MANITOBA ASSOCIATION FOR CAREER DEVELOPMENT
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LGTW 2020 Presentation Abstracts

 

1st Breakout Session

Targeting Tall-Tales vs Tangible Universal Tools: Resume Development in a Post Pandemic World

Typical career advice gets lost in translation. When we say: “Target your resume every time” and “Network” and “Find your passion”, clients hear “This is a time suck” and “Talk to strangers” and “Ignore job boards”. As solo-preneur career practitioners, we address client pain points, and help them overcome challenges with perception of traditional career development practices. How do we cut through the noise? Explore a tangible hybrid of theory & practice, resulting in resume & job search strategy that works in reality - in our busy lives - and not just in text books.

Outcomes:
- Learn tangible actions to address central client pain points in job search & personal branding tools like resumes, social media and beyond
- Engage in discussions on establishing new techniques in your services, from ethics to execution
- Discover how you can use these strategies to advance your own career

Audience:
Practitioners delivering resume & job search tool development

What to expect:
We will use polls to share myth-busting around resume & tool development. We will use the whiteboard feature to brainstorm all the bad resume advice. We will engage in small group discussions around the ethics & challenges of digital job searching.

Takeaways: 
They will walk away with a tangible hybrid of theory & practice, resulting in resume & job search strategy that works for our clients. They will also engage in how this strategy can be applied to their own careers in a post pandemic world. ​

Ali Breen

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Ali coaches Millennials using narrative, innovative approaches. As a digital consultant, she helps career & helping
professionals with their brands and A constant kickstarter at the intersections of social media, digital marketing and career
development, she brings her experiences in training, workforce development, private practice and tech to Let's Get to Work.

Lena Stewart

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Lena creatively designs and writes resumes for clients around the globe. With a Marketing and Communication background,
Lena's eye-for-design and consultative approach level up personal marketing documents to the top of the pile.

 

The Challenge Mindset: How to Transform Career Development

The concept of ‘growth mindset’ has changed the education system by reframing our underlying beliefs about human potential. Inspired by this change, the concept of the ‘challenge mindset’ is transforming career development by reframing our beliefs about job titles and refocusing our energy on challenges to solve. Discover interactive ‘challenge mindset’ activities that reimagine the traditional approach to career preparation.

Participants will be engaged in the following:
- Choosing their favourite challenges to work, and typing their results in the chat.
- Answering several questions throughout the presentation.
- Developing a worksheet than they can take-away from the presentation.

Takeaways: 
Learn to ‘flip the model’ of career development. Discover a new way to explore labour market information. Explore tools and case studies that foster the challenge mindset.

Explore the use qualitative assessment tools that feature the challenge mindset to
1) help clients understand themselves better
2) engage them as an active participant
3) ground the process in their lived experience.

JP Michel

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JP Michel is on a mission to change the way we prepare people for their careers. His work in human
resources consulting gave him the opportunity to work with and learn from some the world’s largest
organizations. JP took these lessons learned to start his company, SparkPath, where he does career and
leadership development with youth and leaders.
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JP Michel founded SparkPath and created the Challenge Cards. He has a masters degree in industrial-
organizational psychology from the University of Manchester and is the recipient of the 2017 Outstanding
Career Professional award from the Career Professionals of Canada.

 

​Unconscious Bias-Does it Affect us More than We know?

This engaging session will lead participants to identify and better understand their unconscious biases and assumptions. By recognizing how biases impact our perceptions and interactions with others, we are better able to mitigate their impact on the decisions we make. Participants will leave with practical strategies on how to manage unconscious bias, refrain from using stereotypes and prejudices, and make more informed decisions. Everyone will benefit from learning more about themselves in this interactive session.

What to expect: 
The program will be stimulating and interactive. Multiple methods will be used in the virtual platform to engage learners, including breakout rooms for small group discussion, the chat function, and the introduction of impactful examples.

Takeaways:
Participants will leave with a better understanding of the unconscious mechanisms at play in their actions and decisions. They will leave the session with tangible tips on how to manage personal biases in their careers, in the workplace, and in their lives.

