KEYNOTE SPEAKERS

• Roy Spence

  Roy M. Spence is co-founder and chairman of GSD&M Idea City, a leading marketing communications and advertising company. He is also co-founder and CEO of The Purpose Institute, a consulting firm whose purpose is to help people and organizations discover and live their purpose. Along with Haley Rushing, he co-authored the Wall Street Journal bestselling book, It’s Not What You Sell, It’s What You Stand For: Why Every Extraordinary Business is Driven by Purpose. Under Mr. Spence’s leadership, his agency has helped grow some of the world’s most successful brands like Southwest Airlines, Wal-Mart, DreamWorks, the PGA TOUR, BMW global, the U.S. Air Force, Hallmark and the Clinton Global Initiative. He has been a trusted advisor to legendary leaders including Sam Walton and Southwest Airlines founder, Herb Kelleher. His counsel has also been sought by U.S. presidents and leaders in the State Department and Department of Defense. Mr. Spence has been named “Ad Man of the Year” and “Idea Man of the Century” and has been interviewed by The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, The New York Times, BusinessWeek, U.S. News & World Report, Esquire, Fast Company, INC., Fortune and many cable news networks for his perspectives on marketing and finding and fulfilling an organization’s purpose. Mr. Spence has been married 32 years and has three children. He is a member of the board of directors of the Lyndon Baines Johnson Foundation and is a Distinguished Alumnus of the University of Texas.

• John DeHart

  Prior to starting Nurse Next Door Home Healthcare Services with co-founder Ken Sim, John was in the business of launching early stage hi-tech companies. In search of something more satisfying, he left this lucrative career and after an extended break, re-entered the business world with a mission: to build a leading Viagra generic company in the healthcare industry that will make social responsibility and ethics a number one priority. That was in 2001 and now Nurse Next Door is Canada’s fastest growing home healthcare franchise system with over 40 franchise locations, expansion into the USA and multiple awards, including Top 50 best franchise systems in North America (under 50 units) by Franchise Business Review, the 75 Best Employers in Canada by Great Place to Work Institute and The Globe and Mail, and regional winner of Canada’s 10 Most Admired Corporate Cultures. John was named one of Business in Vancouver’s Top 40 Under 40 and was the recipient of the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year Award 2006 for the Pacific Region in the Emerging Entrepreneur category.

• Lynda Curtin

  Lynda Curtin is a Canadian now living in Southern California. She is an expert de Bono Thinking Systems practitioner—one of only 37 Master Trainers/Facilitators in the world. A talented facilitator, Lynda led the development of de Bono’s Focus on Facilitation workshop. She designed it to equip leaders with the tools and skills necessary to lead thinking together meetings that deliver remarkable results. She is the creator of the term “Innovation Instinct” used to create a simple framework to help people improve their ability to generate, build on, and implement valuable ideas. Her work has taken her around the world with a diverse group of clients including ABB, Boeing, Johnson & Johnson, The Hartford, U.S Naval War College, Barrick Gold, Genentech, JPL/NASA and the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Canada. Lynda also launched a new business division, de Bono for Schools, the official provider of de Bono school materials in North America. Her intent is to equip students to become excellent lifelong thinkers. Lynda is a keen golfer and shot her first hole-in-one one on December 19th, 2009.

PROGRAM SPEAKERS

• Sharon Bar-David

  Sharon Bar-David, LLB MSW, has helped over 22,000 people in Canada and overseas build resilient work environments through keynote speeches, training sessions and coaching. She brings to her audiences a unique synthesizing perspective gained through 20+ years’ experience as a lawyer, trainer, speaker, and family therapist. As President of Bar-David Consulting Inc. Sharon has worked extensively with many private and public organizations within the professional services industry, pharmaceutical, government, manufacturing, retail, social service, technology and health industries. People who attend her sessions consistently describe them as ‘challenging’, ‘funny’, ‘practical’, and ‘real’. Sharon’s insights into workplace-related matters are featured regularly in a commentary column in the Canadian HR Reporter magazine. Her expertise in organizational change is featured in a book she has recently co-authored, Awakening the Workplace. Sharon’s tips-packed blog had become a destination for readers wishing to create resilient workplaces.

