President’s Message

in this issue

President’s Message 2

Executive Director’s Message 4

Thank You! 6

Collectors’ Corner 7

MFA’s Corner 8

Yes, and...Community and Economic Development 10

The Remote Finance Team 12

Cyper and Social Engineering Attacks 14

Anything Worth Doing Is Worth Doing Right 16

Economic Outlook Q2 18

Quarterly Question 22

Thank You Exhibitors 23

president’s message

There is so much uncertainty in the world right now. One’s health, the economy, education and the impact on communities are just a few of the unknowns that exist today. In the early days of the pandemic, the words, “be kind” did not resonate with me. We’re Canadian and live on the West Coast, do we need to be told to be kind?

With COVID-19, it became clear that there would be no physical conference in June. As Genelle described at the Virtual Conference, “Canceling the conference was not an option”. Kala was tasked with transforming the regular conference format to a virtual one, with very little time. Kala, you did an amazing job!

Kala undoubtedly would share those accolades with the board, staff, technical support, volunteers, sponsors and you, the members. I believe leadership matters, intentions matter, best efforts matter and results matter. However, we are often judged by our results. Great results are very difficult to consistently achieve without a strong team and supports. Thank you Kala and all those involved for delivering on all fronts.

Why was it so important to have a conference? GFOABC exists to serve our members, which is especially needed at this time. This is a time when current information, updates, connections, awareness of what others are doing to cope with COVID19 and a bit of a mental break are needed. When we look at the focus areas of our Strategic Plan, the conference checks all the boxes:

To be relevant to members

To be a center for member, government, and partner dialogue

To provide value to our members through partnerships

GFOABC is on a great trajectory, based on feedback from members. There will be opportunities and new pressures that will require adjustments to implementation plans and education offerings. We will continue to adapt to better serve our members and our communities.

One of the benefits of the virtual conference is that the sessions are available for viewing at any time. This allows material to be watched, even paused and discussed with your staff. The attendees this year, due to the online format and the pricing

2020–2021 board of directors

structure, included many first time attendees. We welcome feedback and encourage everyone to explore what GFOABC has to offer.

I look forward to serving you as President of GFOABC. We are all fortunate to be well served by talented staff and a dedicated board as well as an environment and sector that embraces partnerships and collaboration. As odd as it sounds, I am already looking forward to the 2021 conference when we can reconnect, share experiences and have a few laughs. We are “Better Together” and can help one another through these uncertain times. I encourage you to reach out to your colleagues in other communities both directly and through GFOA.

Trevor Thompson President

Board of Directors

President Trevor Thompson Vice President Lorraine Coughlin Secretary-Treasurer Nyla Attiana Past President Genelle Davidson

Directors at Large

Jim Bauer Jeannie Bradburne Shelley Hahn Rianna Lachance Lenora Lee Jennifer Lockhart Michelle Mason Talitha Soldera

Members-at-Large

Julia Aspinall, City of Vancouver Komal Basatia, City of Abbotsford John Kurvink, Regional District of

Okanagan Similkameen Elio Iorio, District of North Vancouver Mario Piroddi, BDO

Staff

Kala Harris, Executive Director Kisha Pellerin, Manager, Operations and Member Services Gerilee McBride, Graphic Design