University planning and engineering curricula are centered around the technical skills and knowledge needed to be successful in the industry. Increasingly, project management training specific to the industry has also been offered. What remains a gap is how to effectively manage consulting assignments and the procurement process, with new graduates expected to learn on the job without much guidance.

Large-scale investment in infrastructure is placing huge pressures on the industry to deliver and the capacity to manage or deliver consulting assignments has not kept pace. There is also a tendency for professionals to pick either a public or private sector track for their career, with little movement between, leading to “two solitudes” with little understanding of each other’s pressures, priorities or ways of working.

This discussion will outline basic perspectives and approaches on how to better manage consulting assignment and procurement process for new and experienced professionals alike. A particular focus will be on insights into how the public and private work, to better equip professionals to bridge this divide.

Daniel Haufschild brings over 25 years experience in city and transportation planning, from strategy to implementation. He has worked internationally in a variety of senior public and private sector roles. For five years he worked at the municipal level in planning and public works. He spent over five years working for regional planning authorities including Metro King County in Seattle and Metrolinx in Toronto where he was Director of Planning.

Daniel leads Arup’s Canadian planning business.

Presented by University of Toronto ITE Student Chapter, UT-ITE.

Free. All are welcome.

If any specific accommodations are needed, please contact ite@studentorg.utoronto.ca. Requests should be made as early as possible.

Join link: https://utoronto.zoom.us/s/81320181425. Please note that the same Zoom link will be used for all UT-ITE seminars this term.