Our conference manager, Lesley Patten, and I have been pouring over conference presentation proposals to create a fabulous ASPECT Conference this year. The challenge is always to find innovative and inspiring workshop topics while at the same time avoiding duplication of what has been done elsewhere. Our program is about 80% there so we've decided to open up registration today.  We still have work to do to update the bits and pieces missing from the program and to make room for special guests who can't confirm quite yet.  

This year we have four streams of opportunities: Leaders and Emerging Leaders, Career Developers, Something for Everyone, and Something for Almost Everyone. We couldn't decide on a unifying theme for the conference, likely since I couldn't think of one that made sense, but you can expect the great things this year.

Our opening keynote speaker is Eric Termuende who is a globally-recognized thought leader, author, and international speaker on the future of work and building teams that thrive.  As co-founder of NoW Innovations, he advises industry-leading organizations, institutions, and associations on future-proofing their teams, talent management, and rehumanizing the workplace. Eric has a deep understanding of the next generation of work and how to attract and retain the right talent. 

We’ve also confirmed that there will be a Ministry Update from the Ministry of Advanced Education & Skills Training (AEST) as well as the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction (SDPR). Thanks to Assistant Deputy Minister Bindi Sawchuck of AEST and Assistant Deputy Minister Chris Brown of SDPR for once-again agreeing to present. For those delegates who may not be interested in their update, we will have a facilitated discussion/networking opportunity at the same time. As always, our aim is to program something for everyone, no matter where you are in your career path. 

Thanks to the many ASPECT members and others who took the time to prepare and submit presentation proposals. Thank you also to Lesley Patten, our conference manager, for handling all the details and leading the effort.  If you have a conference or meeting coming up in which you are the part of the organizing committee, please consider hiring Lesley and the ASPECT Events Management team for your event. She’s an expert and what might take your staff many hours to do, she can do it in a fraction of the time and no post-event staff burnout to deal with!   

Virtual Member Tour

After the whirlwind of June, I'm happy to settle into July and will be undertaking a virtual member tour.  Starting next week, you'll receive meeting requests from me to check in and find out how things are going in your organization and community.  It'll be just like the provincial tour I undertook three years ago, except without the airfare, car rental, and hotels: a more budget conscious and eco-friendly alternative. Details will be sent out to ASPECT members early next week.

 

Call (Again) for Presenters for the ASPECT Conference 2019

Terry Deakin of INEO Employment Services in Port Alberni presented at the ASPECT Conference 2017.
Look for her session in the 2019 conference program coming out later this month.

The deadline has passed for the call for presenters for the ASPECT Conference on November 4 and 5 in Richmond BC, and we have some informative and innovative proposals to choose from. However, we are looking for presenters for the following topic areas to round out the learning experiences for conference delegates.  Specifically, we are looking for the following:

• The future of work and how some communities are meeting the challenges.
• Automation and innovative service delivery models.
• Change management and self-care.
• Truth and reconciliation training.

I understand that with the new employment contracts and the upset over staffing up or down, some of those who would like to have presented missed the opportunity during the confusion.  Here's your 2nd chance to share your expertise, become eligible for a free conference registration, and add  "Conference Presenter"  to your resume.  Please email me your presentation idea before July 10th.  If it's a fit for this year's conference, we'll ask you to complete a full presentation proposal.  

Janet Morris-Reade

Innovation takes courage and sometimes it is wildly successful and sometimes it isn't quite. Depending on whom you ask, you may get similarly diverse reviews about our Pre-Summit and the Employer-Employment Expert Summit that took place in Richmond earlier this week.  

Because I picked the speakers and the topics, I loved every session that I had the chance to see. I was floating in excitement and smiling like a goon as I saw synergies form throughout the room and the trickle of ideas from one presentation to the next. Yes, there were a few hiccups along the way, but I was delighted in so many ways with the small-but-mighty group at the event.

One session, that is getting mixed reviews, is the one that I presented. Actually, it was more of a presentation + discussion than just a presentation. In it, I introduced a BIG IDEA to tap into the talents and expertise of ASPECT members to create a province-wide fee-for-service offering to employers. The idea is to meet the current needs of employers while creating a revenue stream for ASPECT members. We would create an online marketing portal similar to accommodation and travel sites.

I did not get the slam-dunk response hoped for, but I did receive some excellent feedback and appreciated the candor in the room. The idea might have value in the future, but right now there is too much uncertainty in the sector and employers are not quite embracing the concept of paid training just yet.

Here's where we landed after the discussion:

1. ASPECT would collect information from our members for us to share with our members. This will assist members in finding partners in neighbouring communities and help us have a clearer picture of what is offered when employers do call ASPECT asking for information.
2. ASPECT would continue to reach out to employers on behalf of the sector to find out how we can help them with their post-employment supports and undertake some research around this area, possibly partnering with an employer group.
3. Once the service providers have had some time to determine the details of how post-employment supports work under the WorkBC contract, then we will investigate moving forward.