Esther Schvan

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Esther Schvan has over 20 years of experience as a fully bilingual, Certified Career Development Professional, Certified Professional Facilitator, and Coach.  She has worked with individuals in all aspects of career transition, intercultural communication, diversity and inclusion in the public, academic, corporate and not-for-profit sectors.
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Esther has designed and delivered hundreds of different workshops. She pioneered the development and delivery of the first intercultural communication course for the Department of Executive and Intergovernmental Affairs in Cambridge Bay, Nunavut. In addition, Esther was selected to deliver cross-cultural communication in French and English to the Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada in Montreal and Toronto.  She also co-developed and delivered diversity awareness forums for a national year-long initiative of the Department of Justice, regularly presented bilingual diversity sessions as part of the orientation for new employees and guides on Parliament Hill for the National Capital Commission, as well as for many other federal government departments on an ongoing basis.

Esther holds a Masters in Intercultural Relations. She is a highly effective communicator, and a sought-after keynote speaker and presenter at major conferences. Passionate about inclusiveness, she speaks seven languages and has lived on three continents.
Esther has been affiliated with Graybridge Malkam for many years. Graybridge Malkam is a global consulting firm and recognized leader in designing, developing, and delivering diversity, equity, and inclusion-related training, working with skilled professionals, management teams, executives and front-line staff in the private, public and non-profit sectors.


 
 

We’ve got ‘em so let’s use ‘em: Career Benchmarks for Student Transitions

Every Ministry of Education in Canada has endorsed evidence-based benchmarks intended to support career education in K-PSE. This session presents CMEC’s Reference Framework for Successful Student Transitions, delineates the benchmarks and its assessment tool. It features career experts who are using and advocating for their application in Manitoba and across Canada. Come and explore how you can use them too.

Takeaways:
Learning objectives:
1. To learn about benchmarks for good practice in career education
2. To learn about possible applications in schools and institutions
​3. To discuss ways to advocate for their use

Donnalee Bell

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Donnalee Bell is the Managing Director of the Canadian Career Development Foundation and has led a wide range of PanCanadian, provincial and territorial career development initiatives including the development of CMEC’s Reference Framework for Successful Student Transitions.  She is passionate about the career development field and works to bring its potential to governments, employers, communities and individuals.

Rhonda Taylor

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Rhonda Taylor is the CEO for Career Trek. A not-for-profit that provides career development programming for children and youth. She’s spent her career supporting individuals as they work to reach their full potential. Her motto: Talk. Plan. Act.


Adriano Magnifico

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Adriano Magnifico is the Career and Entrepreneurship Consultant in Louis Riel School Division in Winnipeg.  He has been recognized for innovative career development practices with youth and shared his LEAN Career Design Canvas with practitioners throughout Canada and in other countries. 


 

2nd Breakout Session

​Your Difference is Your Strength-Supporting Newcomers with their Career Journey

This dynamic and interactive session will explore the many experiences of newcomer job seekers and what will help them thrive in a Canadian context. From understanding the business case for a diverse and inclusive workforce to helping new Canadians find belonging as they navigate their job search in a local labour market, this session will delve into the importance of accessing knowledge networks, developing 21st century skills, as well as practical and meaningful advice to better ensure career prosperity.

Vivian Li

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Vivian Li currently leads RBC’s Inclusive Recruitment team. In this role, Vivian designs and delivers enterprise wide inclusive recruitment strategy to help RBC build its competitive edge through attracting and attaining an inclusive workforce, with a special focus on talent from diverse communities such as persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, visible minorities/newcomers to Canada, LGBT+, women, etc.  Internally, Vivian promotes inclusive hiring through raising awareness and removing hiring biases through trainings and employee/leadership engagement. Vivian is passionate about her role as it creates innovative win-win solution to bring diversity of thought to the organization she is proud to be part of. As an immigrant herself, Vivian understands the challenges newcomer job seekers face and is committed to paying it forward through her work supporting newcomers finding employment opportunities. Between 2017 to 2020, Vivian and her team has supported over 4000 newcomers in their job searching through DiversityWorksHere RBC event series, workshops, trainings and webinars.