• Mary Ann Baynton

  Mary Ann Baynton provides consulting services to organizations that wish to improve or address issues related to workplace mental health. These services include individual return to work planning, conflict management, management training, keynote addresses, workshops, strategies that assess and address organizational mental health risk factors and project management. As the former Director of Mental Health Works, an initiative of the Canadian Mental Health Association of Ontario, Mary Ann helped to create a multiple award-winning national training program. She serves as the Program Director for the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace which is a long-term public service commitment by Great-West Life to this very important social and economic issue. Projects through the Centre are making valuable tools, resources and information publicly available through the Centre’s website to all Canadians. Mary Ann also serves as a member of the Mental Health Commission of Canada’s Workforce Advisory Committee. Her background includes 15 years in the business world, six years in the non-profit sector and over eight years as a workplace relations specialist. Today she helps workplaces find solutions unique to their particular dynamic and reality.

• Leslie Brams-Baker

  Leslie Brams-Baker is a is a communications professional with over fifteen years experience in the consumer packaged good industry. She started her career at Procter & Gamble holding a variety of positions in the area of consumer affairs and public relations. She has been at Mars Canada for the past nine years where she now leads internal and external communications. She has played an integral role in bringing the Mars Canada corporate culture of career and personal wellbeing to life through employee communications and experiences that enable employess to live this vision every day. Success in this area has enabled Mars Canada to be a top 100 employer five years in a row.

• Lori Casselman

  Lori Casselman is accountable for Sun Life’s HealthyRETURNS product suite, a comprehensive offering for group benefits clients looking to build a healthy workplace. She has thirteen years of consulting experience in the health & wellness field. Lori and her team work with many of Canada’s progressive employers to develop strategic, sustainable approaches to organizational health management. Prior to joining Sun Life, she was Vice President of Buffett & Company Worksite Wellness Inc., with overall responsibility for business development and operations and for leading the organization’s growth and innovation.

  Lori holds a BA in Kinesiology, a BSc in Nutrition, and an MSc in Exercise Physiology from the University of Western Ontario. She is a Certified Fitness Consultant, a qualifying member of the Ontario College of Dietitians and an accomplished marathoner.

• Rory Cohen

  Rory Cohen is an Idea Implementation Coach and the founder of Take 10, an internationally acclaimed coaching program on how to implement big ideas in small steps, or as she likes to say, “10 minutes at a time.”  Known for her dynamism and big personality, Rory is right at home in the arena of “Big Ideas.”  Rory and her company have been featured on national media such as The View, People Magazine, NPR and the cover of Entrepreneur Magazine, to name a few. As expert in her field, Rory serves as an implementation faculty-coach for numerous seminar leaders and she regularly blogs for Entrepreneur.com.  Rory holds a Bachelors Degree in Community Health Care Delivery from Tufts University, a master’s degree in Health Policy and Management from Yale University, and a master’s degree in Spiritual Psychology from the University of Santa Monica.

• Debbi Gordon

  Debbi Gordon is a Workplace Consultant for FSEAP. Her expertise includes positive psychology, workplace health and organizational resiliency. She has consulted with high profile organizations to assist them in areas of organizational development, culture transformation and wellness strategy. She is registered with The College of Psychologists in Ontario and a certified Authentic Happiness Coach.

• Stephen Hammond

  Stephen Hammond is a keynote speaker, author, and educator in the field of workplace and community human rights. Before heading out on his own, Stephen worked in labour relations and labour law. Since 1992 Stephen has rescued organizations from human rights disasters and enhanced businesses by encouraging them to change with the times. While Stephen is a lawyer by trade and still a member of the Law Society of British Columbia, he no longer practices law. He holds a professional designation with the Canadian Association of Professional Speakers and is a past-President of the Vancouver chapter. Stephen’s goal is to support welcoming workplaces.

• Myra Lefkowitz

  Myra Lefkowitz is the Manager of Health and Well-being Programs and Services at the University of Toronto. Myra leads a team that manages all employee issues related to sick leave, disability and accommodation issues, long-term disability, workplace injuries and occupational health. In addition, the office provides institutional leadership on healthy workplace initiatives and mental health in the workplace.

