2008 Conference Agenda & Presentations

 

7:30 – 8:30 a.m.	Continental Breakfast — Exhibit Booths Open
8:30 – 8:45 a.m.	Welcome & Opening Remarks
8:45 – 9:35 a.m. Sponsored by:	Reinventing HR as 'Human Resourcefulness' Click here for PPT presentation Nick Nissley, Executive Director, Leadership Development, The Banff Centre Most HR professionals have bought in to a certain storyline about what HR is and how we're supposed to 'do HR.' But the unintentional reality of that storyline is the creation of workplaces where policies trump values-driven sensibilities and problem-focused management dominates strengths-based leadership. How can HR reinvent itself as a valued business partner within the organization? What if we stopped being consumed with trying to manage the human resources of the workplace, and instead focused our professional talents on developing our organizations' human resourcefulness? Former HR executive and professor Nick Nissley explains how insights from The Banff Centre can help you develop into a leader that works with others to turn their bright ideas into meaningful results.
9:35 – 10:25 a.m. Sponsored by:	Blending Employee and Customer Engagement PPT presentation not available Janice Antaya-Finlayson, Vice President, Corporate HR Services, Best Buy Canada Ltd. Kelly Cardwell, Director – Rewards & HRIS, Human Resources, Best Buy Canada Ltd. Employees who care about their work have the power to captivate their customers. To turn employees on to customer service, Best Buy Canada Ltd. created "myROLE," which is about creating the "best high-performance workplace" for employees. This program has enabled Best Buy Canada Ltd. to attract, motivate and retain top talent, and has resulted in unique and memorable customer experiences that keep customers coming back. Attend this session to hear how a fresh and innovative approach to employee motivation can improve your organization's employee and customer engagement.
10:25 – 10:55 a.m.	Refreshment Break — Exhibit Booths Open
11:00 – 11:50 a.m.	Engagement Matters: Secrets of the 50 Best Employers Click here for PPT presentation Moderator Ted Emond, Senior Consultant, Hewitt Associates Speakers Carole Cooper, Vice-President, Leisure, North America, Flight Centre Ltd. David Hannigan, Human Resources Manager, R.C. Purdy's Chocolates Ltd. Sandy Williams, Director, Human Resources, Edward D. Jones Canada's labour market may be tighter now than it has been in previous years, but some organizations manage to gain respect and loyalty from their employees. In a session you won't want to miss, a panel of employers who earned a place on Canada's 50 Best Employers list describes how flexibility, integrity, two-way communication and attentiveness to employees' needs drives engagement higher. Using real-life examples, Ted Emond of Hewitt Associates explains what winning companies do to earn a place on the coveted list and how you can ensure your organization is considered one of the "Best."
11:55 a.m. – 12:45 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions — Productivity Track Click here for Presentation Resource List 1 Do Productive People Equal Productive Organizations? Click here for PPT presentation Brent Barr, Professor, Ted Rogers School of Retail Management, Ryerson University Frances Gunn, MA, Ted Rogers School of Retail Management, Ryerson University Retailers face unique productivity challenges because we depend so much on our people. This interactive session clarifies how individual productivity generates value for the organization. 2 "They Did What on Facebook?": The Implications of Social Networking Sites Click here for PPT presentation Stuart E. Rudner, Partner, Miller Thomson LLP Social networking sites like FaceBook and MySpace provide tremendous marketing opportunities for retailers…but they can also result in lost productivity, damaged reputations, angry customers, diminished share values, and significant legal liabilities. This session examines the problems with monitoring employee Internet use, talks about the dangers of employee internet and e-mail use, identifies tools for developing fair policies around social media, and discusses what constitutes a fair use of social networking sites when evaluating job applicants. 3 The Right Staff at the Right Time: Developing Your Workforce Management Philosophy Click here for PPT presentation John Anderson, Global Practice Leader, Retail, Kronos Incorporate Sheryl Bruell, Director, Front End Operations, Thrifty Foods Inc. If you want to succeed, work by this philosophy: Have the right employees on the floor at the right time to convert prospects into paying customers. But how do you realize this philosophy? What do you have to do before the customer enters the store? What happens when the customer is in the store? And what happens after the customer leaves? In a session geared to teaching key principles of workforce management, delegates learn how scheduling, traffic counting and other operational technologies can improve customer service, increase profitability and eliminate inefficiencies.
