Looking back
2016, Truly A Landmark Year For COPA
In fact, 2016 will have been a very intensive year punctuated by exciting changes at COPA, for which we should all be proud. Let me reminisce briefly on the most significant ones.
In July, at long last, after all these years as a well intended yet subdued newspaper format, with a little colour sprinkled on four pages and the rest in humble black and white, COPA Flight migrated to a very real magazine format, for half the price of before. Wanting to seize this opportunity, one of our most influential members and vector of change par excellence, Chris Hadfield becomes our official spokesman and proudly poses on the very first front page of our new publication.
Meanwhile in the boardroom, where I had just landed as Chairman of the Board, six new directors eagerly took their seats during our annual general meeting of COPA held in Yarmouth in June.
While all this went on, we dutifully kept an eye on the evolution of various situations including the windmill saga (Collingwood-Stayner) and the new regulations on Responsible Aerodrome Development (Mascouche).
In 2016, the COPA Board also launched a major review of its strategic planning. A standing committee comprised of board members and association members chosen for their expertise, as well as the President and CEO, was instituted. The team benefited from the support of a knowledgeable external firm. The committee, which also had access to precious data gathered from the periodic consultation of some 150 people, ultimately submitted a comprehensive yet realistic plan. The board approved this refined blueprint for the future in October 2016.
The plan has helped us review our mission, our principles and our vision, so we could now readjust our priorities and redefine our strategies. All of this was integrated into yearly campaigns, broken down in quarterly action plans. This all adds up to a rather hefty workload. Understandably, the launching and fulfilment of such ambitious goals meant we had to call for some reinforcement. This is why we’ve hired two additional staff members. Michel Cordeau has become our Manager of Operations since December 12, and Carter Mann is Manager of Government Affairs effective January 16. You can read their short bios elsewhere in this magazine.
I also wish to thank our staff at the Ottawa office for their dedication, all our board members for their voluntary participation and all of you COPA members for shouldering our collective effort. Do not hesitate to give us your feedback by writing to the addresses you will find on our web site (http://copanational.org/Contact%20Us.cfm), which is also earmarked for a major change this year.
In closing, I’d like to highlight the contribution of Tim Cole, our British-Columbia and Yukon Director, who has left his position at the end of the year and made us benefit of his vast experience for the last six and a half years. Thank you Tim!
On this note, I wish you all Happy New Year!
Jean Messier
Chairman of the Board
