WCE Calgary hosted our 2024 Mentorship Mixer, an evening for those working in the engineering consulting industry of all experience levels and backgrounds to mingle and share experiences.

Date: Thursday May 23rd, 2024

Time: 5:30 – 8:30pm

Location: 34th Floor Conference Room, West Tower, Fifth Avenue Place (420 2 St SW, Calgary)

Cost: $10

During registration, Mentees chose preferred topics for discussion and were allocated to sessions depending on their choices. The theme for this year was “Engineering Your Next Chapter”, with topics such as transitioning from technical to management, returning from parental leave, and other changes we see throughout our careers.

We began with a short full group icebreaker activity before moving into our main sessions.

Attendees were seated with Mentors in small groups and participated in lively group discussions over appetizers and beverages, in three 25-minute sessions. Participants had the opportunity to seek guidance, advice, and support from senior women in the consulting engineering industry.

Through our informal approach to mentorship, we aimed to foster organic connections between mentors and mentees at this event. We will seek to provide ongoing opportunities for developing organic mentorship connections at our events throughout the year.

OUR MENTORS

Megan Bowen
Sustainability Projects Development Engineer
Strathcona Resources

Megan is a Sustainability Projects Development Engineer at Strathcona Resources. A professional engineer with APEGA, she completed her BSc in Mechanical Engineering at the University of Alberta and her MSc in Renewable Energy and Engineering Management at the University of Freiburg in Germany. She is familiar with a number of transitions throughout her career, including switching from building services consulting engineering in Toronto and Calgary to reservoir engineering within oil & gas in Calgary and Houston, going back to school in another country after more than ten years in industry, and starting at a new workplace in the midst of a global pandemic. In her spare time, Megan enjoys volunteering for the Science Olympics, playing ultimate frisbee, voraciously reading, and (trying) triathlon training.

Nichola Sinclair-Foreman
Project Director
M3 Development Management Ltd.

Nichola Sinclair-Foreman has over 17 years’ experience in the construction and development sector and carries professional accreditations of B.Sc, P.ENG and LEED AP©.  Nichola began her career with EllisDon, where prior to her leaving she helped lead the construction of a $254M downtown 27 storey office tower. Following this, Nichola joined the M3 team to fill the void in the project management field which had become evident through her experiences with other project management firms. This void was a lack of cooperation, collaboration, accountability and fairness to all parties. Nichola is dedicated to ensuring project teams work together for the common goal as the success of the project is the success of all parties. Reaching this success as collaboratively and cooperatively as possible is in the best interests of the Owners, Consultants and Contractors.

Approaching every project with the collaboration and cooperation requirements held paramount, Nichola has successfully led numerous projects with M3. She has developed an acute understanding of construction, development management, and what is necessary for successful project initiation, execution, and completion. Nichola now leads the $500M BMO Centre Expansion as Project Director.

Stacey Hamilton (Brown), MA
National Vice President, Business Development & Growth
WSP Canada

Stacey is a passionate change-maker having spent over 16 years working in infrastructure across North America. She focuses on top-line growth, client service excellence, business development, program management, strategic marketing, and large-scale bid delivery. With her work experience spanning the industry—land development, construction, engineering, and architecture—Stacey specializes in understanding Canada’s infrastructure pipeline and collaborative delivery models. In her current role, Stacey leads a team of 30 business development, procurement, and end-market experts to drive top line growth.

Stacey has been a guest speaker with the Women in Transportation (WTS) Network and the P3 Bulletin Annual Conference, as well as judging the global P3 Bulletin Awards. Stacey currently Chairs the Women’s Infrastructure Network (WIN) Calgary Chapter and has enjoyed previous volunteer opportunities with the Food Bank, YMCA, YWCA, and Dress for Success.

Jennifer K. Krochak, P.Eng, BAC, PMP
Owner and Founder
Intuitive Management Solutions Inc.

Jennifer has had a widely varied career path, starting as an assistant research physicist at the Canadian Light Source Synchrotron, through a stint in Operational and Bus Dev roles with a telecom manufacturer, and literally “tripping over” a project manager (who kindly helped her clean up the coffee mess), she found her true calling in Project Management.

Jennifer is a collaborative leader with experience in strategy design and execution, executive communication, matrix management and team-building. She has delivered major projects from a range of stakeholder perspectives and for a variety of industries, most recently the Southwest Calgary Ring Road and Northeast Anthony Henday Drive in Edmonton.

Jennifer is currently Owner and Founder of Intuitive Management Solutions Inc., a small business providing Executive Advisory and Project Delivery expertise to her Clients.

Teresa Drew
Principal, Technical Operations Office
RWDI

Teresa joined the Calgary RWDI team in 2011, and is a Noise, Acoustics and Vibration Team Technical Director and Senior Consultant on environmental noise assessments. She also  supports RWDI’s global consulting operations as holder of the Technical Operations Office. Teresa is an accomplished professional with over 35 years of consulting experience. Her expertise is in the areas of regulatory permitting, noise assessment, renewable energy, health impact assessments and noise control/mitigation. Teresa has also been called for expert testimony on a number of occasions.

Jelena Bojanic, B.Sc., P.Eng.
Project Engineer
RJC

Jelena Bojanic is a proud mother of two young daughters, aged 3 and 6. In her free time, she loves hiking in the mountains and enjoying barbecues with family and friends.  She is also a project engineer at Read Jones Christoffersen, with over a decade of experience. Holds a B.Sc. in Civil Engineering with a minor in Structural Engineering from the University of Calgary and a Civil Engineering Technology diploma from SAIT. Along with ongoing career development she is looking for ways to give back to community and be a role model for her girls.

Heather Kwiatkowski, P.Eng.
Senior Project Manager
WSP Canada

Heather is a Lead Project Manager  at WSP Canada . A professional engineer with APEGA, she completed her BaSc in Petroleum Systems Engineering at the University of Regina and most recently obtained her Project Management Professional designation in early 2024 . She is familiar with a number of transitions throughout her career, including switching from a technical role in Oil and Gas , building multi-well pad sites for drilling operations, to taking a 6-year leave to raise her small children. After returning to the workforce, Heather decided to pivot into project management leading mining engineering projects for WSP. In her spare time, Heather has volunteered with the heart and stroke foundation, loves baking and playing with her kids.

Sarah Ahmed, B.A.Sc., M.Eng., P.Eng., LEED AP
Senior Associate
Smith & Andersen

Reliability, consistency, and attention to detail are just some of the strengths that Sarah brings as a designer, project manager, and leader. Over her career, she has earned experience in many industries, including the successful delivery of large healthcare, education, and commercial projects. From developing the initial concept for a project, through to completion, Sarah enjoys applying her creativity and problem-solving skills to deliver innovative solutions that meet her clients’ needs.
With experience across Canada, Sarah is an active member of the Association of Professional Engineers and Geoscientists of Alberta (APEGA), Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO), and Engineers Geoscientists Manitoba (EGM). A respected and responsible engineer, Sarah is also a LEED Accredited Professional and an active member of the Canada Green Building Council (CAGBC).

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