Presentation Abstracts

Present at Let's Get to Work 2019!

Is Employment in Manitoba Important to you?
Are you interested in sharing and exploring career development best practices?
Are you excited for a day of collaboration with fellow practitioners?

We invite you to share your expertise with colleagues from around the province and submit a proposal to present!

Call for Presentations
For the 2019 Let’s Get to Work Conference on November 08, 2019
Victoria Inn Hotel, Winnipeg Manitoba

Manitoba Association for Career Development (MACD) invites you to submit a presentation proposal for the 2019 Let’s Get to Work Conference, November 8, 2019. Presenting individually or as part of a team is a wonderful way to share expertise, stories of successful collaborations and lessons learned in your practice.

Your 1-hour presentation can be one of the following:
- Breakout session
- Roundtable discussion
- Facilitated networking session

Why Present?
The Let’s Get to Work Conference is Manitoba’s premier event for individuals who work in the field of career development. This annual conference allows people and organizations an opportunity to exchange information, explore innovative approaches in the area of career counselling, and career development. As a presenter, you receive a discounted registration allowing you to attend the full conference, thereby extending the value of your investment. Presenters will receive a discount of 50% from their registration fee*

Who Presents?
Let’s Get to Work presenters are people like yourselves who work in schools, community agencies, government, private practices and corporations. You are professionals in career development and related fields who are forward-thinkers with fresh ideas and projects to convey.

What to Present?
The Let’s Get to Work Conference Committee has identified areas to assist presenters in targeting the content of their sessions, garnered in part from requests received from last year’s attendees. These are examples only; your ideas and suggestions are welcome!

Labour Market Information
Assessment Tools
Career Advice Across Ages and Cultures
Ethics for Career Development Practitioners
Innovation for Practitioners
Employer Engagement
Impact of Technology in Career Development
Career Development for Marginalized Populations

Where and When?
- The conference is on November 08, 2019 at the Victoria Inn on Wellington Ave from 9:00 to 4:30.
- The deadline for presenter submissions: Sunday, June 30, 2019 at 11:59 pm.
- Selected presenters will be notified via email by July 31, 2019.

We are looking forward to your proposal!

* Please note only one presenter for each breakout session will receive the 50% discount on registration
Presenters are responsible for providing their own laptops. MAC users: please bring the appropriate adapter.

If you have any questions or inquiries please contact LGTW@MACD-MB.org

SUBMIT A PROPOSAL

Stay tuned for LGTW 2019's schedule!

LGTW 2018
1st Breakout Session

Getting out of our silos: Building capacity within the career and employment community

The Manitoba Career Development site emphasizes that, “[c]areer development assists individuals explore careers options, make informed decisions about their learning, training and career paths and to successfully manage life and work transitions.” How do we as practitioners help individuals make intentional choices that fit their interests, skillset, circumstances, etc., without valuing one type of education or training over another? How can we, as a community, help build capacity for each other when it comes to offering clients the best resources for skills development and career advancement? A facilitated discussion will take place in small round table groups; ideas will be recorded and shared with all attendees. Questions may include: How do practitioners integrate educational planning into their practice? How do we expose individuals to areas of work beyond their sphere of influence? We want to hear from people from Post-Secondary and K-12 Education, private practice, government, NGOs, not for profits.

Takeaways: Participants will benefit not only from participating in the session, but the shared results will be a concrete take away that they can use with clients on an ongoing basis. The goal is to share a diverse breadth of knowledge with all practitioners in order to build collective capacity

This session would be of interest to: people from Post-Secondary and K-12 Education, private practice, government, NGOs, not for profits, etc.

Deanna England, Academic and Career Advisor, University of Winnipeg

Deanna England is an Academic and Career Advisor at The University of Winnipeg. She holds an Honours degree in Psychology, an MA in Cultural Studies, and a Career Development Practitioner Certificate. She’s a board member of the Manitoba Association for Career Development and co-chairs the "Let's Get to Work" conference.

Kate Yee, Career Consultant, University of Manitoba

Kate Yee is a Career Consultant at the University of Manitoba. She holds a double major in psychology and sociology, and an MSc in the social aspects of clothing. Kate was the inaugural secretary for the Manitoba Association for Career Development and co-chairs the “Let’s Get to Work” conference

How to leverage emotional intelligence in the workplace

Emotional intelligence is a powerful tool that if used properly, can transform your workplace and its employees. Having a strong emotional intelligence allows one to be aware of and express one’s emotions – thus allowing them to better handle interpersonal relationships and be more empathetic. The intended audience for this breakout session would be anyone who is looking to increase their leadership skills and become more aware of the affect their emotions have on their overall wellbeing. Someone attending this workshop can expect to learn more about what emotional intelligence is – the act of being self-aware and having high social awareness, as well as the ability to recognize one’s emotions and the impact they can have on oneself and others. Once the baseline learning is achieved, we will move into how to best leverage emotional intelligence in the workplace to have healthier and happier relationships with all those we come in contact with.
This session will be engaging through the use of storytelling by taking its participants on a journey as well as interactive by leveraging questions from the audience throughout.

