About

Mike McDonald founded Rosedeer Strategies in 2003, and has built a consulting practice offering strategic counsel, communications services and planning, public opinion research and analysis, and campaign consulting. He has twenty years experience managing, and advising on, the complex issues facing British Columbia, working at the local, provincial, federal, and First Nations levels, complemented by an extensive network and thorough understanding of all parts of the province.

McDonald served at the Mayor's Office in the City of Vancouver under then-Mayor Gordon Campbell in 1992, going on to manage his successful leadership campaign in 1993 and work in senior organizational and communications roles until 2003. Prior to leaving the British Columbia government in 2003, McDonald served as Director of Outreach in the Office of Premier Campbell and as Director of Communications to the Government Caucus. In 2005, he served as a senior issues manager in the Premier's re-election campaign.

In 2005, Rosedeer Strategies partnered with Innovative Research Group Inc. to market and deliver Innovative's research products in British Columbia. Since then, Innovative's presence in the BC market has been growing steadily. Innovative projects have been profiled in major Canadian media such as MacLean's magazine, the Globe & Mail, Global TV, the National Post and Vancouver Sun. Recent projects include "Vancouver Island: Through the Eyes of Canadians" for the Vancouver Island Economic Alliance, and British Columbians' attitudes on local government, released during the 2007 Union of BC Municipalities Convention.

Rosedeer Strategies co-produced "Life or Meth: A Community Takes Action", a video documentary, and campaign manual, about the fight against crystal meth in Maple Ridge, BC. Life or Meth was distributed to every community in BC and to groups across North America, helping to spark community-based initiatives. McDonald assisted the formation of crystal meth task forces in Nanaimo, Parksville, and Victoria.

At the federal level, McDonald co-chaired the BC campaign for Liberal leadership candidate Bob Rae, and played senior communications roles in the 2004 and 2006 federal elections.

McDonald has been directly involved in the formation of the "New Pathways to Gold Society", a non-profit society aiming to promote economic development and reconciliation in communities along the Gold Rush Trail in BC, in partnership between communities and First Nations. He also serves as a Director on the Nanaimo Airport Commission.