Medicine Hat City Manager Ann Mitchell Background
What sort of experience did City Manager Ann Mitchell have before she came to Medicine Hat? Is her CAO experience the same as a City Manager? I decided to find out.
Medicine Hat has over 1000 employees. Did Mitchell have any experience in running a large organization?
No. The largest organization had about 100 employees, her last CAO position had less than 55 permanent employees.
Does Mitchell have decades of experience as a Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)?
Yes she was the Chief Administrative Officer but she was never a manager of an actual city. Her first 2 CAO positions were in vacation townships with populations of 975 and 230 residents respectively. The third CAO position was in a township with about 5400 people. Lethbridge County has the highest population with 10,130 residents scattered over a large area. None of these locations could be called a city.
For comparison, Medicine Hat has a population of 63,382 residents.
Does Mitchell have any experience in the energy industry?
None that I can find.
The City of Medicine Hat has a budget of over half a billion dollars, yes that is BILLION. Does Mitchell have any experience overseeing a budget this large?
No. The largest budget she dealt with was less than 1/10 of Medicine Hat’s budget.
What experience does Mitchell have with dealing with social issues like what we have in the ‘Hat, such as lack of shelter space, lack of affordable housing, the opioid crisis?
Mitchell’s first 2 stints as CAO were in vacation towns with little or no homelessness. You cannot get to Pelee except by ferry. Prince is 20 minutes away for Sault St Marie.
The 3rd location (Sioux Lookout) has a 28 bed shelter for a population of 5839.
(Medicine Hat’s overnight shelter only holds 30 people for a population of over 63,000.)
Sioux Lookout has a number of agencies that provide services as they are a hub that serves an area of over 30,000 people. There is a good document called Sioux Lookout Healthy Community Strategy that was published in 2016. Sioux Lookout serves as a medical hub for 33 First Nations communities, many of them fly-in.
Lethbridge County is a very large rural area which has no shelter at all.
I took everything directly from the horse’s mouth. Screenshots were taken August 30 2023
Timeline of Past Jobs and Education
Populations taken from 2021 census
Feb 2023 City Manager Medicine Hat population 63,382
2019-2021 Royal Roads University MA Leadership
Thesis concentrated on local government - specifically the important relationship between the CAO or City Manager and Municipal Council. It makes for somer interesting reading.
2018 – Jan 2023 CAO Lethbridge County population 10,120
(Did you notice the screenshot still has her listed as Lethbridge County’s CAO?)
2018 – Present Owner Mitchell’s Consulting
Certified workplace investigator through AWI, Certified Professional Coach through ICF
Management and Government Expert, Over 25 (sic) of public sector experience
2016 York University, Master of Municipal Leadership
2012 – 2018 CAO Municipality of Sioux Lookout Ontario population 5839
2008 – 2012 CAO of Township of Pelee Island Ont population 230
2005 – 2008 CAO of Township of Prince Ont. population 975
2005 – 2012 Diploma in Municipal Management, AMTCO
(no date given) Lakehead University BA English
No further info provided.
Comparison of Medicine Hat to
Lethbridge County, Sioux Lookout, Pelee and Prince
Created by K. Allard
Sources 2021 Canada Census, Financial info from Townships of Sioux Lookout, and Prince Ontario, and County of Lethbridge documents; City of Medicine Hat.
City Manager Ann Mitchell has two Linked In Profiles, here’s the other one.
Screenshot taken Aug 30 2023
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