If you have been to one of LESA’s live events in the last seven years, you can be assured that Kathy Harkin was involved in planning it. Kathy has been LESA’s Meeting and Event Coordinator since December 10, 2006, and has helped plan all the live events, including the Annual Refresher conferences and Intensive Advocacy programs.
It’s not surprising that her favourite LESA memory has to do with planning an event. When Hugh A. Robertson QC retired in 2007, Kathy planned two retirement receptions for him. She enjoyed it not only because it was something different from planning seminars, but also because she had a hand in preparing a scrapbook containing the well-wishes of many of the attendees. After Hugh passed away, his wife Lynda told Kathy that the scrapbook was very important to him in the last few months of his life.
“I think that was really nice to hear that it meant that much to him,” says Kathy.
Planning meetings and events has always been a part of Kathy’s life. Even in high school, as president of the student’s union, she liked organizing events. It became her career when she worked for the Certified Management Accountants of Alberta (CMA) in Calgary in the 1990s.
“I helped administer the Professional Program and planned all the logistics, and basically everything I do today except for accountants,” explains Kathy.
As a result of her job with CMA, Kathy learned about a group called Meeting Professionals International and eventually became a Certified Meeting Professional (CMP) at a time when not many people had that designation in Canada.
“When I first got my designation, and moved to Edmonton in 2000, I think there were only five of us in the city that had that designation.”
After a decade at CMA, Kathy moved back to Edmonton and worked as a Client Services Manager with the Shaw Conference Centre for five years. She then had an opportunity to work as an independent planner for a company called CEO Inc. for two years, followed by another year at Shaw Conference Centre. It was there that Kathy first heard about the job with LESA.
“I wasn’t even really looking for this job. My cousin knew the recruiter, and he just mentioned it to me. When I heard about it, it reminded me of working at CMA. It had the same kind of responsibilities, except instead of working with accountants, I would be working with lawyers.”
So Kathy made the move to LESA in 2006, and she is glad she did.
“It’s been a great move to come here. I really enjoy what I do.”
Over the years, LESA has grown – both in the number of programs delivered and in the number of employees.
“When I first came to LESA, we didn’t do nearly as many programs as we do today. We have probably added at least 40 more programs on our calendar. It’s hard for me to find space because our calendar is so full,” says Kathy. “The staff has also grown, and that’s really exciting to see too.”
For the next several months, Kathy is taking on a new role at LESA. She is filling the role of Assessment and Evaluation Coordinator for the CPLED Program. While she will still be doing some planning for Live Events, she will mainly be helping to administer the CPLED Program.
“I am excited to learn something new. I think it’s good to have some cross-training.”
So 2014 will be a year of change for Kathy – not only at work, but at home too. Kathy is getting married on September 27, 2014, and not surprisingly, has already planned her wedding.
“I am really looking forward to a great year.”