12:45 – 1:30 p.m.	Special Luncheon Presentation Lights, Camera, Action: How a Satellite TV Show Helped Shoppers Drug Mart Bring in the Shoppers PPT presentation not available Gail Tanaka, Manager, Training and Development, Shoppers Drug Mart Corporation The challenge: Shoppers Drug Mart needed a way to educate the Associate/Owner sales staff in the latest cosmetics offerings if it wanted to improve its cosmetics business. The solution: As part of its training program, the retailer employed a satellite television broadcast called The Beauty Learning Show to educate more than 5,000 cosmetics staff and engage its vendors at the same time. Delegates will have the chance to see clips of The Beauty Learning Show at the luncheon and learn how its deployment earned Shoppers Drug Mart the 2007 Excellence in Retailing Award for Employee Training.
1:30 – 2:00 p.m.	Networking Reception — Exhibit Booths Open
2:05 – 2:55 p.m.	Concurrent Sessions — Engagement Track 4 A Two-Way Street: Employee Engagement, Development and Performance Strategies in a Decentralized Environment PPT presentation not available Moderator: Stu Laurie, Senior Account Manager – Retail Vertical, TELUS Business Solutions Speakers: Gill Borowy, Manager, People & Culture, TELUS Corporate Stores Eileen Kirk, Director, Organizational Development and Effectiveness, Human Resources, Holt Renfrew & Co. Ltd. In our increasingly competitive labour market, there is a new employee relationship model that is proving to distinguish leading organizations. Successful organizations are recognizing the benefits, for both the business and their employees, of ensuring employees are engaged, aligned, inspired and accountable. As a retail organization, you know that this culture is even more difficult to nurture in a decentralized environment. Whether you are implementing consistent communication of policies or procedures, looking for frontline feedback on improvements or customizing employee development and performance plans, ensuring consistency and accuracy across all stores and business units can be challenging. In this session, a panel of retailers and Human Resource professionals will share successful strategies, processes and technology implementations that have helped them establish and drive a culture of engagement, development and performance in both the retail and communication industries. 5 Compensation Strategies That Pay Click here for PPT presentation Iain Morris, Principal, Mercer (Canada) Ltd. Margaret French, Worldwide Partner, Mercer (Canada) Ltd. In successful stores, front-line workers are properly compensated. Compensation is more than just cash: it's respect, equality, two-way communication and exciting incentives that motivates front-line employees to give their all to customers every day. In this session, Iain Morris of Mercer (Canada) Ltd. offers ideas for how you can develop better reward programs, plan for changes to the minimum wage, and shape a compensation strategy that motivates employees. 6 Effective Performance Management Approaches Click here for PPT presentation John C. Marshall, Ph.D., President, Self-Management Group Robert McHardy, Managing Partner, Self-Management Group Craig Foster, Vice-President, Human Resources and Customer Services, Mark's Work Wearhouse Ltd. Your employees are key contributors to achieving your organization's vision of excellence. Performance management is an effective tool for guiding and assessing the contribution of employees and allows entrepreneurial spirits to develop and thrive. As an HR professional, how can you implement performance management processes in your organization? This session identifies the different performance management strategies that work and links performance management to coaching development, mentoring, business results, retention and engagement of employees.
3:00 – 3:30 p.m.	Refreshment Break — Exhibit Booths Open
3:30 – 4:20 p.m.	The Human Element: Strategic HR Business Planning PPT presentation not available Stephen O'Keefe, Vice-President of Loss Prevention & Risk Management, Wal-Mart Canada Corp. HR professionals link people, store operations and customers. This unique position gives HR the power to change organizations. But how can HR professionals develop an HR plan that meshes with an organization's business plan and strategy? How can HR teams meet the needs of Store Operations in a practical way? Stephen O'Keefe of Wal-Mart Canada brings a Loss Prevention perspective to the question and describes how you as an HR professional can build stronger links with other departments.
4:20 – 5:10 p.m.	Multi-Generational Recruitment and Retention Keynote Address and Focus Group Panel Discussion Click here for PPT presentation Mike Farrell, Partner and Chief Strategic Officer — Youthography Inc. This session will start to answer the big questions HR is asking: How do we understand, engage, recruit and retain employees in every age group? Equally important — what's the context behind this change? This interactive workshop brings research and theory to life as a panel of individuals representing a variety of generations, young and old, tell us what they want from their career paths.
5:10 – 5:30 p.m.	Networking and Visiting Exhibitor Booths