​ Vivian has over 15 years of experience in HR and HR technology, with a special focus on Diversity and Inclusion, Leadership, Talent Development, HR data analysis and project management. Vivian holds a Master’s Degree from China.

Debbie Tabor

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Debbie is currently a Talent Acquisition Manager at RBC, where she implements the recruitment strategy for Personal & Commercial banking in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and North Western Ontario and Nunavut.  She is passionate about creating a unique experience for individuals and has had the opportunity to connect with many hundreds throughout her career. Debbie is passionate about working with Newcomers, and commits her time to creating partnerships and connections to help build their network as they settle into their new homes. Debbie thoroughly enjoys having the opportunity to be a part of someone’s career journey, and is a mentor to many who are at different stages along the way.


 

Career Work is Justice Work

Access, fairness, inclusion, diversity, equity and more are key components of social justice as currently construed in the helping professions. This presentation encourages attendees to think deeply about their own experiences of work as they form the spectrum of privilege and opportunity each has in their life, and to shift career services practice to better incorporate ideas of justice for all workers. Based on a popular program delivered throughout the United States, this presentation encourages critical thinking and results in 10 key activities, 5 for self development and 5 for client work.

What to expect:
The presentation will include several 60-120 second activities where participants are encouraged to do quick, top-of-mind activities to illustrate main points and test out key interventions that are recommended.

Takeaways: 
10 tangible changes to your practice. The session follows an Understand, Clarify, and Adapt Model. The first 1/3 will focus on understanding and clarifying while the latter 2/3 will reinforce learned principles through demonstrations and activities.

​Brian Hutchison

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​Brian Hutchison, Ph.D., LPC, CCCE is Core Faculty in the School Department of Counseling at Walden University, USA. Dr. Hutchison received his doctorate degree in Counselor Education & Supervision from Pennsylvania State University and has worked as a career, school, and mental health counselor and clinical supervisor. Brian’s career consultation and education work operates within the brand of Global Career Guy where he specializes in developing career publications, programs, keynote talks, workshops, and on-line career coaching and mentorship for global career professionals. He has more than four dozen publications and is currently writing the 13th Edition of School to Career, a textbook for high school students.

 

3 Keys to Thriving: Helping Young Adults Develop Self-awareness, Confidence and Adaptability​

​Too many young people are struggling under the weight of debilitating stress and anxiety. We will explore innovative strategies and programs that help young adults thrive through experiential learning, self-reflection and intentional skill development. We will also share the Discover Year approach to helping students develop self-awareness, confidence and adaptability that they transfer to their lives and careers - with or without social distancing and sheltering.

What to expect:
Small group discussion, networking and Q&A throughout the session to engage the audience in group learning and sharing. My LEAST favourite thing is uni-directional presentations. My favourite thing is engagement and spontaneity. Our motto at MentorU and Discover Year is RELEVANT, ENGAGING and INSPIRING education.

Takeaways:
- Identification of barriers to students thriving in the knowledge economy;
- Understanding of what organizations can do to improve thriving;
- How to create purposeful experiences away from formal education

Jay Gosselin

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Jay Gosselin is a career and leadership coach and the founder of MentorU and the Discover Year program. His mission is to help people and organizations identify and activate their authentic interests, values and strengths in the service of others. He integrates and encourages a sense of action, openness and authenticity in all that he does. 


 

Becoming Intentional About creating Positive Mental Health Outcomes in Career Development Practice

Career development creates positive changes in client lives. Change in one area (behaviour, habits, thinking, knowledge, identity) leads to change in other areas, and so on. In this session, we focus on the direct and indirect connections between career outcomes (intended and unintended) and mental health. We now understand some key mechanisms underlying career development’s role in the support of mental health and this understanding is helping us all to be more intentional and effective in our work. In this session, we discuss career intervention and its effects, the models explaining its support of mental health, and strategies practitioners can employ to work more intentionally and effectively in the support of mental health as tangible outcomes of effective career development practice.

