Geoff Hogan: Why MISA 2019 is a must-attend for civic tech

The annual Municipal Information Systems Association (MISA) Ontario conference is already a significant event for those in the civic tech sector, but an upcoming 40th birthday will undoubtedly add another level of excitement.

MISA Ontario conference will be celebrating its 40th anniversary during this year’s gathering, set for June 3-6, in Niagara Falls.

“It’s remarkable to think we’ve been doing municipal IT for that long, but we have been doing municipal IT that long,” said MISA board member and past president Geoff Hogan during a conversation with Municipal World CEO Susan Gardner in Quebec City. “MISA started in Ontario, then grew into BC, then the Prairies, Quebec has been around for 25 years, and MISA Atlantic is our child, it’s only five years old.”

MISA Ontario Celebrating 40 Years

Every chapter (except for the Atlantic chapter because of its relative newness), put on an annual conference. It’s typically, Hogan said, the highlight of an association’s year. Ontario is the largest conference with about 700 delegates attending every year.

This year marks the third time Niagara has hosted the MISA Ontario conference and Hogan said attendees should expect a lot of excitement. The Niagara wine region is, he explains, “a lovely part of Ontario,” for one, but there are also typically a golf event, a social food tour, and then two-and-a-half days of networking, workshops, and a little more fun, too.

MISA Members Support Collaboration

There are more than 400 municipalities represented in MISA in chapters across the country, Hogan said, with thousands municipal IT professionals taking advantage of the association’s services. What stands out to Hogan the most, he explains, is that when he came onboard from the private sector he was used to a more adversarial relationship with other similarly placed competitors.

“It’s really nice coming from the private sector to have that whole sharing environment,” Hogan said. “That’s the primary benefit. When we do surveys about what the primary benefit to MISA is, it’s getting to know your peers.

Registration is welcome on the opening day, but is not preferred. For more information or to register for the conference, visit www.misa-asim.ca and follow links to the conference.  MW

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