Takeaways: Participants can expect to take away new skills that they can implement right away into their day to day lives that will make them better leaders

This session will be of interest to: Anyone who wants to learn how to leverage their emotions to have happier and healthier relationships

Jenn Lusby, Regional Manager, Prince's Charities Canada

Jenn Lusby is a deeply passionate leader with a love for public speaking, business and entrepreneurship. She has over a decade of sales and business development experience and is endlessly fascinated by what makes us tick. She has spent the last several years digging into the world of social and emotional intelligence and what it means to be at true leader in today’s ever-changing and fast-paced world.

Engaging students early: A post-secondary career planning group

University of Manitoba is engaging students in career planning sooner – even before they enter university. We’ll discuss how we attract students to our workshop and the tools we use. Integration of established assessment tools, campus resources, and career information to identify occupations will be shared. The workshop emphasises supporting participants in creating a list of occupations connected to subject preferences, values, and interests. In particular, the session will share an interactive card game for expanding occupational choices using career information.

The session will include opportunities for the attendees to engage in the career planning activities included in our group. This includes two new occupational activities we developed specifically for this group including a forced choice occupational decision-making exercise and an exploring career choices card game. There will also be opportunities for discussion and reflection amongst participants.

Takeaways: 1) Understand the challenges and successes of early engagement; 2) Learn new ways to support clients in identifying occupations; and 3) Learn how to integrate existing resources into service delivery

This session will be of interest to: Career development professionals and educators who work with youth and young adults; and those who engage in career exploration with their clients

Rebecca Balakrishnan, Career Consultant, University of Manitoba

For 6 years, Rebecca has worked with post-secondary students on all aspects of career exploration, planning, and job search. This takes a variety of forms, including one-on-one appointments, facilitating workshops, and writing career development resources. She is also working towards her Master of Education in Counselling Psychology.

2nd Breakout Session

Supporting Youth to Level Up! to their Career using the HUB Model

This presentation would discuss how to engage youth with barriers to employment including mental health, addictions, housing issues and being supported financially by programs like EIA successfully into the workforce. This presentation would include both the youth and service provider perspective. Ideal audience members would be those who are working with youth with barriers, people who are interested in the HUB model and how it promotes successful outcomes, people who are interested in Skills Link funding projects.
This presentation would include both a presentation by myself on the Level Up! program, the HUB model and our successes, and would also include a youth panel where they would discuss with the group the things that work and the things that need to improve with employment and education centres for youth. This is driven by the fact that much of RaY and the Level Up! Program are youth driven.

Takeaways: A stronger knowledge of what youth with barriers are experiencing when it comes to going to work, or reentering work or education opportunities. Participants can also expect to take a way a stronger knowledge of the HUB model and the benefits of being able to house a wide range of holistic supports under one roof.

This session will be of interest to: Parents, Youth, Service Providers and Financial Supports to youth with barriers

Caryn Birch, Director of Education and Training, Resource Assistance for Youth (RaY)

Caryn Birch, Director of Education and Training with RaY, has worked in job development and employment consulting for the past 10 years with Winnipeg's diverse population. Most recently she has worked to help start the Level Up! Education and Training program and the RaY Level Up! Gift & Thrift.

Upskill

Upskill is an engaging digital experience for desktop & mobile devices that leverages data from Humans Wanted (skills, knowledge and interest profile of all jobs in the Canadian workforce, automation coefficients and project job openings until 2021) to help young Canadians understand their skills and leverage their strengths in their future careers.
Upskill™ leverages government data to develop a skills inventory based on personal experiences and chart a path forward. Unlike other career tools on the market, Upskill™ empowers you to look beyond industry, education, collar colour and income and focus on the skills required to perform a job. This innovative approach to career planning enables mobility and resilience in a world ripe for disruption.
The only thing we can guarantee about the future is that it’s going to be a lot different than the present. But disruption need not be a threat. By tapping into the skills economy, you can make unexpected leaps.

Takeaways: Value for users can be bucketed in three key categories: • Individualized Skills Profile: By assessing past experiences (volunteer, co-op, apprenticeship, career job, etc.) and scoring the skills gained from each, Upskill allows users to gain unique insights about their skills strengths and opportunity areas. • Career Possibilities: Upskill illuminates career paths for users based on their skills profile. All career suggestions factor in the health of that job (i.e., likelihood to be impacted by automation and projected job openings) to ensure young people are well-positioned for a changing workforce. • Take Action: Users are left with additional tools and resources, such as links to job postings in their community, a skill-first resume template, information about networking and gaining practical work experience that will give them a leg up in the emerging skills economy.

