Page 14 - Suncor 360 - Summer 2016

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SUMMER 2016
360
FEATURE
Calgary-based call centre to answer questions and keep employees informed about every stage of the evacuations and, later, re-entry to the region. Once the evacuation was lifted, HR worked with Oil Sands leaders, Field Logistics and EH&S to bring employees back to work and the community safely.
“The rst thing our Family Response Centre asked employees on each phone call during the evacuation phase was ‘are you and your family safe? Are you okay?’” – Brad Harrington, team leader, HR Employee Centre and Family Response Centre
FINANCE
As a member of both the CMT and Calgary RMT, Finance had a good handle on what the response was costing us, not only in spending but from an overall loss of production and revenue.
“Once we were certain our people and the community were safe, we were able to hit the road to talk to our investors to give them similar comfort that we were responding very well and thinking ahead to the recovery of both our business and the community that is so important to us.”
– Alister Cowan, EVP & CFO
SUSTAINABILITY AND
COMMUNICATIONS
When you have 15 to 20 people working side by side in a small room for six weeks, it’s important they get along. This diverse team handled media relations, social media, employee communications, community investment, and
stakeholder and Aboriginal relations. “It struck me as I sat in that room how much I appreciated working with my fellow team members in a really challenging situation,” says Arlene Strom, VP, sustainability and communications.
As was common with many teams supporting the response, there were employees displaced from Fort McMurray, who showed up in our Calgary and Edmonton of ces just days later ready to get back to work and help.
One of them was Lanette Ellis, who, at ve months pregnant, worked 12-hour shifts alongside her Calgary colleagues. “I wanted to jump in and do what I could to help. Even though I wasn’t in my home or in my city, I knew the right place for me was with my communications co-workers, helping to get accurate information into the hands of the people who needed it most.”
GOVERNMENT RELATIONS
When Scott Wenger, manager, government relations (GR), stepped into the RMT to support the re response, he probably didn’t realize he’d be the person to obtain the permit from the Alberta Energy Regulator for Suncor to bulldoze a re perimeter to protect our assets. In the case of our Government Relations team of ve, they leveraged their contacts and relationships to advance decisions and activities to support our re response. GR worked closely with the RMWB, the Province of Alberta and the federal government throughout the evacuation and re-entry phases.
EH&S
EH&S was involved in every level of the response including: advising RMT; re risk management; air quality monitoring and mitigation; EFAP trauma support; wildlife management; and, risk assessment. EH&S also worked with external groups such as our industry partners, the RMWB, Agriculture and Forestry, and the provincial and federal governments.
“Once we made sure people were physically safe, we turned our attention to supporting their psychological safety. EFAP trauma counsellors were on the ground when personnel returned to Fort McMurray to help them work through their emotional reaction to the wild res.” – Mike Agnew, VP, EH&S
INFORMATION AND PROCESS
MANAGEMENT (I&PM)
‘What if we have no network or cell service?’ It was something we never had to nd out, thanks to I&PM’s proactive work with operations, Telus and other regional authorities. The team also delivered laptops and phones to support displaced employees working remotely in Edmonton and Calgary, and provided expertise to a number of RMT groups to synthesize and integrate data which allowed smart and swift decision making by the frontline.
FIELD LOGISTICS
It was up to Field Logistics to work with senior leaders and the business to plan and implement
accommodations and transportation in the region.
“Our challenge was to pull together all the information from various sources while things were happening so fast. Communication was key to ensure decisions were shared broadly and in real time
so they could be immediately implemented on the ground.”
– Fauzia Lalani, director, transportation, travel and strategy.
SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT
When it comes to goods and services, it’s Supply Chain Management (SCM) you want at the table, especially the RMT table. The team was responsible for purchasing everything from bottled water to satellite phones to pet food to children’s clothing. They also had to coordinate scheduled freight deliveries, which proved to be challenging as Highway 63, the main road into the region, was closed on and off throughout the rst two weeks
of May.
Oakville
SALES & MARKETING
Support for the re response reached as far as Ontario, where our Sales & Marketing team is located. The RMT there made sure rst responders and Oil Sands operations had the fuel they required, and that our Petro- Canada retailers and wholesale facilities were as protected from the re as they could be.
Fauzia Lalani
Members of our Supply Chain Management team nish unloading supplies for evacuees at the Suncor Aviation Centre hangar.
Alison Larsen, left, and Adel Silliker greet returning employees at Firebag Aerodrome.