What to expect:
Given this year’s program is online, we will be following some of the strategies we’ve learned through the webinars presented over the last few months. Our content moves quickly and is supported by a visuals amplifying the verbal message. Additionally, throughout the session we will use online polls to survey attendees about their practices and opinions.

Takeaways: 
Participants will leave the session with a better understanding of the effects of career development, its role in the support of mental health, some of the mechanisms at play, and strategies for working intentionally to create mental health outcomes in their work.​

Dave Redekopp

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Dave Redekopp is president of the Life-Role Development Group Ltd. and has been an avid champion of career development since 1988. He has been awarded provincial and national awards in career development and is widely recognized in Canada as a thought leader in the field. His career development expertise afforded him the privilege of teaching thousands of practitioners, developing dozens of courses, delivering hundreds of talks, conducting a number of research studies, and developing a host of career development resources for practitioners and the public. Dave holds a PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of Alberta.


Michael Huston

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Michael Huston has been involved in the career development field as a counsellor, practitioner, trainer, and counsellor educator since the early 1990s. He is a Registered Psychologist, counsellor, and associate professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, Canada where he provides counselling addressing personal, educational, and career-related concerns. Michael continues to teach graduate courses and facilitate practitioner workshops focused on counselling skills and intervention strategies. His areas of interest and exploration include counsellor training, career intervention, stress and coping, and counselling outcomes and evaluation. He is particularly interested in the various connections between career development, mental health, mental illness, and wellbeing.


 

3rd Breakout Session

​Engaging workers in an Age of Uncertainty

​In times of uncertainty, increased challenges in work and life can result in diminished capacity, creating the opportunity for disengagement to fester and careers to be neglected. The Career Engagement model provides a framework for identifying how life roles intersect and interact within different career contexts and how each are impacted by the dynamic interaction of challenge and capacity. Join Dr. Pickerell as she shares strategies for helping to stabilize, and maximize, career engagement during chaotic times.

What to expect: 
Live polling using Mentimeter, allowing for participants to engage with content​

Takeaways:

An understanding of appropriate levels of challenge and how to identify and access needed supports and resources. Leave with concrete tips for maximizing career engagement during uncertain times.​

Deirdre Pickerell

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Dr Deirdre Pickerell, CPHR, GCDF-i, is a nationally recognized, award-winning, industry thought-leader with over 25 years’ experience as a career development specialist, human resource professional and adult educator. She brings a strong history of strategic and collaborative leadership, ensuring individuals, and the organizations that employ them, have the tools, resources and skills that allow them to thrive in an ever-changing global economy. She is co-author of the career engagement model and has dedicated her career to helping individuals create opportunities to be fully engaged across work/life roles. Deirdre’s current role is Dean of Student Success for Yorkville University and Toronto Film School where she oversees several portfolios important to student success including career services, mental health and wellness, and academic accommodations and accessibility. 

 

​Crafting a Better Story though Hope-filled Engagement

Crafting a better story is an essential skill in today’s chaotic world of life and work. As we interact with people, we are not just dealing with them and their circumstances but also with their inner stories (conscious or unconscious) through which they are viewing their world. Because of their life circumstances, the story that far too many people follow is one of hopelessness, one that implies that there is no point in really trying. We may not be able to change people’s life circumstances but we can assist them to be hopeful and intentional about the life-long process of crafting a story of hope, a story that can sustain and guide them as they explore all their potential on their life/career journey. This session will introduce the basics of equipping people with the knowledge and skills required to craft a better story based on hope in their life/career journey.

What to expect:
This session will engage people through thought-provoking expansion of how we approach life/career counselling, through questions and visuals, through physical activities that illustrate key points, through an interactive activity.


Takeaways: 
• An understanding of the importance of hope and possibilities in life/career counselling
• The need for expanding our use of language, tools, processes, and concepts in order to make life/career matters more accessible to an increasing diversity of people
• An understanding of the power of people’s inner stories and how to address them in our life/career counselling
​• Practical examples for explaining concepts such as hope, possibilities, career, story, starting points for knowing who I am, alternative understanding of strength and weakness that challenges debilitating thoughts of not being good enough.

