Welcome to RIMScast. Your host is Justin Smulison, Business Content Manager at RIMS, the Risk and Insurance Management Society.   Justin visits with two guests today to discuss the RIMS Canada Conference 2023 on September 11th–14th in Ottawa! The first guest is the National Co-Chair of the RIMS Canada Conference 2023, Valerie Barber. Justin and Valerie discuss her risk career, her role with the government of Manitoba, and how Canada’s provincial government is a good place to establish a risk management career. Valerie discusses some of the Plenary and educational events to expect at the RIMS Canada Conference. Valerie talks about Plenary Speakers Sinead Bovell and Melissa Agnes.   Melissa Agnes joins the episode as the second guest. Melissa is a world-renowned expert on crisis management and is the Founder and CEO of Crisis Ready Institute. She discusses consulting for agencies and large organizations, and how “Crisis Ready” beats managing a crisis as it happens. She talks about her Plenary talk for RIMS Canada Conference 2023 and what hampers people from being ready for a crisis. She shares some steps to being ready before a crisis comes and managing it when it does.   Listen in and learn to be Crisis Ready and protect your brand.   Key Takeaways: [:01] About RIMScast and the RIMS App, an exclusive benefit for RIMS members. [:32] About today’s episode, where we will talk about RIMS Canada Conference 2023 and hear from one of the plenary speakers about crisis management. [:55] All about exciting, upcoming RIMS events! Registration is open for the RIMS Canada Conference 2023, which will be held September 11th–14th in Ottawa! Visit RIMSCanadaConference.ca for more information. [1:16] For those of you based in Canada, Justin needs to hear from you about a game show he will be hosting on September 13th. A link to a survey is in this episode’s notes. He needs your honest feedback, so he can say, “Survey says: …” Please check out the links in this episode’s notes! [1:39] On September 14th, the Spencer Educational Foundation returns to New York City for its Annual Funding Their Future Gala. The event will be held at the Cipriani on 42nd Street. A link is on this episode’s notes. You can also visit SpencerEd.org. [1:56] The RIMS Western Regional Conference will be held October 4th–6th in Vail, Colorado. Visit RIMSWesternRegional.com for more information and to register. [2:08] Head to the RIMS.org/Advocacy page to find information about The RIMS Legislative Summit, which is returning to Washington, D.C. on October 25th and 26th. [2:22] We are very excited about the RIMS ERM Conference 2023, which will be held November 2nd and 3rd in Denver, Colorado! The theme is Elevate and Evolve. Registration is open, as is a call for nominations for the ERM Award of Distinction. Those submissions are due September 1st. [2:43] The first guest on today’s episode is the National Co-Chair of the RIMS Canada Conference 2023. She has also been a risk leader for the government of Manitoba for more than 20 years. She will share her risk philosophies and then we will talk about RIMS Canada Conference 2023. [3:01] Justin welcomes Valerie Barber to RIMScast! [3:18] Valerie started in accounting, for an insurance agency and company. After five years, she worked in claims at a brokerage office for several years. She took a position next with the government of Manitoba in claims and loss prevention, then insurance and risk management, and later, the director of the insurance and risk management branch. [4:18] Her background in working with losses as they happened and preventing future losses was a good foundation to move into the risk management side. Valerie is going on 24 years of working with the government of Manitoba, [4:53] Valerie’s employer is a small but mighty branch of the government. There are four individuals, an increase. They are now fully staffed. It was incredibly relieving for Valerie to get the third and the fourth person hired. Since she sta