• Patsy Marshall

  Patsy is a farm girl from the Lucan area, approximately 30 kilometres from London, Ontario. She attended the University of Guelph and there she received her B.A.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees, with a minor in Adult Education. Patsy’s career has been in health care and education, holding senior leadership positions in respiratory medicine, in psychiatry as Director of Education at the Homewood Health Centre, and Manager of Training and Development with Sunlife. For the past 17 years, she has been President of her own training and development company, Train on Track. Patsy has been teaching with Conestoga College for 34 years in Continuing Education (Human Resources, Teacher/Trainer and the Ontario Management Development Program). She has also taught day-time students in the School of Business, including Liberal Studies and Communication, Law and Security Administration and Materials and Operations Management. Patsy continues to teach with Brock University in their B.Ed. program, at the University of Guelph in the Office of Open Learning and with the University of Waterloo’s Continuing Education department. She has served on the Boards of the Canadian Mental Health Association, United Way, and Chamber of Commerce as well as St. Joseph’s Health Care and Community Living Foundation. Presently, Patsy is an Assistant District Governor with Rotary, and she has been the recipient of two Paul Harris awards from Rotary International. Patsy has also received the J. David Stewart Award from Conestoga College for teaching excellence and leadership.

• Maureen McKenna

  Maureen McKenna is a strategic communications consultant and the founder of Mentoring with Momentum Ltd. Her focus is to assist organizations in engaging their employees and stakeholders, to build commitment and inspire action. She specializes in Appreciative Inquiry, a dialogic, strength-based, solution-focused approach.

• Dr. Mario Messier

  Dr. Mario Messier started his career as a family doctor before branching off to workplace health. Currently Scientific Advisor, GP2S and Medical Director for IBM and GE Aviation in Bromont, he also acts as medical consultant for several companies in the Granby, Ontario, region. While working as a family doctor and as a workplace medical specialist, Dr. Messier discovered over time that his true passion in life was not illness but, rather, health. Stimulated by the environments of enterprises- environments he knows well as a workplace doctor- he has reoriented a part of his professional activity toward the promotion of health and illness prevention strategies for the workplace. Involved with The Group for Prevention and Promotion Strategies (GP2S) since its beginnings, he is one of the main authors of the Healthy Enterprise Standard.

• Estelle Morrison

  Estelle Morrison joined Ceridian in 2000 as the Director of Clinical Services for Ceridian LifeWorks Canada. Over the last five years, she has focused specifically on delivering effective, cutting edge health and wellness solutions with emphasis on enhanced productivity, prevention of illness and optimal health for Ceridian’s EAP business. Estelle has more than 20 years of experience managing EAP services. Before joining Ceridian, she was responsible for the clinical and functional operation of an internal EAP program for a large-scale, Canada-wide business organization. Her career history also includes private practice psychotherapy, treatment research and addictions counselling. A sought-after speaker, Estelle has presented at numerous conferences and events across Canada for organizations including the Conference Board of Canada, Health Work & Wellness™ and the Canadian Institute. Her articles have appeared in many publications and she is frequently interviewed and quoted in the media. She holds a master’s degree in applied psychology from the University of Toronto (M.Ed.), is a Certified Employee Assistance Professional (C.E.A.P.) and is a Certified Wellness Coach (C.W.C.).

• Marie-Claude Pelletier

  An entrepreneurial leader and project woman, Marie-Claude Pelletier focuses on results while specializing in partnerships, having concentrated on the field of health for the last 10 years. With a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, she is also a Certified Company Director. Ms. Pelletier has worked for 23 years developing companies and major projects, with her professional achievements coming in retail commerce with Provigo, Mouvement Desjardins, as General Manager of Acti-Menu and finally with The Group for Prevention and Promotion Strategies (GP2S) as President and Executive Director. She has demonstrated capabilities that foster synergies and partnerships with both public and private players, and she has rallied different stakeholders around shared visions and objectives to achieve ambitious goals in innovative ways. Ms. Pelletier has also had her own consulting company and worked closely with various Boards of Directors and the general management of organizations with assignments for company launches, strategic management, development of partnerships and implementation of major projects, mainly in health. Ms. Pelletier is recognized for her strategic vision, determination and her ability to rally the concerned parties in a project to deliver significant and concrete results, as well as for her competency and knowledge in the field of health.