Presentation Slides

Gray Poehnell

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Gray Poehnell is an experienced life/career coach, author, consultant, trainer, and presenter with over 30 years experience. Gray is of Metis descent and has been developing life/career approaches and tools that reflect values, such as hope, practical spirituality, community, creativity, imagination, and life balance. Wide recognized for his dynamic training of life/career practitioners both nationally and internationally, Gray has presented the Hope-Filled Engagement approach to several thousand life/career practitioners, who work with indigenous peoples and other that benefit from a more holistic hope-filled approach. Currently he is expanding his hope-filled approach to include the concept of a better story—crafting a new inner story that can sustain people on their life/career journey. Gray was the 2012 recipient of the Stu Conger Award for Leadership in Career Counselling and Career Development for his visionary leadership, exemplary achievement, and inspired dedication to the advancement of excellence in career development in Canada
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Paving the Way Towards Inclusion

In the midst of a global pandemic, we learned we are more deeply interconnected than ever.
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As we pivoted rapidly to serve our clients, some of us encountered difficulties and challenges others emerged as leaders and helpers. Why is that?

We believe CDPs will pave the way towards more thoughtful, more inclusive and well-rounded work-life leadership. CDPs advocate for the wellbeing of others so naturally kindness and humanity are at the heart of our work. Let’s come together to openly share and discuss our experiences, assumptions and implicit bias.

This is a turning point for our profession; an opportunity to better address economic, social, and cultural barriers that exist within our community. Let’s disrupt the old service model and emerge from this crisis stronger, more focused, and better equipped to serve clients.

​The world of work is changing. We must be open to change with it.

What to expect:
This topic will be a presentation and discussion on bias in our profession. It will include thought-provoking case studies. It's a topic that has not been discussed widely in career development so the information will be novel for many.

Takeaways: 
Understanding how institutional and implicit biases affect us. Discovering how to advocate for the wellbeing of our colleagues. Learning how to build an inclusive work-life service model.​

Sharon Graham

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Sharon Graham is Canada’s Career Strategist, founder and executive director of Career Professionals of Canada, and top-selling author. An outspoken advocate for ethics and integrity in career development, Sharon is committed to setting the standard for excellence in the profession. A pioneer of innovations in the sector, Sharon championed the creation of certification, awards, mentoring, networking, and professional development programs for career professionals across the nation. 


Maureen McCann

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Maureen McCann is a fierce advocate of career development, committed to preparing Canadians for the future of work. Founder of Promotion Career Solutions, she is one of Canada’s top Master-Certified Career Strategists with more than 15 years’ experience teaching, mentoring, and facilitating career development and work-life strategy. She is a senior board advisor to Career Professionals of Canada and course lead for CPC’s Career Development Practitioner’s Certificate Program.

 

The Future of Rural Workforces in Manitoba, and Their Development

The demographics of Manitoba's rural communities are changing and so are its workforces. As career professionals, let's gather to hear from a panel of three respected voices and together, let's discuss current and possible strategies to support rural youth (18-29), newcomers and Indigenous peoples.

What to expect:
There will be small group discussions (in virtual breakout rooms) and a facilitated Q&A.

Participants will walk away with:
- an updated understanding of rural Manitoba's communities, and their work forces 
- a current take on the issues and opportunities from three respected voices
- make connections with others while discussing current and possible strategies to support youth (18-29), newcomers and Indigenous peoples.

Cora Dupuis

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Working in the spaces of experiential education, work-integrated learning, and adult education, Cora Dupuis is fascinated by the intersections of student development and careers. As a long-time practitioner and now fortuitous academic, she seeks out opportunities to connect and converse about the many ways we can facilitate post-secondary student success through intentional strategies and support. Currently, Cora leads the Co-operative Education program at Brandon University and is co-investigating two research projects with the Rural Development Institute. 


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  • About Us
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  • Events
    • Upcoming Events
    • Let's Get to Work >
      • Awards of Excellence
      • Presentation Abstracts
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      • LGTW Photos
      • Sponsors & Exhibitors
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      • Contact LGTW
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