Newsletter
May 2007
Spotlight: Lessons
for Leaders in Employee Engagement
Engagement is a top HR priority
for the province, says Richard McKinnell, 2006 Amethyst Fellow at the Queen’s
University School of Policy Studies. In the following Q & A, the
senior manager in the Ontario Public Service shares lessons for leaders on building employee commitment
...more
This Issue:
- May 14-May 16, 2007, Regina -
Organizational Design
- May 28-June 1, 2007, Kingston - Labour
Arbitration
- June 4-June 7, 2007, Regina - Negotiation
Skills
- June 12-June 15, 2007, Saskatoon -
Change Management
- Sept. 17 - 19, 2007, Regina -
Partnership Development
- Sept. 17 - 20, 2007, Kingston - Building Smart Teams
Upcoming Programs:
- May 14-May 16, 2007, Regina - Industrial
Relations
- May 28-June 1, 2007, Kingston - Labour
Arbitration
- June 4-June 7, 2007, Regina -
Negotiation
Skills
- June 12-June 15, 2007, Kingston
- Change
Management
- Sept. 17 - 19, 2007, Regina -
Partnership Development
- Sept. 17 - 20, 2007, Kingston - Building Smart Teams
Building
Better Labour Relations in Ontario’s School System
We were pleased, to say the least,
upon hearing that Ontario’s Ministry of Education was granting the IRC
$1 million to support its “continued work to help enhance the education
and skills of the people of Ontario.”
This is an exciting development for
industrial relations practitioners, says IRC Director Paul Juniper. "That's
because the grant will further advance our research — and enable us to
enrich our practitioner programs with the results.”
The grant is a big honour, Paul says.
“For 70 years we have been offering our flagship IR program for practitioners
in the public and private sectors. This grant recognizes the Centre’s
powerful influence on labour management relations in Canada through its leadership
in IR education.”
Queen's IRC was recognized by the Ministry
of Education for contributions relating to “cutting edge programs for
practitioners in industrial relations” noted Ben Levin, Deputy Minister.
These contributions, he added, are demonstrated by IRC’s “undertaking
research on best practices in promoting collaborative working relationships”
in education; its valuable training based on that research; and its delivery
of programs to school board and union leaders.
In terms of next steps, the IRC is
assembling an advisory group to help devise a strategy on how to best fulfill
the grant’s goals. The IRC is also in the process of hiring a post doctoral
research associate to lead this initiative.
Alumni
- We’re Coming to Your Neighbourhood, Part 1
Over the next few months, we will
be racking up the frequent flier points. But it is for a good cause: to visit
the hometowns of many of our alumni to introduce our new Director, Paul Juniper,
and learn more about local issues. Here are some of the plans:
Halifax: We will have a booth at
the HRANS Conference and Trade Show May 23, and are hosting an alumni get-together
later in the afternoon.
Ottawa: Join us for an alumni breakfast
event at the National Gallery on June 19. Our Ottawa friends will receive an
invitation shortly.
Toronto: An alumni chapter dinner
event is being planned for November 21.
Calgary: To coincide with our first
program at the wonderful Banff Centre, our first Calgary alumni chapter event
will be staged December 7.
And remember, alumni, you have a
special home on the Queen's IRC website. Log in with your password at www.IndustrialRelationsCentre.com.
Need help? Send me a note at alan.morantz@queensu.ca.
Learners
- We’re Coming to Your Neighbourhood, Part 2
Can’t make it to Kingston to
attend one of our stellar programs? We may have a workaround: several programs
are now being offered in selected centres across Canada (and more are in the
works). For example:
Change Management: Saskatoon June 12 to 15; Regina Nov. 27 to 30
Organizational Design: Regina May 14 to 16
Negotiation Skills: Regina June 4 to 7
Partnership Development: Regina Sept. 17 to 19
OD Foundations: Toronto Sept. 24 to 27
Building Smart Teams: Regina Oct. 16 to 19
Like we say, if you can’t come
to the piper, the piper can come to you.
Negotiation
Skills: Use This Map to Stay on Track
Make sure your negotiation moves
in the right direction with the following process map, drawn from IRC's popular
Negotiation Skills program.
1. Planning and Preparation
- Organize your team - roles and responsibilities
- Understand and align with the strategy
- Develop a mandate and authority
- Complete pre-bargaining dialogue
2. Opening Face-to-Face Negotiations
- Open the session, agree on the process
- Set the agenda
- Negotiate the issues
- Conclude the agreement
3. Implementing the Agreement
- Place operational structures to support parties' goals
- Build the relationship long-term
4. Building the Learning
Loop
- Facilitate post-negotiation learning
- Remain aligned with the strategy
Spotlight:
Lessons for Leaders in Engaging Employees
Employee engagement is a top
HR priority for the Ontario Public Service (OPS), says Richard McKinnell, a senior
OPS manager and the 2006 Amethyst Fellow at the Queen’s University School
of Policy Studies. Richard - former Assistant Deputy Minister in Corporate Services
Division, and a Director of Communications for several ministries, including
the Centre for Leadership and Human Resource Management – shares engagement
lessons for leaders in the following Q & A.
Does engaging employees in
the public service present particular challenges?
In some ways I think it makes employee
engagement easier. As with any large organization, challenges do exist. When
you have 67,000 people who are geographically dispersed and have diverse work
activities and priorities, it is very tough to make sure you reach everyone
consistently, and that you are being heard and understood.
In March 2006 the Ontario Public
Service (OPS) conducted the first enterprise-wide employee survey to assess
employees’ job satisfaction, commitment to the organization and overall
perceptions about the OPS workplace. The survey was sent to 36,000 employees
across the organization and more than 14,000 responded.
What emerged – and what I think
makes employee engagement easier – is the commitment to public service
and to making a difference. Commitment to public service motivated a majority
to work in the OPS and they said that their work unit takes pride in their work.
This is a tremendous unifying factor across a large organization such as ours.
We were really gratified to see this.
How big a priority is employee
engagement in the OPS?
Employees are at the heart and soul
of the public service. It is important they feel valued and respected, and understand
how their efforts contribute to the organization’s goals. It is also important
for the OPS to foster a workplace culture that is supportive of innovation and
recognizes accomplishments both formally and informally. Measuring levels of
engagement help us monitor our progress and identify areas where we need to
improve.
That’s why employee engagement is one of our top three HR priorities.
In November 2005, the OPS launched a comprehensive three-year Human Resources
Plan that aims to help transform the organization into a world leader in public
service.
The plan focuses on three key areas:
engaging employees to achieve organizational results, attracting talent by gaining
a competitive edge and building capacity to sustain a world-class organization.
To do this, we have to improve employee
engagement - that is, we need to increase employees’ job satisfaction
and commitment to the organization and its goals, and to improve the overall
OPS work environment.
To read the full Spotlight article,
go to: http://www.industrialrelationscentre.com/industrial-relations/articles/lessons-for-leaders-in-engaging-employees.htm
~~~
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Fax us: 613 533 6812
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