This session will be of interest to: Career & Employment Coaches, young Canadians

Noah Aiken-Klar, Director, Youth Social Impact, RBC

Noah supports RBC Future Launch through charitable investments in programs that give young people access to skills, networks, practical work experience and mental health care, leading a small but mighty team committed to driving measurable social impact. Formerly, he was Regional Director at the Ontario Trillium Foundation (OTF), a provincial agency and grantmaker, where he contributed to the design and execution of OTF's Investment Strategy. Noah is a bilingual lawyer, the former ED of PBSC – a national youth leadership and access-to-justice organization, an active community volunteer, and an award-winning singer, performer and writer. He has degrees from McGill and UofT, and lives in downtown Toronto with his wife and two kids, Delilah and Isaac.

Innovation – From Creativity to Deliver

Whether creating products or providing services, all organizations must create an environment of innovation if they wish to be successful. Innovation does not start with hiring more imaginative people, but rather by fostering an environment that allows creativity and innovation to happen and where contributions can come from anyone. This interactive workshop provides practical strategies for stimulating and channeling creativity and innovation into organizational productivity. Audience: Anyone interested in Creativity & Innovation Learning Outcomes: Participants will learn how to generate ideas and how to focus their innovation efforts with easy-to-use tools.

This session includes presentation, video, small and large group discussion. Participants will have time for applying the tools to their own workplace environment.

Takeaways: They will be provided with a handout that includes a tool/template for focused innovation

This session will be of interest to: Anyone who wishes to make their workplace more functional and innovative.

Eric Stutzman, Managing Director, ACHIEVE Centre for Leadership & Workplace Performance

As Managing Director of ACHIEVE Centre for Leadership & Workplace Performance, Eric guides the development and delivery of ACHIEVE’s services. He is co-author of the book, The Culture Question, and a sought after speaker and leadership trainer. Eric believes innovation starts with problem solving.

3rd Breakout Session

Three Steps to Building MeYouQ and Better Relationships

Do you feel as though you are failing in life or struggling with some sort of inner battle? Do you feel stuck or lost and crave to know your life’s meaning or purpose? Are you in need of a life-changing experience? MeYouQ© is a new method for valuing yourself and others more, so you can lead a more peaceful, purposeful life. In this session you will be introduced to the three parts in the MeYouQ© process, which include knowing and managing yourself, reserving judgment and showing empathy to others, and choosing to relate to and build relationships with others.

The session will be delivered through a back and forth method of content delivery, then turning it to the audience for some personal reflection and discussion. This repeats throughout, so it is a very engaging and interactive way to work through the three parts. Participants will need paper and pen!

Takeaways: Participants in this session will 1) Develop increased self-awareness and self-appreciation, 2) Reserve judgment of others and appreciate others as having value and purpose, and 3) Choose to build meaningful connections and negotiate successful relationships.

This session will be of interest to: Anyone looking for a new way to build soft skills in employees.

Treena Chabot, Coach, Trainer, Author, Speaker, TREE for Supervisors

Treena Chabot has been training new business professionals for the last 18 years. She is a Chartered Professional in Human Resources, who believes supervisors are the key to workplace satisfaction, engagement, and productivity. Treena owns the company TREE for Supervisors, where her work focuses on Psychological Health and Safety.

Self-Employment as a Career Option

Is self-employment an option for your clients? What would the exploration process look like - for you and for them? This workshop is for people working with clients who might be interested in entrepreneurship and self-employment. You will learn about the business triangle and what it will mean for your clients' chances of success. You will learn how to help your clients conduct basic market research and interpret what it means. And you will learn about the variety of support resources available for small business. Self-employment may be the simple act of creating a job for oneself, or it may be growing a business and employing others. For some clients, being self-employed offers a level of flexibility to meet their personal needs that is hard to come-by in traditional employment models. Participate in this session to learn if the self-employment option is something that you wish to further explore.

Takeaways: 1. Participants will learn about the business triangle and what it will mean for their clients' chances of success. 2. Participants will learn how to help their clients conduct basic market research and interpret what it means. 3. Participants will learn about the variety of support resources available for small business.

This session will be of interest to: Anybody working with clients that might find value in exploring self-employment

Frank Atnikov, Owner, Frank Growth Solutions

Frank Atnikov believes that the right business or non-profit model is a powerful tool to help people prosper and help solve social problems. His collaborative and holistic coaching approach to developing sustainable solutions has helped dozens of entrepreneurs, small businesses, non-profits and social enterprises flourish.

The LEAN Career Canvas

The LEAN Career Canvas is a career development tool for high school students that helps them actively engage their personal life/career paths. The canvas is an adaptation of an entrepreneurial LEAN canvas that prioritizes problem-solving and customer focus. Participants will engage the canvas and offer insights about future iterations.

Takeaways: Participants will complete the canvas and share insights and possibilities

This session will be of interest to: Grades 9-12 and university practitioners

Adriano Magnifico, Career & Entrepreneurship Consultant, Louis Riel School Division

Adriano Magnifico has taught senior high school English and career development for most of his career. His Career Internship Program, an interdisciplinary career program that meshed career development with traditional courses, has won numerous awards for its innovative approach to classroom pedagogy, student engagement and career development for high schools.