• Carla Rieger

  Carla Rieger connects people to their creative purpose- leading the change they want to see in their lives, their organizations and their world. She is an author of four books and a regular writer for several publications. She began her career in with one of the largest creative teambuilding organizations in the US in the mid 1980’s, Playfair, Inc. Since then she has spoken to over 1500 groups internationally of up to 4000 people. In 1991 she became the director of The Artistry of Change, a Vancouver-based consulting firm that specializes in using creative thinking to manage and lead change. Her work as a speaker, performer and author has been featured on radio, TV and in magazines. As a frequent presenter before all types of organizations internationally, Carla helps them stay on their creative edge. In terms of formal education, Carla has an undergraduate in theatre and psychology and graduate work in organizational development. She also has extensive experience and training in marketing, adult education, fitness leadership and conflict resolution. She has been an Educational Kinesiology instructor, workplace mediator, reinvention advisor, and presentation skills coach. On the creative side she has performed in dozens of plays and musicals, written seven plays, a screenplay and a novel. Her specialty has been theatrical improvisation and Carla has founded three theatre troupes. In non-fiction she has written three books on change, conflict resolution and presentation skills, as well as over 100 articles that have appeared in a wide variety of journals and magazines.

• Patrice Roy

  Mr. Patrice Roy holds the position of senior advisor in the Group Insurance and Health Management department for Desjardins Group. He intervenes as a specialist and project manager in matters regarding health management and group insurance. His particular interests are issues related to health and disability insurance in order to offer Desjardins Group employees coverage which is adapted to their needs, all the while overseeing the continuation of the insurance plan. Mr. Roy possesses a Baccalaureate in psychology and a masters in industrial relations, exercising many years as a human resources generalist before orienting his practice towards health. He has also contributed to the setting up of an integrated management model for Desjardins Financial Security absences. Recently, he played a key role in the evolution of the Desjardins health processes.

• Dr. Joti Samra

  Dr. Joti Samra is an innovator in the area of psychological health and wellness in the workplace. Her research catalyzes fundamental improvements in the psychological safety and health of work environments throughout Canada. She is a leader in the conceptualization and communication of workplace health issues and the creation of related treatment manuals and clinical tools. Dr. Samra is a passionate advocate for organizational change. She is a frequent media commentator and presents her work extensively at the invitation of organizations across Canada and the United States.

  Dr. Samra has an active and dynamic record of applied research and clinical work. She is an Adjunct Professor with the Faculty of Health Sciences at Simon Fraser University (SFU) in Vancouver, and is Director of an organizational consulting and clinical practice. Dr. Samra also serves as Chair of the BC Psychologically Healthy Workplace Collaborative and is President of the British Columbia Psychological Association.

  Dr. Samra pursues a full spectrum of research, consulting and educational activities in the field of workplace health. She is the lead developer of Guarding Minds @ Work (GM@W): A Workplace Guide to Psychological Safety and Health, an innovative online resource used by employers to address psychosocial threats in the work environment. Commissioned by the Great-West Life Centre for Mental Health in the Workplace, the GM@W resources include evidence-based psychosocial risk assessment surveys, response strategies and response evaluation tools. She is also the principal developer of Managing Emotions, a set of online, interactive assessment and training resources that strengthen the interpersonal competence skills of managers, also commissioned by the Great-West Life Centre. Dr. Samra is also involved as an expert advisor on a number of provincial and national steering committees in the area of workplace psychological health.

  Dr. Samra is a Clinical Associate at the SFU Clinical Psychology Centre, is an Adjunct Faculty Member with the Adler School of Professional Psychology, and has served as an expert consultant for the British Columbia Family and Supreme Courts. She is a recipient of the Canadian Psychological Association’s New Researcher Award (2002) and most recently the British Columbia Psychological Association’s Advancement of the Profession of Psychology Award (2011).

