Wednesday, August 3, 2011

The Background Story

My husband was recently offered a job in Toronto, a wonderful opportunity. After much discussion, it was decided that we would go for it. Wasting no time at all, he is due to start late August and I will follow mid-September once our house closes. I am very excited about this life change, and can't wait to see what opportunities await me in Toronto.

I have created this blog as a way to network and connect with individuals who might help me with my job search in Toronto by making my CV available to the world.

You can contact me at krintoronto@gmail.com - I look forward to hearing from you and sincerely appreciate any help you might be able to provide. Don't hesitate to contact me with any questions, and please direct this blog to anyone you think might be interested in working with me.

What I Will Bring to Your Team (or, My Last Performance Review)

Instead of feeling like a braggart, I am going to let my current manager and previous manager speak to my abilities. Below you will find quotes from my Employee Performance Review for 2010-2011. In a nutshell, I play really well with others.

"Over the short period of time that I have had the privilege to supervise her work, Karen has constantly demonstrated that she is both efficient and effective as an officer responsible for the management of numerous complex and sometimes challenging contribution agreements. She continues to meet her deadlines and remains in control of her files. She maintains a very good working relationship with recipients and is eager to obtain whatever information is required from them to ensure that objectives are met and that the contributions are well managed. Karen is always available to participate with the rest of the team in various program discussions, to address program delivery challenges and propose innovative and interesting solutions. Her assistance in the development of a project portfolio for future program communications purposes has and continues to be much appreciated. The articles that she has produced or helped produce are of great quality and very captivating and interesting for any audience interested in learning about the work accomplished through the Program.

Karen is definitely an asset to the team and her work is valued and greatly appreciated......."


and:

"Karen’s excellent project management, communication and outreach skills contributed greatly to the successful management of several difficult and complex files and many Program successes of 2010-11. Karen's flexibility, positive attitude and willingness to help her colleagues (in light of her shortened and compressed work schedule) during a truly busy time for the Program was greatly appreciated and did not go unnoticed. Karen's contributions to the Program has confirmed that she is not only asset to the team, but to the Agency as a whole......"


See, if I said that about myself you would think I was bragging.

My C.V.

Thank you for reading this far, and I hope this means that you are interested enough to see just what skills I have been developing for the past 14 years. Here are the highlights to date:

HIGHLIGHTS OF QUALIFICATIONS
• Over 14 years experience working in various cultural institutions within the Government of Canada.
• Excellent computer and research skills (web based and traditional).
• Experience with program delivery, risk management and working with internal and external stakeholders (public and private sector).
• Ability to work well independently as well as a team member. Excellent communication skills.
• Strong analytical and interpersonal skills.

PROFESSIONAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

2009-present, Program Officer, Planning and Programs, Parks Canada Agency

• Working in a fast paced environment, responsible for screening, assessing and recommending National Historic Sites of Canada for funding under Parks Canada National Historic Sites Cost-Sharing Program.
• Work closely with strategic partners and stakeholders to advise, inform, and respond to inquiries about the Program.
• Draft Contribution Agreements, monitor and analyze financial and project reporting.

2008-2009, Project Manager, Programs Branch, Partnerships, Library and Archives Canada

• Managed two major cultural funding programs, the Archival Community Digitization Program and the National Archival Development Program using project management theories and best practices, including risk management.
• Worked closely with senior management and strategic partners to fulfil the steps of the program.
• Enjoyed close communication with stakeholders in marketing the programs and responding to any queries related to the programs.
• Managed two separate budgets for the programs.
• Conducted qualitative and quantitative research to determine the needs of the programs.

2006-2008, Curatorial Assistant, Acquisitions and Research, Portrait Gallery of Canada, Library and Archives Canada

• Conducted research for internal and external clients.
• Worked closely with artists and representatives of artists.
• Implemented each step of the process of acquiring works of art of all media types (donation and purchase) for the National Collection.
• Maintained numerous filing systems and databases.
• Worked closely with the Copyright Bureau in applying copyright legislation.
• Fulfilled administrative duties with regards to processing donations and acquisitions paid for by the Government of Canada.
• Organized the Portrait Gallery of Canada Acquisition Committee meeting (quarterly).
• Organized the Portrait Gallery of Canada Commissioning Program, a competitive process involving jury members, local artists and artists from across Canada.

2001 – 2006, Assistant Archivist, Literary Manuscripts, Library and Archives Canada

• Created finding aids for the department’s manuscript collections.
• Conducted research for internal and external clients.
• Ensured sensitive and restricted material was not made available. Applied ATIP legislation.
• Determined applicable copyright legislation as required.
• Created a treatment plan/database to highlight material in the collection in need of preservation.
• Created, maintained and used various databases.
• Maintained research, preservation and donor files.
• Fulfilled administrative duties with regards to processing donations and acquisitions paid for by the Government of Canada.

1999 – 2001, Reference Librarian and Archivist, Statistics Canada

• Conducted research for internal and external clients.
• Archived and electronically catalogued a large, historical photographic collection and historical manuscript collection.
• Managed the Employee Resource Centre, a centre within the library which focused on the needs of the Employment Equity groups.
• Worked closely with Employment Equity groups in determining needs for the Employment Resource Centre.

1996 – 1998, Librarian, Department of National Defence, Information Resource Centre

• Conducted research for internal clients.
• Entered sensitive data into an internal database.
• Managed a documentation audit of one of the Department’s buildings (250 offices).

1995 and 1996 (two consecutive contracts), Archives Technician, Canadian Museum of Science and Technology

• Archived and created finding aids for large audio, audio visual and photographic collections.
• Created and implemented storage plans for the collections.
• Conducted an audit of a massive collection (10,000+) of locomotive engineering drawings.

PROFESSIONAL TRAINING

• Copyright workshops, Professional Learning Centre, University of Toronto (2003, 2004)
• Time Management workshop (2008)
• Project Management workshop (2009)
• Transfer Payment Policy workshop (2009)
• Managing Grants and Contributions workshop (2010)
• Cultural Resource Management workshop (2010)

EDUCATION


Diploma, Archives Technician Program, Dean’s List, Algonquin College, 1996.
Bachelor of Arts Theatre, double minor Women’s Studies and Classical Studies, Bishop’s University, 1994.

LINGUISTIC PROFILE: Bilingual

And on a More Personal Note....

I love to have fun.
I am a social media animal and get excited everytime there is a new development in social communications.
I love music and am currently fulfilling a life long dream of learning how to play bass guitar (I never said I was good).
My love of fashion knows no boundaries.
Family life fulfills me, but going to the office keeps me balanced.
I may or may not enjoy reality t.v.