Value Proposition
Dave leads and advises multi-discipline teams in private and not-for-profit SME business and engineering organizations, with a primary focus on strategy, operational excellence, infrastructure development and major capital projects. He brings broad, situational leadership expertise after more than three decades working with multiple and diverse organizations. His strong values-based approach to achieving goals, combined with financial discipline and tactical thinking, positively impacts the teams he works with, be they technical, external agencies and stakeholders, community members, or First Nations businesses and councils. He takes a process orientated approach to project execution, from planning stages right through to completion. His extensive success in Board governance implementation, development, and effectiveness highlights the strategic level of his work.
- Held senior leadership roles with private engineering, public mining and business consulting organizations in Western Canada; grew business revenues and funding sources, established new practices/offices, and executed acquisitions and divestitures.
- Served a dozen private, public and not-for-profit Boards in the past 15 years as Chair, Co-Chair, Vice Chair, Committee Chair and Director. Established and enhanced governance practices, Board and executive evaluations and succession planning, and strategic planning and implementation.
- Led diversified design teams for transportation P3 consortiums in Alberta and BC and provided senior project management and engineering services for municipal and resource roadway and development projects.
- Coached leadership and applied performance management skills to measure and realize tangible operational and financial improvements for three public companies in the energy and construction sectors.
- Assisted with the launch, private placements and initial exploration work for three small public mining companies with properties in Peru, Arizona and BC.
- Assisted development and publishing the first Complete Streets and Centre City Mobility Plans for the City of Calgary.
- Co-founded, developed and launched a not-for-profit affordable housing foundation including the creation of organization standards for use by agencies across Canada.
- MBE Ventures Inc.: Principal and Founder (2007 – present)
- Calgary Affordable Housing Foundation: Board Chair (2018 – present)
- Accessible Housing: Board Co-Chair and Past Chair (2008 – present)
- Institute of Corporate Directors: Calgary Chapter Executive Co-Chair (2017 – present)
- McElhanney Consulting Services Ltd.: Senior Manager (1985 – 1999, 2002 – 2006)
- RLG International: Project Manager (1999 – 2002)
- Richard Ivey School of Business, University of Western Ontario – MBA
- McMaster University – Bachelor of Civil Engineering
- Haskayne School of Business/Institute of Corporate Directors – Director Education Program
Current positions:
- Accessible Housing – Co-Chair of the Board
- Calgary Affordable Housing Foundation – Chair of the Board
- Institute of Corporate Directors, Calgary Chapter Executive Co-Chair
Previous positions:
- Tsuut’ina Nation Procurement Board – Independent Member
- Indigenous Opportunities Committee, Calgary Chamber of Commerce – Chair
- Foundations for the Future Charter Academy – Independent Director
- All 4 Women Society – Director
