Connie Parenteau was raised and educated in Edmonton, and graduated from the University of Alberta with a B.Sc. in electrical engineering in 1980.

Connie has held a variety of technical and leadership positions for TELUS Corporation over her career of 29 years. As a Senior Consultant in Business Transformation and Technology Operations, she develops project and resource management tools to facilitate the smooth execution of TELUS projects. As a Six Sigma expert, she has lead operational improvement in field operations and customer serving teams. She has worked on key initiatives such as TELUS TV and Next Generation Networks (recipient of the 2004 Project Achievement Summit Award®). Connie has been a manager of the TELUS Graduate Engineer Program and continues to act as mentor for young engineers.

Connie has also provided significant leadership in her chosen profession, serving as 2nd Vice-President of APEGGA, President of the APEGGA Education Foundation, and Chair of Edmonton Camp 6 (Iron Ring). Over the years, she has also served on numerous APEGGA committees, and is a strong advocate of the importance of being involved in professional and community affairs. Connie was the 1993 recipient of the APEGGA Early Accomplishment Summit Award® and was elected as an Engineers Canada Fellow in 2009.

Connie and her husband, Peter Lyons, live in St. Albert. Their children are attending university programs. Connie enjoys time with family and friends, golfing, music, theatre and entertaining. 

APEGGA Activities

Member, Nominating Committee (2000-2002; 2004-2006)

Member, Emerging Disciplines Task Force (1998-2000)

APEGGA Liaison, Consulting Engineers of Alberta (1998-1999)

2nd Vice-President, Council (1997-1999)

Member, Corporate Regulation Task Force (1997)

Member, Discipline Committee (1995-1997)

Member, Council (1994-1997)

Member (1980-present)

Affiliations, Corporate or Community Service

Member, TELUS Women’s Connections Network (2006-present)

Alternate Warden, National Camp, Corporation of the Seven Wardens (2005-present)

President, APEGGA Education Foundation (2005-2006)

Chair, Camp 6, Edmonton Corporation of the Seven Wardens (2002-present)         

Role Model, Women in Scholarship, Engineering, Science and Technology (1991-present)

Is the concept of professional self-regulation of engineering and geoscience an outdated concept or an efficient and effective means of protecting public safety and well-being and the environment?
Far from being outdated, self-regulation has proven to be effective over the years and it has continuously evolved to meet the needs of society. Recent examples are the regulation amendments to facilitate national mobility and inclusion of technologists under the Act. Fundamentally, self-regulation means that Members themselves govern practices and procedures applied. Who better to safeguard the “quality” of professional services than the fellow experts who understand both the technical aspects and the needs of society?

Should the need to facilitate international mobility of skilled knowledge workers to ensure Canada’s continued well-being and prosperity outweigh the need for due-diligence in evaluating the education and experience of internationally educated applicants for professional licenses?
Protecting public safety and well-being of our environment is the paramount role of APEGGA. One of the ways this is accomplished is by ensuring that Members who practice the professions meet well-defined criteria based on education and experience. Internationally educated applicants need to meet the same criteria as all others who practice in Canada. Internationally, APEGGA is a leader in developing rigorous methodologies to evaluate the different-but-equivalent education and experience of international applicants.