E-News – May 2017

Articles

Recognizing Employee Engagement in the Workplace
Cavell Fraser, Vice President Human Resources, Libro Credit Union, 2014

There's a lot of talk about employee engagement these days, but how do we recognize these engaged employees and show appreciation for the things they do to support the company? It's not always easy to distinguish what exactly engagement in the workplace is, and it can be demonstrated differently depending on a person's role and the function of their company.

When I think of engagement, I consider it to be those behaviours and actions that warm the heart. I can picture specific employees I've worked with over the years and the behaviours I've witnessed that have touched me. And perhaps you've seen them too. These behaviours show that the employees care about the company, their coworkers, and the integrity of the company. They do this through their words and actions, both inside and outside the workplace.

See if you're familiar with the examples below of engaged employees.

>> Read Article

Aligning HR Strategies to Create Business Success
Lessons Learned Over 30 Years
Philip C. Wilson, CHRL, CHRE, Director Corporate Services, DST Consulting Engineers Inc., 2016

I have personally witnessed HR’s evolution from the back room to the board room, from tactics to strategy, and to assuming ownership of the business and its outcomes. The HR profession has advanced dramatically since the days when I began my career as a recruiter, and we certainly have come a long way from the days of the “Personnel Department” managing things like payroll or vacation requests, and reporting into finance and accounting. I am proud of this evolution which I refer to as the professionalization of the human resources profession.

I have been most fortunate to be part of some great Canadian companies such as CAE Electronics, Bell Northern Research, Northern Telecom and CIBC where I gained both global HR and business expertise. Recently I became the Director of Corporate Services of DST Consulting Engineers Inc. I support the CEO, the senior leadership team and all our employees through the delivery of aligned HR strategies that support the business in achieving success.

So how does an HR Practitioner start their journey from entrant into the profession to becoming a CHRO or CEO? Well there are no steps to skip. First you need to develop your HR and business acumen. Whether you decide on an individual specialist or generalist career track you must roll up your sleeves and learn your craft and the business. To be successful as an HR practitioner you must both master core HR services and develop a structured holistic business alignment strategy that I refer to as the HR Framework.

>> Read Article

Cultivating Effective Management-Union Relationships in the Unionized Workplace
Gary T. Furlong, Queen's IRC Facilitator, 2011

In almost all organizations today, both public and private sector, managers are looking to deliver better results and greater productivity. And within these same organizations, the union is often seen as a barrier to management effectively achieving these goals. From the union's point of view, management views the collective agreement as an impediment to achieving results, leading to frequent violations of the collective agreement. This dynamic leads to ongoing conflict between management and union, further draining the organization's energy and resources, eroding the very productivity and results the company is seeking to achieve. Both management and the union need to revisit how the collective agreement is used, and could be used more effectively, within the organization.

>>Download Article

Latest News

Planning Your Fall Professional Development?

Check out our website at irc.queensu.ca and use the map to navigate through our programs.

1. Choose an area of Canada. Click on the map itself, or choose West, Central or East.

2. Choose a city. Only cities where programs are scheduled will appear.

3. Click on the program name to go to the program page. See detailed information including fees, learning objectives, a tour of the program and speakers.

4. From the program page you can download a brochure, and when you are ready, you can register online.

Upcoming Conferences and Trade Shows

Queen’s IRC will attend two conferences and trade shows this summer. If you are planning to attend, please stop by our booth and say hello:

• HR Tech Summit – June 27, 2017 at the International Centre, Toronto, ON.
• Talent Management Summit – July 12-13,2017 at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Toronto Downtown, Toronto, ON.

Upcoming Programs

Register for an Upcoming Program:

• Labour Relations Foundations June 5-9, 2017 (Halifax)
• Coaching Skills June 7-8, 2017 (Toronto)
• Negotiation Skills July 17-21, 2017 (Halifax)
• Linking HR Strategy to Business Strategy Sept. 18-20, 2017 (Toronto)
• Labour Relations Foundations Sept. 24-29, 2017 (Kingston)
• NEW Designing Collaborative Workplaces Sept. 26-28, 2017 (Toronto)
• Change Management Oct. 3-5, 2017 (Calgary)
• Coaching Skills Oct. 17-18, 2017 (Halifax)
• NEW Performance Management Oct. 18-19, 2017 (Calgary)
• Negotiation Skills Oct. 22-27, 2017 (Kingston)
• Organization Development Foundations Oct. 24-27, 2017 (Toronto)
• Strategic Workforce Planning Oct. 31-Nov. 1, 2017 (Ottawa)
• Building Trust in the Workplace Nov. 2, 2017 (Ottawa)
• Managing Unionized Environments Nov. 7-9, 2017 (Edmonton)
• Talent Management Nov. 8-9, 2017 (Toronto)
• HR Metrics and Analytics Nov. 14-16, 2017 (Kingston)
• Mastering Fact-Finding and Investigation Nov. 14-17, 2017 (Toronto)
• NEW Strategies for Workplace Conflicts Nov. 21-23, 2017 (Toronto)
• Organizational Design Nov. 21-23, 2017 (Halifax)
• Designing Change Nov. 28-30, 2017 (Ottawa)
• Labour Relations Foundations Dec. 4-8, 2017 (Victoria)
• Coaching Skills Dec. 6-7, 2017 (Victoria)
• Labour Arbitration Skills Dec. 11-14, 2017 (Victoria)

For an overview of our professional development training, from the perspective of our participants and speakers, please check out our Queen’s IRC Video.

For more program information, download our NEW Spring 2017-Spring 2018 Program Planner.

Email: irc@queensu.ca Phone: 1-888-858-7838 Web: irc.queensu.ca