About

Colleen Sklar

Colleen Sklar graduated from the University of Winnipeg with a degree in Conflict Resolution and International Development. She has focused on creating new organizational structures that meet today’s needs, with a special focus on understanding and addressing conflict in organizations and business. Colleen is a strong proponent of beginning at the local level of engagement to manage change and to create organizational resilience.

Colleen’s leadership style focuses on building partnerships through consensus – ensuring all voices are heard. Her expert communication skills have created many opportunities to work with various levels of governments, internal stakeholders and external stakeholder groups.

Colleen has acted as the Vice-Chair on the Lake Manitoba Appeal Commission for the Province of Manitoba, the Chair of the Province of Manitoba’s Expert Advisory Committee on Climate, and Chair of the Global Water Futures User Group at the University of Saskatchewan. Colleen also received the Queen Elizabeth Diamond Jubilee Medal for her commitment to the community and her volunteer work.

Colleen is an IAP2 Certified Community Consultant and has an extensive background in Hospitality and Hotel Management. This diverse set of skills has allowed her to facilitate discussions on topics from creating better workplaces and more adaptable structural environments in non-profit organizations. She is proficient in cross-cultural communication and consultation and has accreditation from Virginia NVC Training Centre in Organizational Leadership Styles in Creating Environments Where People Thrive.

As the Principal of Creative Resolutions, she has repeatedly demonstrated the capacity to manage strategic projects through her dynamic consulting methods. Colleen has extensive experience and a diverse network of collaborators that bring support to her methods. As such, she delivers a broad spectrum of expertise and innovative approaches while shepherding new ideas, products, technologies and governance structure to the marketplace.

Colleen further serves as the Executive Director of the Winnipeg Metropolitan Region (WMR) where she works with local leaders from across Manitoba. At the WMR she organizes and develops innovative integrated regional responses in water protection and management, land use planning, infrastructure investment, economic development, and collaborative governance. Colleen also leads the Lake Friendly Initiative, a community-to-community grass roots engagement strategy aimed at protecting and preserving Manitoba’s freshwater resources.

Colleen is also a lead on the Collaborative Leadership Initiative (CLI), a reconciliation and co-governance approach that successfully brought Chiefs, Mayors and Reeves together. These 28 elected leaders signed an MOU as a commitment to work together something that had not happened in over 150 years.