Michael McDermott, M.A.
Co-Founder and Senior Consultant
Michael has decades of experience leading business improvement, information technology and transformation initiatives in health care and the public sector. He began in hospital restructuring, spent many years in clinical data, quality improvement and service redesign at the health region level, and then led major provincial health programs for government, health authorities and medical associations. Since co-founding Stratafact in 2008, he has directed major provincial digital health initiatives, from patient data sharing and electronic referrals to a provincial vaccine passport system delivered in record time.
Michael has also worked beyond Alberta, with organizations in western Canada and Ontario, and has supported national initiatives involving federal agencies, other provinces and national associations.
Michael is known for steering large, multi-stakeholder programs through contracts, vendors, startup and clinician engagement. He has been recognized with a provincial Premier's Award of Excellence, a national health informatics award for project team innovation, and several provincial awards.
Focus areas
- Digital health and health information strategy
- Program and project leadership
- Vendor, contract and service level management
- Performance measurement and data warehousing
- Process optimization and change management
- Stakeholder and clinician engagement
Susan McFarlane, M.A.
Co-Founder and Senior Consultant
Susan has decades of experience in municipal policy and public funding programs. She began as a policy researcher on regional cooperation, local government and resource issues, then spent two decades with a provincial government, rising to Director of Grant Program Delivery. There she led a 20-person team delivering capital infrastructure, operating and disaster recovery funding to hundreds of municipalities, including the Municipal Sustainability Initiative, which distributed more than $1 billion a year.
Susan is known for turning complex policy direction into clear, workable programs: designing new grant programs, reviewing existing ones, eliminating backlogs and bringing paper-based processes online. She has advised senior leadership and Cabinet on policy options, represented her organization on cross-government committees, and earned a provincial Premier's Award.
Today Susan also helps municipalities understand provincial and federal-provincial grant programs, including MSI, LGFF and the Canada Community-Building Fund, build stronger applications and manage funding with confidence.
Her earlier research at a western Canadian public policy institute examined regional governance, resources and service delivery in cities across Western Canada. She has since delivered programs funded jointly by the federal and provincial governments, and has supported national programs and cross-government initiatives.
Focus areas
- Grant and funding program design and delivery
- Municipal and intergovernmental policy
- Program review and evaluation
- Stakeholder consultation and facilitation
- Process improvement and online service delivery
- Leadership of multidisciplinary teams