I would like to thank all those who attended, the presenters and panelists, the sponsor WCG, and the exhibitors for being there. ASPECT President Val Meany, my boss, gets a special gold star for doing an excellent job emceeing on both days. At this point, we don't know if there will be another Summit next year (it won't be in June again), but we do know that the ASPECT Conference will be November 4 & 5 at the Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel. I hope to see you there!

Janet Morris-Reade

Tim Blake has replaced Deb Hamblin at the Inter-Cultural Association of Victoria as Employment Services Manager
that required a move from the Lower Mainland to the Island. He is one of many who started new jobs in the last few months.   

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to drop by the Inter-Cultural Association of Victoria to meet with Tim Blake. He is now new to Victoria and settling into a job that started April 1. He reminded me, before our meeting, that we had met at an ASPECT conference, but for the life of me I couldn't remember what he looked like. Immediately I felt like an idiot as soon as we met in person again. Of course, I know who he is but out of the regular context, it took a moment.

It got me thinking about how much change has happened in our sector, not only from the WorkBC contracts but also from the recent retirements and replacements. Keeping track of who landed where is starting to feel like a full-time job, but an important one. In the past few months, we've lost to retirement Lynn Belsher at NEXUS Vernon, Beth Wilson at Obair Economic Society in Dawson Creek, Angela Kwok from BC Centre for Ability Association, Lynn Hughes from Northwest Training in Terrace, and Judy Crooks from Pacific Community Resources Society. All leaders in the field and in many cases being replaced by new people who are new to the employment sector (like me three years ago).  

I use Aspectives as a means of building community and feature those who are coming, going and shifting jobs by including them in this publication. Please send me your photos and announcements so that I can include them here.  

Like the simple act of wearing a name tag at a community picnic, sharing this information with our members and stakeholders will help build our sector community and celebrate the changes coming our way.  

Janet Morris-Reade
 

May 27, 2019

For Immediate Release

Summit Offers Employers Solutions to Attract, Train, & Retain Workforce

Victoria, BC -- The first of its kind in BC and in Canada, the Association of Service Providers for Employability and Career Training (ASPECT) is hosting an Employer-Employment Expert Summit on Wednesday, June 5, 2019 at the Pacific Gateway Hotel Vancouver Airport. This Summit is intended to bring employment experts and employers together to meet the workforce needs of British Columbia by connecting them with pre- and post-employment supports and training available in their communities.  Employers are invited to register at aspect.bc.ca/summit. 

“ASPECT member organizations have long-been local employment experts for pre-employment training and supports,” states ASPECT CEO, Janet Morris-Reade, “but in today’s labour market employers are struggling to find the right workers and keeping them at their companies. The Summit will showcase what services are available to them to support finding workers and training them after they’re hired.”

The agenda for the day is as follows.

9:00-10:00             Welcome & Keynote: Preparing Canadians for the Changing Economy & Future of Work

10:00-10:30      Networking Coffee Break

10:30-11:30      Breakouts Panels & Workshops: Using Big Data to Meet Labour Market Conditions, Ingenious Hiring: What Big Business is Doing, Business Case for Inclusive Hires: President's Group

11:30-12:30pm     Breakout Panels & Workshops: Future Skills Centres Projects, Modern Recruitment Strategies

12:30-2:00             Lunch & Keynote: Chris Atchison, President of the BC Construction Association " The BC Builder's Code: Creating a Harassment-Free Work Site"

2:00 - 3:00             Breakout Panels: The Business Case for Hiring Youth & Millennials, Immigrant Workers, Indigenous Workers

3:00-3:30               Networking Coffee Break

3:30-4:30               Keynote Speaker: Christian St. Cyr, Publisher of the BC & Ontario Labour Market Report and Working on the West Coast expert on the Lynda Steele Show on CNKW Radio "The New Normal: Brace for Impact"

4:30pm                 Networking Reception

The Association of Service Providers for Employability and Career Training (ASPECT) provides leadership, education, advocacy, and public awareness in support of community-based workforce development service providers. We work with government and stakeholders to ensure that the needs of those seeking a meaningful and sustainable livelihood are met.

-30-

Media Contact:    

Janet Morris-Reade 
CEO, ASPECT
250-818-0306

Christian St. Cyr of the BC Labour Market Report (BCLMR) with Shannan Laing of Douglas College chat at the BC Career Development Conference. Christian will be our keynote closing speaker at the Employer-Employment Expert Summit on June 5. His topic will be "The New Normal: Brace for Impact." See below for the BCLMR results from their recent survey. Are you being paid enough?

