Note: This is a candidate page for a Judge Foundry Election. Information on this page is provided by the candidate, and does not represent the opinions or positions of the Elections Committee or of Judge Foundry. For more information about this election, see the schedule and index for the 2024 Regional Advocate Election.
- Name: Dom Barrieau
- Location: Gatineau, Quebec
- Election: Regional Advocates 2024
- Running For: Eastern Provinces RA
Nomination Statement / Déclaration de Candidature
My name is Dom Barrieau, L3 currently located in Gatineau within the Ottawa region. I was certified for L1 right before covid at the end of 2019 under JudgeAcademy, and have since been active at every large event I could reasonably attend where I got a chance to meet many of you reading this. I’ve seen the landscape of active judges shift over the last 5 years, with the loss of many former community pillars but also the rise of a newer crop of promising judges. With JudgeFoundry, we have the opportunity to have a voice within the judge program, to make sure that not only the comments and complaints of Canadian judges get heard, but also those from the francophone judge community. I may not have experience in this type of role, but I bring time and motivation to make sure we have a place within JudgeFoundry, as well as my connections with many of the active judges we have across the region.
We are lucky with our region to have many strong leaders and mentors, and a large number of opportunities for newer judges to learn the tools of the trade, as well as try new roles and positions with sufficient support to fall back on if needed. I also acknowledge that certain areas of our region have dwindling or insufficient judge coverage, and I hope to work alongside active judges in these areas to see what can be done and how JudgeFoundry could help recruit new members.
The role I want to take as Regional Advocator is the connection between the various local judge communities and JudgeFoundry. I won’t be able to personally communicate with every member of each community, but I would ideally like an Area Communicator in each local community who can relay the information from their area to me so I can work with them and JudgeFoundry to find solutions.
Je m’appelle Dom Barrieau, L3 actuellement situé à Gatineau dans la région d’Ottawa. J’ai été certifié pour L1 juste avant la Covid à la fin de 2019 sous JudgeAcademy, et j’ai depuis été actif à tous les grands événements auxquels je pouvais raisonnablement participer, où j’ai eu la chance de rencontrer beaucoup d’entre vous qui lisez ceci. J’ai vu la communauté des juges actifs changer au cours des cinq dernières années, avec la perte de nombreux anciens piliers de la communauté, mais aussi la montée d’un nouveau groupe de juges passionnés. Avec JudgeFoundry, nous avons l’opportunité d’avoir une voix au sein du programme des juges, de nous assurer que non seulement les commentaires et les plaintes des juges canadiens sont entendus, mais aussi ceux de la communauté des juges francophones. Je n’ai peut-être pas d’expérience dans ce type de rôle, mais je suis motivé de donner de mon temps pour faire en sorte que nous ayons une place au sein de JudgeFoundry, ainsi que mes relations avec les nombreux juges actifs que nous avons dans toute la région.
Nous sommes chanceux, dans notre région, d’avoir de nombreux leaders et mentors solides, ainsi qu’un grand nombre d’opportunités pour les nouveaux juges de développer les compétences du métier, ainsi que d’essayer de nouvelles positions avec un soutien suffisant pour s’appuyer sur eux si nécessaire. Je reconnais également que certaines zones de notre région ont un nombre de juges réduit ou insuffisant, et j’espère travailler avec des juges actifs dans ces zones pour voir ce qui peut être fait et comment JudgeFoundry pourrait aider à recruter de nouveaux membres dans ces endroits.
Le rôle que je souhaite jouer en tant que Regional Advocator est de faire le lien entre les différentes communautés de juges locales et JudgeFoundry. Je ne serai pas en mesure de communiquer personnellement avec chaque membre de chaque communauté, mais j’aimerais idéalement qu’il y ait un Communicateur Régional dans chaque communauté locale qui puisse me transmettre les informations de leur région afin que je puisse travailler avec eux et JudgeFoundry pour trouver des solutions.
At the end of your first six months as Regional Advocate, what does “success” look like? / À la fin de vos six premiers mois en tant que défenseur régional, à quoi ressemble le « succès » ?
Success of this role to me is primarily how “heard” the judges of Eastern Canada feel. This entire process is new to me and everyone, so I cannot predict how smoothly this will go. I also cannot predict or make promises on how quickly solutions will happen, given the scope of JudgeFoundry. What I can promise is that I will do my best to make sure the lines of communication between local judges and JudgeFoundry remains as open and visible as possible, and take measures to get these issues resolved where possible.
