Mining Safety Leadership Medal
2002CIM Distinguished Lecturers
Retired as vice president from Syncrude Canada Ltd., Gordon Winkel joined the University of Alberta in 2010 and has supported the establishment of the David and Joan Lynch School of Engineering Safety and Risk Management. His work to improve safety and technology in the mining industry led to three Distinguished Lecturer Awards from CIM in 2002, 2008 and 2013.
Winkel chairs the J.T. Ryan Safety Committee for CIM. He adjudicates the Hatch-CIM Mining and Minerals Project Development Safety Award and is a member of the CIM Executive Safety Strategy Committee. He is also an executive advisor on the Alberta Mining Safety Association Board.
Winkel is a member on safety boards and committees across many industries, and works to provide support in risk management and organization effectiveness across North America.
Distinguished Lecturer 2008-2009
Lecture Abstract
The Innovation Imperative
The mining industry supplies the means for advancing our society’s capability while being challenged to provide results efficiently and responsibly and in a sustainable manner. The role of innovation in operating practice and technology development as a mechanism for generating improvements is imperative to the success of the mining industry delivering on these expectations for performance.
The presentation explores the different forms that innovation can take and the enabling factors that support organizations in achieving breakthrough improvements driven by both creative and technologically advanced solutions. The work of managing innovation to differentiate overall industry effectiveness and competitive advantage is examined. Leadership in innovation is also profiled with the development of initiatives that have the ability to coordinate research improvements across the industry to the benefit of all mining operations.