• Karen Seward

  Karen Seward. Karen is Executive Vice-President responsible for Business Development and Marketing. She leads the enterprise-wide collaboration for growth, sales opportunities for our largest clients, and manages our client distribution partner channel relationships. Karen also manages the Marketing organization.

  Karen is featured as a speaker at numerous conferences and seminars, she has also published articles in periodicals including Benefits Canada and Benefits & Pensions Monitor, and she often appears in the national media, speaking on workplace health and productivity issues.

  Karen holds a BA from the University of Toronto and is noted for her unique approach of treating health in the workplace as a business issue, bringing quantitative figures to show how an investment in a healthy workplace drives productivity and offsets disability costs to a company’s bottom line.

• Dr. Martin Shain

  Dr. Martin Shain is founder and principal of the Neighbour at Work Centre®, a consulting agency in the area of workplace mental health and safety. Dr. Shain is trained in both law and social science. He worked for many years as a senior scientist at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health (CAMH). Currently he holds academic appointments in the departments of public health at the University of Toronto and Simon Fraser University where he is involved in research, development and teaching. Based on his own original research, Martin helps private and public sector employers and unions understand and meet their new legal obligations to provide and maintain psychologically safe workplaces. As part of his mission to enhance the protection of mental health at work, he is presently campaigning for the development of national standards to help employers assess and abate risks to mental health in the workplace. Currently, he is working on the development and testing of prototypes for team level programs that will help create safer psychological environments in which mental injuries are less likely to occur.

• Nancy van Boxmeer

  Nancy van Boxmeer is a healthy workplace and training consultant with over fifteen years experience. She is a dynamic facilitator with a passion for change! She started her professional career in workplace wellness at Toyota MMC and proceeded to hold various health promotion and consulting roles in public health, the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Ontario, the Ontario Physical and Health Education Association (Ophea), Girl Guides of Canada, and some boutique training and development companies. Nancy holds both a health sciences degree from the University of Waterloo and a Master’s in adult education and human resource development from UTS in Sydney Australia. She is a former fitness and lifestyle consultant, with expertise in areas of personal health practices, as well as systemic organizational and leadership issues affecting employee health. Currently, Nancy is a part-time faculty member teaching health promotion at York University. For the last five years she has focused on consulting and training related to healthy workplace strategy, leadership and organizational culture. She has facilitated healthy workplace strategic planning for various municipal and regional governments, manufacturing businesses and health-care organizations. She has designed and delivered countless training sessions on healthy workplace theory, best practices, planning and evaluation for small not-for-profit organizations through to 70,000 employee businesses. She has also led consulting projects to investigate issues of employee engagement and worklife balance. As well, prior to the 2010 wind-down of the Healthy Workplace Project, Nancy was retained by The Health Communication Unit (THCU) (at the University of Toronto) to provide training and consultation services on healthy workplace best practices to all 36 regional health units in Ontario. She also created various healthy workplace webinar modules and published healthy workplace resources for THCU and as well as the Industrial Accident Prevention Association. Action is at the heart of all of Nancy’s consultations and training sessions. Having both an education and health promotion background, Nancy brings an in-depth understanding of the influencers of behaviour. She combines this expertise to facilitate outcomes that result in people and teams taking action. Nancy drives success by asking questions and encouraging people to critically examine what they know, what motivates them or their organization to act and what they ‘plan on doing now’!

• Janet Young

  Janet Young joined the Buffett & Company team in January of 1999 as a Wellness Administration Coordinator. She moved into the position of Senior Wellness Consultant in 2000, was promoted to Manager, Wellness Consulting in August of 2001. Janet was promoted in 2006 to Associate Vice President and in 2009 was promoted to Vice President. She now holds the position of Director Business Development, Health & Wellness, with Sun Life Financial.

  Janet has an extensive background in the area of employee wellness with an expertise in physical fitness. She completed her undergraduate degree with a major in English and a minor in Kinesiology from the University of Western Ontario and she also holds a post-graduate degree in Wellness and Lifestyle Management. Janet is a Certified Excellence Professional with the National Quality Institute (NQI) and has recently completed her Bachelor of Education at Trent University.