with women having borne so many challenges, I think recovery and redefining what the future could, and maybe should, look like will be top of mind.

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Intense!

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  Sushmitha Karunakaran (she/her)

  Civil Engineer, Waterworks Design Branch, Engineering Services

  Advice for your younger self

  My advice for my younger self would be to worry less about achieving an exact outcome (often a pre-determined idea of how things “should” be) and to instead focus more on the how I feel during the actual experience or process. 

  Whether professionally or personally, sometimes the outcomes I thought I wanted weren’t even things I actually desired, but reflecting on whether I was enjoying what I was doing and found meaning in it helped me be more intentional. 

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  My favourite thing about working for the City is knowing that I am directly serving the community in which I live and am part of. Working in Waterworks, it’s very satisfying to know that my contributions have a direct and tangible impact on the quality of people’s lives and their ability to access drinking water. Remembering the overarching purpose of my work and why what I do matters to the public is helpful, especially on the days I’m really caught up in the minutia of tasks. 

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  I work in an office-based setting so in terms of work, the greatest change was moving to a hybrid or remote working environment. I don’t know if I’ve achieved a tremendous amount of balance – I’ve mostly experienced waxing and waning periods of how successfully I’ve been able to manage different aspects of my life over the past 2 years. What has helped me is extending a lot of grace and compassion to myself and others, and I am grateful to people who’ve done the same for me. 

  Theme for IWD2023

  I think the theme next year should be about intersectionality, in order to better understand how other aspects of identity and overlapping forms of marginalization shape the experiences of women and gender diverse people. I think acknowledging that there isn’t one global, homogenous experience of being a woman, and understanding the differences is necessary to achieve actual gender equity, and can also help us be better allies to one another. 

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  My word is “embrace” – it’s only been 2 months so far, but I’m trying my best to embrace the present moment for what it is and what is being offered to me!

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  Tamara Ling 

  Electrician, Real Estate and Facilities Management

  Advice for your younger self

  Get into the real estate market. Nothing worse than having a great job in a city you can’t afford to live in!

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  The people I work with.

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  Less of a balance and more of survival mode, really. Taking the changes as they come, with as much flexibility as possible.

  Theme for IWD2023

  Probably “women”. Or “superhero”. Or “donkey” theme.

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  “Meh”. Or, “hopeful?”

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  Taryn Fanzega

  Business Consultant, IT, Digital Strategy and 3-1-1
   

  Advice for your younger self

  Don’t fret, you’ll get there! Many events have occurred during my tenure with the City, both in my personal and professional life, and at times they were challenging. Through these times, I kept my head down and continued pushing forward. I’m proud to say that I managed to return to SFU in 2016 and completed by Bachelor of Arts degree, graduating with distinction in 2020 - while working full-time!

  Favourite thing about working for the City or your department

  I have been very lucky to have such wonderful leadership and support during my career at the City, and with the 3-1-1 Contact Centre in particular. I am grateful that I can truly say that “I love my job and my team”.

  Balancing personal life and the demands and changes in work with COVID

  COVID has brought with it an ability to work remotely (at home) – I have found this to be an amazing experience for my work-life balance, as I am saving three hours a day by not commuting! With these extra hours I’m able to focus on myself and family more. Before work I exercise, clean, start dinner prep, and so on, which leaves more time with my family after work. There are less distractions at home which means I’m able to focus more enhancing productivity.

  Theme for IWD2023

  Celebrate your strength! 

  One word to describe 2022 so far

  Promising