Balancing Influence, Authority, and Power as a Leader
January 12 - 15, 2023
Presenters

Sean McIntyre - Keynote Speaker
Sean McIntyre is a father of two, a husband of one, an avid volunteer, and a community builder. When he sees a need, he works to meet it, building teams and mentoring as he goes. In 2005 he was the co-founder of Incline Industries Skateboard and BMX park, in Sylvan Lake. He soon added to that, becoming a co-founder of Shake The Lake in 2008; a volunteer-run Action Sports and Music Festival, that attracted thousands of people to Sylvan Lake, for years on end. In 2010, at the age of 27, Sean was elected to Council for the Town of Sylvan Lake, and after three years of service, Sean was elected as Mayor at the age of 30. During his 2 terms of service as mayor, a community satisfaction survey reported that 97% of residents rated their quality of life as good or very good. New facilities were constructed including the NexSource Centre multi-use recreation facility, the Pogadl Park outdoor recreation area, in addition to community visioning for Lakeshore Drive and extensive streetscape and underground infrastructure improvements. For his service as Mayor, Sean McIntyre was bestowed the 2020 Award of Excellence from the Alberta Urban Municipalities Association.
Leading regional collaboration efforts, Sean served as chairperson for the Sylvan Lake Regional Water and Wastewater Commissions, bringing together 8 different municipalities to construct a regional pipeline that carried wastewater to the City of Red Deer, preserving the environment and positioning the area for future growth. The completed project received a 2020 Summit Award from the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA). Sean also served as chairperson of the Sylvan Lake Regional Intermunicipal Development Plan Committee, leading the same 8 municipalities to unify regional plans for environmental protection, future development, and community identity. The Sylvan Lake Intermunicipal Development Plan was given the 2022 Award of Merit for Comprehensive Policy Plan by the Alberta Professional Planners Institute.
Today, Sean serves as the Chief of Staff to Mayor Ken Johnston and elected members of Council, at the City of Red Deer. Working alongside elected and administrative leaders of the municipality that employs over 1400 people, he enjoys strategizing, advising, and bringing together new teams to serve people and achieve community goals. Sean loves music, has a passion for community building, and problem solving. Of all the job titles he has carried, he feels that “Dad” is his favourite and most important.

John Hubbard
Sgt. John Hubbard is a 15-year veteran of the Lacombe Police Service. He is the patrol sergeant in charge of officer safety, which includes responding to physical confrontations, and is an expert in firearm analysis. He received his initial training with the Calgary Police Service.
One of Sgt. Hubbard’s passions in his role is working with young people in schools and educating and building positive relationships between law enforcement and youth. He is happy to share his experience with participants at the conference.

Ronda Ziakris
Ronda Ziakris is a Manager in Consulting: Indigenous Services for MNP, a leading accounting firm in Canada. She holds a master’s degree in Education Leadership/Administration and is a Certified Trauma and Resilience Trainer. She has extensive experience as a teacher, principal and education superintendent.
She deems it an honour to work with First Nations communities as an education expert, client manager, education advisor, project lead and strategic planning and visioning facilitator. She has also led non-profit teams, and speaks on leadership, personal growth and trauma-informed practices. Authenticity, honesty and humour are her top three values.

Rayna Sutherland
Rayna Sutherland (she/her) holds an Honours BA from the University of Toronto in International Development and Women’s and Gender Studies. She has worked with grassroots social justice organizations and research hubs in Canada and African countries. These experiences nurtured her passion for justice-seeking research and policy advocacy through anti-oppressive, community-based, and action-oriented approaches.
Rayna recently completed the Parliamentary Internship Program (PIP), where she worked for government and opposition MPs. Now, she brings her anti-oppressive lens to the federal cabinet as the West/North Regional Advisor to the Minister of Public Safety.

Dan Wilson
Dan has worn many hats. He’s served as a corporate lawyer; he’s been a business executive and an entrepreneur, taking businesses from concept to
maturity. Dan now engages with students as he shares his experiences with the next generation of leaders at MacEwan University—and the Saruk Centre.

Loney Ziakris
Loney obtained his LLB degree from the University of Alberta Faculty of Law in 2000 and spent most of the past 17 years as a general practitioner with Cruickshank & Hemmingson in Lacombe, before moving to Sirrs LLP in July, 2021.
Prior to practicing law, Loney spent close to 10 years as an educator and school administrator, having obtained a Bachelor of Education in Secondary Education from Canadian Union College, the predecessor to what is now known as Burman University. While there, Loney participated in a number of school organizations, including several leadership positions and was the starting goalkeeper for the inaugural version of the indoor soccer team, the Aurora.
Outside of the practice of law, Loney has maintained and nurtured his love of education, as a contract instructor at Red Deer College, Burman University and La Sierra University and has proudly watched a number of his students pursue a career in law. He has also conducted several seminars and workshops for various service clubs and other entities in Central Alberta.
His family is his primary passion and wife Ronda, daughter Kalista, son-in-law Tristan, son Steven and the family pets Ursula and Ariel, two rescue cats, are with whom time spent is most treasured.
In terms of extracurriculars, skiing, hiking and golfing are the preferred activities, although age has taught that the recovery time involved as one gets older may necessitate some adjustments to the amount of exertion to be undertaken. This is sometimes easier to accept in theory than in practice!