By Paul Juniper

As the IRC ramps up its 2011-2012 program season, I am pleased to announce several staff changes. Please join me in congratulating Stephanie Noel on her promotion to Business Development Manager, and Karen Brick, as she moves into her new role, Business Development Representative. We welcome Jeffery Thomas to the IRC team in his role as Operations Manager, along with Erin Kearney, our Program Assistant.

Stephanie Noel: Business Development Manager

On July 1, 2011, Stephanie Noel was promoted to Business Development Manager. In her new role, Stephanie will be responsible for leading the IRC’s sales and marketing functions. Creating a coherent and structured sales strategy, continuing to develop and strengthen customer relationships, and proactively identifying and working with new customers are all key aspects of Stephanie’s new position.

In addition to her MBA, Stephanie will be relying on her strong communication and interpersonal skills to assume a more prominent role in the marketing and sales of the IRC’s programming. This new role will take Stephanie across Canada, as she meets with customers and helps our clients to develop their HR and LR staff.

Karen Brick: Business Development Representative

In her new role, Karen Brick will be working closely with Stephanie to plan and deliver a revised sales and marketing strategy for the IRC. This strategy will include enhanced communication with our participants before, during, and after programming. Likewise, the IRC will also be increasing our participation in trade shows across the country. Karen will play a leading role at trade shows, meeting and greeting our existing clients and talking with individuals who have not yet attended one of our programs.

Jeffery Thomas: Operations Manager

Jeffery Thomas joined the Queen’s IRC team on July 1, 2011 as our new Operations Manager. Prior to joining the IRC, Jeffery worked as an Operations Manager for over six years. In this role, he was responsible for financial reporting, coaching and mentoring staff, conducting performance reviews, and providing recommendations for process improvements to senior staff.

Jeffery studied Business Administration in his post-secondary education; his specialty was accounting. He has an extensive background in customer service in service industries.

Erin Kearney: Program Assistant

Erin joined the IRC team in September. Erin’s role will help to support Julie Sharrard and her team, with the delivery of programming. Prior to joining the IRC, Erin worked as a Business Communications Instructor at St. Lawrence College in Kingston. The skills she honed in this position, along with the wealth of knowledge from her previous experiences will be invaluable to us as we continue to focus on raising our bar of excellence. 

Alison Hill

An additional change in the IRC’s staffing is the relocation of our Research Associate, Alison Hill. Alison recently moved to Copenhagen. Fortunately, Alison has decided to remain engaged with the IRC, and will work remotely to manage the E-News and Research Briefs from Denmark. She will continue to write and edit research reports, helping to strengthen the IRC’s research capacity, including bringing an international perspective to our research.

Our staff remains one of the IRC’s true strengths, as we continue to deliver leading-edge programming that aims to meet the professional development needs of our valued clients. I am confident that the staffing changes will increase our efficiency, allowing us to provide improved customer service, and more quickly respond to your inquiries.

Please contact me if you would like to discuss the IRC (paul.juniper@queensu.ca; 613-533-6000 ext. 77087). For information on our programming, please contact Karen Brick (karen.brick@queensu.ca; 613-533-6000 ext. 33441).