VICA INSTRUCTORS

Mark Alam, B.Eng., Ph.D., Canadian Wood Council | Manager, Codes & Standards - Fire

As manager of codes and standards in the fire division, Marc participates in CWC’s building code and standards fire‐related initiatives and the development of CWC’s fire design tools, as well as code‐related fire research projects. He has a PhD in Civil Engineering from Carleton as well as a Bachelor’s degree in Civil Engineering with a concentration in Management.

Marcela Ouatu, JD, Civic Legal LLP | Associate

Marcela’s practice focuses primarily on tendering, procurement, construction matters and local government law; she assists clients with drafting and reviewing construction contracts and procurement documents, contract administration, and general municipal matters. Marcela regularly writes on legal topics of interest to local governments and the construction industry. Prior to joining Civic Legal LLP, Marcela completed a Juris Doctor and a Master of Laws at the Peter A. Allard School of Law at the University of British Columbia. During her time in law school, she completed the Business Law Concentration and was a student clinician at the Business Law Clinic, where she provided legal advice to small businesses. Marcela also worked in the legal department of an international franchise company and at a Vancouver boutique law firm, specializing in real estate, corporate law, and estate planning. Marcela articled at a civil litigation law firm, where she gained extensive legal experience in advocacy by frequently representing clients in the Supreme Court of British Columbia.

Mark Scharf, BA, MHA

Mark recently retired from the University of Calgary where he was responsible for the delivery of capital projects across the organization entailing approximately 400 capital and renovation projects per year with an annual project spend of approximately $150M. During his 12-year tenure as Director the Project Management Office constructed nine new campus buildings, including major infrastructure renewals, new residence halls and a new library. With  30-plus years of public sector experience working in post-secondary and health-care organizations, Mark has been directly involved in procuring design and construction teams and negotiating and overseeing a wide variety of contract types including Design-Build, CM at Risk, Lump-Sum and performance-based engagements. Mark takes pride in building strong teams, mentoring the next generation of project professionals, and engaging diverse stakeholder groups to achieve outstanding results.

Mark Taylor, P.Eng., GSC, President | Mark Taylor Construction Advisory Services

With more than 30 years of construction industry experience, Mark has been a sought-out change leader for his ability to create a shared common vision, develop strong teams, and set clear goals and accountabilities to successfully implement new initiatives. Throughout his career in the UK, and 20+ years in Canada, Mark has been a senior leader for major general contractors including PCL and Stuart Olson. His roles have included VP of Permanent Modular Construction, Special Projects Division Manager, Director of Operations, and Senior Construction Manger. Now, as President of his own boutique advisory firm, Mark provides business and project support services to help contractors become more profitable.

Mark Waters, CTech., GSC, BGC Partners Inc. | Director of Training

Director of Training for BGC Partners Inc. His career in the construction industry spans the past thirty years with experience and a unique perspective from both the general contracting and consulting engineering sides of the business. Mark is a Gold Seal Certified project manager and served many years in the industry as a senior project manager and estimator. His earlier career was field based, providing years of valuable experience as a project superintendent, general superintendent of field operations and surveying. Graduating with honours from the BCIT Geomatics Technicians program, Mark joined the Applied Science Technologists and Technicians Association of BC in 1997.

Michael Atkinson, LLB | Past President CCA, Past Secretary CCDC

Michael is a leading expert in standard construction contracts and practices in Canada. He was appointed Secretary to the Canadian Construction Documents Committee (CCDC) in 1982 and served in this role until 1993 when he became President of the Canadian Construction Association (CCA) from 1993 to 2017. In 2013, he was one of just 38 recipients of the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee medals. He was awarded this honor for demonstrating outstanding service in the Canadian construction industry. In addition to his roles at the CCA, Michael has served as the Private Sector Vice-Chair of the Municipal Infrastructure Forum established by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, and as a member of the Federal-Industry Real Property Advisory Council, the Industrial Security Advisory Board, the CORCAN Advisory Board, and a long-time member of the Construction Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association.

Michael Moll, LL.B, Civic Legal LLP | Partner

Michael is a partner at Civic Legal LLP with over 15 years of experience advising and representing local governments. He maintains a mixed practice of both litigation and solicitor work with a particular focus on land use, development, local government finance and bylaw regulation and enforcement. Michael regularly gives advice on general local government matters, including property taxes, elections, highways, construction disputes and expropriation. He frequently presents at local government conferences and workshops, including the annual conferences of the Government Finance Officers Association (BC) and the Licence Inspectors and Bylaw Officers Association. In 2014, Michael obtained a Master of Laws degree, writing a thesis on the municipal regulation of business. Prior to pursuing a career in law, he studied economics and worked in procurement for a telecommunications company in Germany.

Morgan Garry, BSc, Bluebeam Certified Instructor, Curtek Project Solutions Inc. | President

Morgan is a Bluebeam Certified Instructor with more than a decade of hands-on experience in the construction industry, including owning his own construction company and working for one of the largest GC’s in North America. With a bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Morgan is a trusted expert in using Bluebeam technology on the construction site. Morgan’s classes and training have helped some of the top construction companies in North America improve processes, workflow, and project management with Bluebeam Revu.

Pamela Bragg, Sarkany Management Inc. | Owner

Pamela is an accomplished senior-level executive with a proven track record as a strategic business partner. In her previous corporate career, she was an International HR Director for a multinational construction materials company.

Now the owner of Sarkany Management Inc., a Human Resources Consulting firm, Pamela offers a broad range of HR services focused on improving business performance. Her clients range from small open shop construction and construction materials companies to multinational road transport organizations, where she has proudly grown from a start-up to now supporting over 100 clients. 

She holds a Graduate Certificate in Diversity & Inclusion from Stanford University and a Masters Certificate in Strategic Human Resources & Masters Certificate in Organizational Change.

Pamela is also a part of the Speakers Bureau for TEC Canada, a leadership development organization of over 1,400 chief executives, entrepreneurs, and business owners.

She is proud to be working with many Canadian associations and their member companies, including the BC Trucking Association, the Canadian Fuels Association, Roofing Contractors Association, the BC Road Builders, the Canadian Association of Fleet Supervisors, and more. 

Phil Iafelice, CMT, PMP

Phil has over 45 years of construction experience, starting out his career in field work for both construction and engineering firms and continuing on to become a business owner, estimator, building inspector and project manager. His industry experience includes projects ranging from road building and deep services to multi-amenity recreation facilities. From his experience, Phil understands the need to provide teams with both the tools and motivation to excel. As Project Manager of Capital Works at the City of Calgary, Phil was involved from 2013 in the New Recreation Facility Program where he led the construction of the Remington Quarry Park Recreation Facility and the Brookfield Residential Seton Recreation Facility. In his role at the City of Calgary he led other infrastructure projects where he was responsible for acquiring and managing construction, design, inspection and commissioning services through the public procurement system. Numerous internal clients included CFD, CPS, Transit, Recreation and more. Phil’s other City of Calgary experience included working as Group 3 Building Inspector and Business Coordinator for the Development and Building Department. Phil is recently retired from the City of Calgary but still dabbles in projects of interest and volunteer work.