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TOBIN POSTMA

A senior-level executive with 15+ years of public policy, sustainability and
strategic communications experience in government and the steel and mining
industry who is in search of kindred spirits who are working across the world to
solve complex problems, who believe in transforming – not just adapting – and
who need some extra horsepower in their corner to get unstuck and break through
whatever obstacles they are facing.

 * About
 * Work
 * Education+
 * Contact


ABOUT



After 15+ years working in senior roles in local government with the City of
Vancouver and at ArcelorMittal, a multinational steel and mining organization, I
took a leap year in 2021 to give myself the freedom to learn how to listen to,
and ultimately lead, with my heart.

I discovered that my heart beats strongest when I am able to help others who
want to have a positive impact on this earth and her guests.

“It’s never been done before”

“We don’t know where to begin”

“We don’t know what to do now”

These are the kind of problem statements that I am compelled to run towards.
Whether you need a running partner or a thought partner I will bring my energy
and experience to assist you on your journey as you tackle our biggest
intractable problems.

I am a solutions-driven, creative problem solver who brings joyful energy into
everything I do – like a breath of fresh air, invigorating your organization.
Just as a change of scenery can provide greatly-needed perspective, I help
identify leverage points and new ways to approach points of friction.

I thrive in emergent situations especially those characterized by
unpredictability and ambiguity – providing a calm, steady and pragmatic hands-on
approach.

I understand how to bridge bottom-up solutions with policy design, moving
seamlessly between the shop floor and the top floor.

I am a locksmith, silobuster and a story teller.

I am a global explorer, adept at navigating organizations, personalities, and
challenges of all types and sizes and I am eager to join you on your journey
towards impactful change.




WORK

I have an experimental mindset complemented by a Swiss army-like set of tools
that I’ve absorbed over my 15+ years as a senior strategic issues,
sustainability (environmental and social) and public policy expert in the public
and private sectors in developed and developing countries.

A summary of my recent work can be found below (you can find a full breakdown of
my work here):


CITY OF VANCOUVER 2014-2021

DIRECTOR OF INTERGOVERNMENTAL RELATIONS AND STRATEGIC PARTNERSHIPS:

 * Championed the City’s overall approach to intergovernmental relations,
   managing a team of four staff and representing the City’s position and
   interests by communicating, building relationships and negotiating with
   senior levels of government, such as regional, provincial, federal and First
   Nations on key City and Council priorities including affordable housing,
   transportation, the overdose crisis, climate resilience and Reconciliation
 * Led advocacy work for the City’s ongoing COVID-19 response and recovery
   efforts, engaging all levels of government for direct financial support
   resulting in $82 million for the acquisition of affordable housing, more than
   $39 million in operating funding support, $20 million for natural
   infrastructure development and over $8 million to provide services to
   vulnerable populations

DIRECTOR OF STRATEGIC INITIATIVES:

 * Provided cross-organizational leadership for the City’s efforts to manage
   street-level impacts of systemic social challenges, including poverty and the
   opioid crisis, as well as forming strategic partnerships tasked with
   implementing policies, pilots and strategies that addressed the root causes
   of these challenges
 * Coordinated an interdepartmental operations group that worked to mitigate the
   downstream impacts of homelessness amongst Canada’s most marginalized and
   vulnerable population, including safely managing four illegal tent cities and
   numerous encampments across the city
 * Ran a multi-million dollar community impact fund created through a
   partnership between three levels of government that supported solutions to
   economic, social and health and safety issues in Vancouver’s Downtown
   Eastside (DTES)

STRATEGIC ISSUES MANAGER:

 * Led the growth of a safe, legal, low-barrier and peer-run vending economy in
   Vancouver’s DTES from one day per week to seven days per week, as well as
   managing a Street Vending Project Team which included Police, Fire,
   Engineering, Social Policy and Housing Outreach staff
 * Primary contact for all strategic communications with responsibility for
   anticipatory issues management, media training and crisis communications as
   well as managing a team of three staff who responded to 10-15 media requests
   per day and were responsible for media monitoring, video production and
   organizing media events
 * Strategic communications advisor to members of the City’s Corporate
   Leadership Team, supporting an integrated approach to all communications
   within the City on topics such as real estate, human resources, sport
   hosting, emergency management, procurement and financial planning


ARCELORMITTAL 2008-2013

HEAD OF MEDIA RELATIONS:

 * Acted as an official spokesperson for ArcelorMittal; responsible for leading
   media communications, including press releases, press trips and press
   conferences while managing a network of over 40 communicators tasked with
   protecting and promoting ArcelorMittal’s global brand
 * Managed financial calendar disclosures, including quarterly earnings and
   AGMs, with the Investor Relations team
 * Oversaw external and internal communications for ArcelorMittal Mining, as
   well as coordinating local communications with mine sites in Bosnia, Brazil,
   Canada, Kazakhstan, Liberia, Mexico and Russia to ensure corporate messages
   were aligned and best practices adhered to
 * Led social media engagement across the company creating and implementing its
   first Social Media Policy and guidebook for the unified development and
   management of local social media channels
 * Managed ArcelorMittal’s media engagement strategy for the London 2012 Olympic
   Games – an initiative which was honoured on multiple shortlists, including
   the CIPR Excellence Awards and SABRE Awards

CORPORATE RESPONSIBILITY (CR) SPECIALIST:

 * Developed and implemented a company-wide community engagement strategy,
   benchmarked against international best practice standards (IFC, EBRD, ICMM)
   as well as created manuals and guidance documents and facilitated workshops
   held at sites for senior managers across Europe, and in Kazakhstan, Liberia,
   Russia and Ukraine
 * Project manager for the global CR report that required liaising with key
   stakeholders and developing a reporting network that also fed into index
   questionnaires such as Global Reporting Index and Dow Jones Sustainability
   Index – where ArcelorMittal was a sector leader
 * Created a CR Reporting template and guidance document for local CR reports
   that resulted in 14 country reports within two years, each with their own key
   performance indicators
 * Led the implementation of the group CR strategy and KPIs through the creation
   of a company-wide employee engagement campaign that was available in 11
   languages
 * Supervised a network of more than 30 local CR coordinators to manage risk,
   build capacity and strengthen knowledge of CR issues through the development
   of webinars and collaboration with ArcelorMittal’s Corporate University




EDUCATION+

MBA, Corporate Social Responsibility
International Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility, Nottingham University
Business School

BA, Communication
School of Communication, Simon Fraser University

Executive Leadership Program
THNK School of Creative Leadership

Specialization in Futures Thinking
Institute for the Future

Certification in Public Participation
International Association for Public Participation




CONTACT

 * Email
 * GitHub



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