Pour moi, le succès de ce rôle dépend avant tout de la façon dont les juges de l’est du Canada se sentent écoutés. Tout ce processus est nouveau pour nous tous, et je ne peux donc pas prédire comment les choses se dérouleront. Je ne peux pas non plus prédire ou promettre la rapidité avec laquelle les solutions seront trouvées. Ce que je peux promettre, c’est que je ferai de mon mieux pour m’assurer que les lignes de communication entre les juges locaux et JudgeFoundry restent aussi ouvertes et disponibles que possible, et que je trouverai des solutions pour résoudre ces problèmes dans la mesure du possible.
What skills/experience do you bring to the role of Regional Advocate? / Quelles compétences/expérience apportez-vous au rôle de défenseur régional ?
I have no formal or informal training or experience for this type of position. This will be very new to me, and I will learn from the mistakes I will surely make. I also have connections with former Regional Coordinators as well as mentors in both Canada and the US who I plan to reach out to for any advice and pointers when needed, all in an effort to do right by the judges of Eastern Canada.
Je n’ai aucune formation ou expérience formelle ou informelle pour ce type de poste. C’est tout nouveau pour moi et j’apprendrai des erreurs que je vais sûrement commettre. J’ai également des contacts avec d’anciens coordonnateurs régionaux ainsi qu’avec des mentors au Canada et aux États-Unis avec qui je compte communiquer pour obtenir des conseils au besoin, tout cela dans le but de bien faire les choses pour les juges de l’est du Canada.
Describe your plans to recruit and utilize Area Communicators. / Décrivez vos plans pour recruter et utiliser des communicateurs de secteur ?
I plan to reach out to the various people who already communicate and keep connected with their local area for positions of Area Communicator. These people will be vital for getting a pulse on the judges in their area and any issues or difficulties either myself or JudgeFoundry could assist with. I am already aware of very good candidates for these positions in locals I’m very familiar with, but other parts of Eastern Canada are more unknown to me, so I’d hope the people who are already community leaders would reach out to me to either volunteer for the position, or give their opinion on who would be a good AC for their locale.
J’ai l’intention de solliciter les différentes personnes qui communiquent déjà et restent en contact avec leur région pour les postes de communicateurs régionaux. Ces personnes seront essentielles pour prendre le pouls des juges de leur région et connaître les problèmes ou les difficultés que moi-même ou JudgeFoundry pourrions aborder. Je connais déjà de très bons candidats pour ces postes dans des régions que je connais bien, mais d’autres régions de l’est du Canada me sont plus étrangères. J’espère donc que les personnes qui sont déjà des leaders communautaires me contacteront soit pour se porter volontaires pour le poste, soit pour donner leur avis sur la personne qui serait un bon communicateur régional pour leur région.
What criteria would you use to determine when to exercise your power to request exemptions to testing or maintenance requirements for “remote judges”?
Each instance of accommodation is on a case-by-case basis, as testing is crucial in becoming a judge. When someone remote asks for instruction on how they can level up, but have issues/questions, an accommodation may be issued. Testing as it is, is proctored in person, so testing someone remotely is hard. If the person wants to become a judge, but cannot meet requirements/do testing, I’d ask their motivations as to why they would like to be a judge and find an Area Communicator or Mentor to help them.
Overall, maintenance requirements for L1 and L2 are easy enough to acquire for anyone who is judging at their LGS. The tests do not need to be proctored, so proximity to other judges is not necessary in completing these. If a judge reaches out regarding their maintenance requirements, and their situation stops them from attending events, I’d see if they fall under the option, “Write or receive a short review about their involvement in events or the judging community.” If after all of this, the judge would still be unable to meet the requirements and wants to keep their level, I would reach out to JudgeFoundry to push for a special accommodation/exemption.
L3+ should be rare enough that no preset criteria is outlined.
Can you give us your personal definition of leadership (in general, not as it pertains to this specific role) and how do you meet that definition?
I don’t have an exact definition, but I do have elements that, when together, form my definition of leadership. Leadership is about guiding the team from the front lines, not ordering from the back. It’s about ensuring everyone has the tools to learn, succeed, and thrive. Having the ability to step in when required but not overextend and micromanage. I also believe a leader is responsible for being a good role model or pillar for their community.
The best way to demonstrate meeting this definition is when having the opportunity to lead at events. I always put mentorship opportunities at the forefront, delegating tasks to my team, and allowing them to learn and prove themselves. I am still a newer judge, relatively speaking, and fairly new to team leading, so I will make mistakes, but I don’t let them hold me back. I will always learn and improve from them, and maintain positivity as a leader to strengthen the team.