The one-time boss of both Hamilton and Waterloo has opted for a change of scenery. He's now in the city of Almaty in the gas- and resource-rich central Asian republic which sits between the Caspian Sea to the west, Russia to the north and China to the southeast. The official language of the country is Russian.

Robertson's new job is leading an international staff in fields ranging from business to accounting, management studies and marketing

Hamilton fired Robertson without cause last year. He collected a severance of $230,000 in salary and benefits.

After leaving the city, Robertson was hired as manager of Waterloo. But he was fired from that $153,000-a-year job before working a day.

Instead, he was told to stay home after details came to light of his involvement in a botched downtown development deal while working as the top bureaucrat in Maple Ridge, B.C., from 1996 to 2002.