I'm writing this while working at the ASPECT exhibitor booth at the BC Career Development Conference in Vancouver. It's been a fabulous opportunity to connect with career developers and others as we learn about new and innovative ways of supporting job seekers. You'll see by the poster below that we are also selling off our ASPECT Curriculum and promoting new ways to be involved with the employment sector. So many great opportunities yet so little time!  Congratulations to BCCDA Executive Director Lubica Keighery, the BCCDA Board, and planning committee for putting on the event. In case you missed it on our website, the schedule for the Employer-Employment Expert Summit has been released and we are delighted to announce some heavy hitters for our day. BC Construction Association President, Chris Atchison, will talk about the construction sector's response to the employment crunch by creating the "BC Building Code" to implement a culture shift in the industry to create a work environment that is more inviting to women.   We have a panel about the Future Skills Centres project with Director of the Project, Rhonda Fernandez, coming in from Ottawa to talk about the initiative and Patrik Mackenzie from the Immigrant Employment Council of BC to talk about the trial project that they are involved in. Jake Hirsch-Allen from LinkedIn in Toronto along with Greg Lockwood, Research Associate, SRDC and Chris Holling, Director, Labour Market Forecasting, Labour Market Insights, Evaluation and Outreach Branch, Workforce Innovation and Division Responsible for Skills Training, Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training, will talk about what is being done with big data to inform labour market programs and decisions.   Christian St. Cyr (pictured above) will provide us with a sometimes incendiary closing keynote telling us about how quickly the labour market is changing, what is likely for the future, and how to prepare ourselves for it. (see below for abbreviated results and link to full results from his recent Career Development Survey) As you have read in previous issues of Aspectives, I am really excited about the Pre-Summit and the Summit because it has never been done on a provincial level before anywhere in Canada. If successful, the model will be developed in other provinces. Registrations are underway, but we need more employers to fill out the room.  When I mentioned to a colleague yesterday that I wanted to see at least 50 employers in the room, I was told that it was an ambitious goal. Challenge accepted!  Click here to download an invitation that you can send to your employer contacts. Click here for a Summit Schedule that you can forward to your staff. Click here to register for the event. Click here to sponsor the summit.  (it comes with registration for two days for only $500).  Click here to be an exhibitor at the summit.  (it comes with registration for two days for only $650 -- Exhibitor booths will only be set up on Wednesday)  Janet Morris-Reade

It has struck me this week how valuable relationship-building is as I scramble to pull together the program for the upcoming Employer-Employment Expert Summit on June 5th. I've contacted a lot of people this week and have asked big favours. Thankfully, much of the groundwork in building these connections have been laid and we can expect an outstanding program, but there were certainly gaps in my relationships as well.  

For example, take the session on Future Skills in Canada. This panel will be facilitated by Rishi Sharma, Director, Corporate Services & Intergovernmental Relations, Workforce Innovation Division & Division Responsible for Skills Training, Ministry of Advanced Education, Skills and Training.  Rishi and his colleague, Laura Colpman (pictured at right after a Labour Market Roundtable in Fort St. John in 2017), have done an excellent job in maintaining contact with me; checking in every once in a while. If I have a question or an idea I need feedback on, I know that I can set up a meeting with Rishi and Laura and I can depend on their thoughtful and wise perspective.  

Flying in from Ottawa for the same session is Rhonda Fernandez, Director of the Future Skills Office, Employment and Social Development Canada. She is tasked with the new Future Skills Centre and I had first met her colleague, Rachel Wernick, in 2018 along with her senior staff. Then a year later, when Rhonda was assigned the Future Skills project, I attended her session at Cannexus and participated in a panel with her at the First Work Amplify conference in Toronto in April. I have a great deal of respect for the work she is doing and her collaborative approach to the work. I am delighted that she is making the time in her very busy schedule to be a part of our Summit.

Finally, I was looking for someone who could sit on the panel who is working on one of the inaugural Future Skills projects and connected with the Immigrant Employment Council of BC's CEO, Patrick Mackenzie. Meeting with the Patrick has been on my "to do" list for quite some time, but I hadn't yet reached out. Not only did Patrick agree to be a part of the panel, but he did so immediately. We have plans to talk soon and I'm sure that we will find ways to support each organization's work.  

The advocacy work that ASPECT does on behalf of its members is so diverse, circuitous and multi-layered that maintaining old and forging new relationships in itself is a fulltime job. Do I have a lot of work to do in this area? Most certainly! However, this week reminded me of how important establishing genuine relationships with people who have shared goals are essential to benefit the work we do and the communities we serve.  

As I write this, I am also very much aware of the relationship I am building with you who read this Aspectives newsletter. Some of you I have had the opportunity to meet in person, some of you I interact with on social media, and many of you who are on my list of people I will endeavour to meet. Thank you for taking the time to follow along.

