County CAO announces resignation

By John Watson Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Wheatland County CAO Brian Henderson has announced his resignation from his position, effective Nov. 23 after nearly 10 years of employment with the county.

A release acknowledging his cessation from the position was distributed Oct. 24. It noted county council’s appreciation of his service over the course of his tenure, as well as the process beginning to determine his replacement.

“I was offered a job with Rocky View County as the Chief Operating Officer over there. It’s definitely an opportunity I considered heavily, knowing how well things are going at Wheatland County, and it is a super strong council that has been elected for the 2025 to 2029 term,” said Henderson. “I’ve got absolutely no doubt that this council will continue to grow the county responsibly and make good decisions for the residents. As for the admin team, it’s a super strong team. There are such great people there as well, so that made the decision extra hard to make.”

Henderson explained in his new position, he will be overseeing infrastructure and will have many of Rocky View’s general managers reporting to him.

His tenure with Wheatland County began in June 2016 as the general manager of corporate and financial services.

Henderson explained the position had opened up to him after having worked for the Town of Strathmore as the finance manager.

“I took a chance there, went over to the county, and in April of 2019, the CAO position became vacant, and I was appointed by council as the interim CAO at that point. In January 2020, I was appointed as a full time CAO,” he said. “After university, I started in accounting, so I had chartered accountant as my legacy designation, so during the training, I actually did auditing of municipalities throughout eastern Ontario and I got a really good glimpse … doing the audits of some of those municipalities over there.”

He added he felt it to be an enjoyable and interesting experience to see the operations of municipalities from the inside and how they can make positive impacts on their respective communities.

After having moved to Calgary, he shortly thereafter started his position at the Town of Strathmore. 

“(Council) should pick someone who is a good collaborator and who enjoys being a public servant and helping out the residents and businesses of the county and the region,” said Henderson. “It really does come down to the person themselves. They have to have a positive personality, be someone who is willing to be able to tackle some problems and work collectively within the region and have some general municipal background experience.”

In the release, the county described that the process of appointing an interim CAO and initiating recruitment for a permanent position aims to ensure a smooth and seamless transition.