Both the City of Vancouver and the Province of B.C. are marking firsts with the creation of and appointments to new roles in government auditing, including the first auditor general for Vancouver and the first equity, diversity, and inclusion lead for B.C.’s auditor general office.

Vancouver

The City of Vancouver announced today (August 9), that city council has appointed Mike Macdonell as the city’s first auditor general.

City council approved the establishment of the new role on November 4.

The Auditor General Recruitment Committee—consisting of councilors Rebecca Bligh, Adriane Carr, Lisa Dominato, Sarah Kirby-Yung, and Colleen Hardwick as chair—chose Macdonell after a recruitment search.

“For the first time, the City will have independent assurance of the stewardship of public funds; joining every other major city in Canada,” Hardwick stated in a news release.

“Vancouver residents expect city council to govern with integrity, deliver quality services, and invest their tax dollars wisely,” Coun. Dominato said. “The first-ever auditor general for Vancouver will increase the transparency, accountability, and efficiency of city hall and civic services.”

Previously, Macdonell was the assistant auditor general, quality assurance, standards, and administration at the Office of the Auditor General of British Columbia, and led performance audits of Crown corporations, ministries, and legislative offices in sectors ranging from health and utilities to transportation and police. He also conducted quality control reviews and provided technical advice on audits conducted by B.C.’s Auditor General for Local Government during the eight years that the office was in was operation.

British Columbia

Meanwhile, B.C.’s auditor general, Michael A. Pickup, announced on August 6 that Sheila Dodds has been appointed the new deputy auditor general.

She will also become the first equity, diversity, and inclusion lead, a new role overseeing all office operations and leading staff in a way to reflect diversity in the province.

Dodds will replace Russ Jones, who served the office for over 40 years.

Dodds began as an articling student with B.C.’s Office of the Auditor General in 1985, and obtained her designation as a chartered accountant in 1988. She was also a member of the CPA Canada Public Sector Standards Task Force 2020 from 2015 to 2020, and is a member of the CPA Canada Competency Map Task Force.

"Ms. Dodds has an extensive background in performance, financial and internal audit," Pickup stated. "She brings a lot of diverse, lived experience to this new role, including experience supporting performance audit in Barbados, Tanzania, and Guyana."