About Me

Mel Gill, B.A. MSW. is the author of the widely acclaimed best-selling book, Governing for Results: A Director’s Guide to Good Governance; the ‘Governance Self-Assessment Checklist,’ a research-validated diagnostic, educational and strategic planning tool for boards; and, several published articles on governance, organizational effectiveness and development of public policy. He is a frequent contributor to Charity Channel, Charity Village and the Canadian FundRaiser. His book has been adopted as the core resource for the United Way Canada board development curriculum and several university/community college courses on governance. Mel is respected as an innovative thinker and a leading authority on nonprofit and public sector management, governance and organizational effectiveness. He brings perspectives from his studies in law, social work, psychology, political science and economics; experience as a senior manager in government; program, policy and budgeting analyst with the Saskatchewan Treasury Board; internal Treasury Board consultant responsible for implementation of a Program-Based Management Information System in several government departments; development of standards for management and funding of community services and employment grants to nonprofits and small businesses; CEO of one of the largest nonprofit social service agencies in Canada; and as a volunteer board member with a score of local, provincial and national nonprofit boards. Mel is President of Synergy Associates, Consultants in Governance and Organizational Development. He has been consulting, conducting research, writing, training and speaking on governance best practices and organizational effectiveness since 1999. During this time he has conducted governance reviews and training with more than one hundred non-profit and public sector agencies and associations. He was awarded grants from the PricewaterhouseCoopers Endowment for the Business of Government and several federal government departments between 1999 and 2002 to support his research on governance in nonprofit and public sector organizations. He has received several honors for leadership in mental health services and children’s services. He has been an advisor to United Way Canada on redesign of its board development curriculum and United Way International on the development of ‘Global Standards’ for ‘Governance, Privacy and Ethics’. He is a frequent presenter at conferences across North America. He is a member of the faculty of the ‘Fundamentals of Governance’ course offered by Queen’s University, School of Business, Executive Development Program. He has also been a sessional lecturer in a number of university courses on the politics of change; mental health services; health care, nonprofit and public sector governance. Mel was invited to present a keynote address to a 2007 conference of leading academics, researchers and consultants sponsored by the Midwest Center for Nonprofit Leadership at the Bloch School of Business, University of Missouri, Kansas City on the topic of ‘Network Governance and Organizational Form: A Framework for Analyzing What Works Best. Synergy’s clients include Air Canada Pilots Assn, National Centres of Excellence, Can Institute of Mining, SNOLAB, Katimavik, Ottawa Mission, Canadian Evaluation Society, L'Arche Canada, Canada/Nova Scotai Offshore Petroleum Board, School Boards and School Trustee Associations, United Ways, Queen’s University CA Centre for Governance, HR Sector Council, Finning Intnl/CAT, TimberWest Forest, McInnes Cooper LLP Halifax, Fed Superannuates Nat’l Assn, Perley Rideau Veterans Health Centre, Ottawa Jewish Leadership Institute, ON Community Legal Aid Clinics Assn, former VON Ottawa branch, Ont. Library Trustees Assn, SK Community Colleges, Fed/provl govt depts, numerous provincial and national health, professional and industry associations, as well as a host of local service organizations.