Janet Morris-Reade

Summit

Tuesday, June 4 - Service Provider (AKA Employment Experts) Focus

Noon-1:30 - Plenary Session Lunch with Honorable Shane Simpson, Minister of Social Development and Poverty Reduction 1:30-3:00 - Concurrent Breakout Sessions Employer Engagement Strategies: Latest Sub-Hub Discoveries. Presented by Chris Callaghan, NIEFS, Barb Kalashnikov, WCG, Greg Lockwood, SRDC Supporting Canadians to Navigate Learning and Work:  Career Development Professional Competence Consultation. Facilitated by Dr. Roberta Neault, Life Strategies, Janet Morris-Reade, ASPECT Marketing Communications: Strategies for Making Connections & Reaching Your Targets. Presented by Robyn Quinn, Big Bang Communications 3:00-3:30 - Networking Coffee Break 3:30-5:00 - Plenary Session Big Ideas: A New Way to Market Employment Services & Supports to Employers, ASPECT Presentation

Registration is Open for the ASPECT Summit! It's our first time trying to bring employers and employment experts (that's you, employment service providers) together and it's also a first for BC. As you know, the first time is always a bit scary.  

Here's what to expect:

Day One - Tuesday, June 4, 2019, from noon to 5:00pm
Employment Service Providers

Starting at lunchtime, the afternoon will be filled a luncheon with special guest, Minister of Social Development & Poverty Reduction Hon. Shane Simspon as the keynote (TBC), followed by workshops on Employer Engagement Strategies, Career Development Professional Competence Consultations, and Marketing/Communications - Strategies for Reaching Your Targets. Then we'll meet at a plenary session to discuss post-employment supports and marketing outside of the current contracts. Within the afternoon there will be opportunities to network with colleagues and discuss innovative ideas.
 

Day Two - Wednesday, June 5, 2019, from 8:30am to 6:30pm
Employers & Service Providers Together

This day will start bright and early with breakfast and a keynote speaker (TBD) and 6 panels.  After lunch, we will have 3 more panels, another plenary keynote, followed by a networking reception.

 If you have a speciality in one or more of these topics, please let me know. Each panel will have a facilitator, a service provider, an employer, and sometimes a client.

• Using Big Data to Meet Labour Market Needs
• Ingenious Hiring: What big business is doing?
• Trends in Staff Attraction and Retention
• Future Skills Centre - Projects & Opportunities
• Best Ways to Recruit Seasonal & Temporary Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Youth & Millennial Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Immigrant Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Indigenous Workers
• Business Case for Inclusive Hires: President’s Group

As I write this, more information is being updated as workshop presenters and panelists are being confirmed. It's the first time that we have ever presented a gathering that focuses on employer needs and although I'm excited at the prospect, it's also a little scary. I'll be leaning on our ASPECT members and stakeholders to make this dream a reality. Register now and book your hotel room before May 10 to take advantage of the Summit rate discounts.

Janet Morris-Reade

Pictured: Warren Bruns of Kootenay Employment Services in Creston presents during the Inspiration Panel at the 2017 ASPECT Conference about how his organization has used technology to reduce barriers and improve outcomes.

On Tuesday, you would have received our call for presentations for the ASPECT Conference in November. It seems strange to be doing this when the ASPECT Summit (June 4 & 5, 2019) plans are not completely set. The fall conference has been going for over 25 years, but the Employer-Employment Services Summit is new, unknown, and was created to address a growing need for employers to have access to clients and services they may not have used or considered before.  New events take time.

Both of these ASPECT events reflect our raison d'être: they provide much-needed networking for the sector, they respond to current conditions, they provide professional development by presenting best practices and innovations, and they provide a good opportunity to inform the advocacy work we do. The other benefit that is becoming increasingly important is that these events provide an opportunity for those working in the sector to hone their presentation skills.

If you are on the fence about whether or not to present at the ASPECT Conference or the ASPECT Summit, I encourage you to give it a try. Your remuneration is presentation experience that you can pad your CV with as well as a complimentary conference registration. We also have a very small travel budget that we can dip into to help get you there.

For the ASPECT Summit, I will be holding a video conference call to recruit panel members on Tuesday, April 30 at noon. These are the topics we are developing:

• Using Big Data to Meet Labour Market Needs
• Ingenious Hiring: What big business is doing?
• Business Case for Inclusive Hires: President’s Group
• Trends in Staff Attraction and Retention
• Future Skills Centre - Projects & Opportunities
• Best Ways to Recruit Seasonal & Temporary Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Youth & Millennial Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Immigrant Workers
• Business Case for Hiring Indigenous Workers
• Business Case for Inclusive Hires: President’s Group

If you have a speciality in one or more of the above topics, please let me know. The panels will have a facilitator, a service provider, an employer, and sometimes a client.  Register now for this member discussion online meeting.

Janet Morris-Reade