Mario Gionet Named NAFA's Vice President for Canada

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Mario Gionet, CBC/Radio-Canada, has been named NAFA's new Vice President for Canada and Northern Region Trustee effective immediately.

Gionet, who joined NAFA in 2001, has been active within the Association as a Member of the Quebec Chapter and nationally through his participation on the I&E Curriculum Committee and several project teams. He replaces Kate Vigneau, CAFM, who resigned from the Board to accept the position of Professional Development Strategist with NAFA.

"Mario Gionet has proven himself to be an effective leader through his NAFA chapter and I&E Curriculum Committee work," said NAFA President Chris Amos, CAFM. "I am confident that he will represent our Canadian members well on the NAFA Board of Trustees (BOT) as well as contribute to leading the Association as Vice President for Canada. Kate Vigneau will be a tough act to follow but Mario Gionet has what it takes to be successful in this demanding role.

"We’ll miss Kate on the Board of Trustees but I couldn’t be more thrilled with her selection as NAFA’s first Professional Development Strategist," continued Amos. "We get the benefit of having Mario on the BOT and also get to keep Kate busy working on NAFA education--that’s a win-win if ever I saw one."

Gionet started out in 1975 as a licensed heavy equipment mechanic with the inter-city bus company Voyageur. During his time at Voyageur, he took on new challenges, such as managing personnel, negotiating collective agreements, implementing preventive maintenance procedures, and computerizing the maintenance parts inventory. He was called on to help develop and implement organizational changes and to manage entire sectors of the company. He also went back to school, studying management at CEGEP and HEC (Université de Montréal).

Gionet was then offered a position at Purolator as manager of the vehicle fleet and mechanical workshops in Eastern Canada. Once again, he was involved in restructuring the maintenance department for the vehicle fleet, and for implementing Purolator’s first computerized management system for tasks and spares.

In the mid-nineties, Gionet went back to managing a fleet of urban buses, this time with the Réseau de transport de la Capitale in Quebec City as manager of the mechanical workshops and network infrastructure (bus shelters, signage, and buildings). He was in charge of introducing the first low-floor vehicles in Quebec and creating the first training centre for maintenance employees at the RTC.

In early 2000, Gionet had an opportunity to return to Montreal and work for natural gas distributor Gaz Métro. In addition to running the mechanical shop, he was put in charge of implementing an SAP management system, obtaining ISO 14001 certification for the shops and vehicles, and participating in the CEO’s employer/union steering committee.

With CBC/Radio-Canada since 2001, Gionet is responsible for developing and implementing a vehicle fleet management program, and for writing and applying policy guidelines for vehicle maintenance and use. He is also in charge of acquiring and disposing of vehicles.

"Besides being a proven leader, Mario has that cool French-Canadian accent," Amos joked. Gionet becomes the third bilingual Vice President in a row for NAFA and the Association looks forward to a long and fruitful relationship."