Event category: Breakout

Creating a psychologically safe and supportive workplace is not merely a culture and retention strategy, it should be a top initiative from a business, legal and health perspective – and the right of all employees.

Disability claims related to mental health issues and loss of productivity due to PTSD, depression or anxiety have risen substantially in Canada since the pandemic.  Over half of Canadian workers say emotional, mental and physical fatigue is the top issue that is affecting them negatively. However, 37 per cent feel unsafe to talk about mental health at work, according to a report from Sun Life. Healthy organizations with proactive mental health strategies tend to experience lower staff turnover, fewer workplace injuries, less absenteeism and reduced employee burnout.

This session will explore tactical ways to support mental health in the workplace and create a sustainable culture where employees feel comfortable approaching HR with their mental health challenges.

This two-part event will start with peer-led, face-to-face dialogues over breakfast where YOUR mental first aid is the focus.  Share experiences and gain practical tools to reset together with fellow people and culture leaders who can relate to the uniquely challenging road you have travelled.   Part two dives into a tactical presentation evaluating and caring for the ever changing physical and mental wellness and expectations of you and your teams.    7:30 – 8:10 Breakfast & Peer Connections. A time to assess ‘How are YOU doing? As leaders it is critical that you take care of your own mental and physical health. Unpack some of the challenges you have been through with other delegates and participate in an optional mental health check-in to assess your own stress and well being.  Stepping back to assess your own wellness may be the best way to help others in both your private and professional life.  8:10 – 8:30 Tackling Employee Wellness Head On – Building Organizational Health in a Changing Workforce   As workforce expectations shift, employers need to adapt to provide holistic support for the wellbeing of their employees to build a more resilient workforce.  This session will explore the new definition of employee wellness and challenge HR leaders to re-think their workforce support to build organizational health for an unpredictable future. Attendees will learn:

• How the definition of employee wellness has changed
• Considerations for building organizational health and fostering a culture of wellbeing
• The role of leadership in supporting employee health & wellness
• Where to invest resources to improve the quality of life and work for employees

Nearly 90% of job seekers and employees alike value “workplace culture” as vital. At the same time, decentralized hybrid and remote work setups are increasingly becoming the norm in the future of work. But one does not have to cancel the other out. If your teams predominantly interact with each other virtually, then your virtual culture IS your company’s culture. Once we understand this, we can do what’s necessary to make that culture great. We all want vibrant organizational cultures where our people have good relationships, are engaged, and feel their work matters. When hybrid and remote workplaces are done well, these things can happen along with a boost in productivity and wellbeing. But how do we translate our offline values and culture to an online world? How do we foster collaboration and relationship-building when people don’t see each other anymore? How do we make these tools work FOR us? In this interactive session, Bailey Parnell combines her years of experience advising workplaces on culture (and the skills needed to do it well) with her background in online communications to truly provide you with a holistic take on creating a good culture in your organization. She will explore strategies for working effectively when remote and hybrid, key differences in online culture-building, action-oriented strategies for improving this yourself, and consider other changing elements such as generative AI and generational differences.

By the end of this talk, you will be able to:

• Recognize how organizational culture is built in remote and hybrid environments.
• Understand the strategies to seamlessly transfer an organization’s core values and culture from traditional settings to virtual settings.
• Implement practical techniques to enhance collaboration, communication, and camaraderie within remote and hybrid teams.
• Understand the link between a robust digital culture and its direct impact on productivity, employee satisfaction, and overall well-being.
• Consider how changing tech (like generative AI) and different generations may relate to this.

 To get the most from your people, you need to use data where it counts.

Your organization is currently in possession of an enormous wealth of data. From turnover to retention to scheduling trends, there’s a massive amount of information just below the surface that, interpreted and employed properly, can make a huge difference in the lives of your employees and the health of your business. By leading with data, you can inspire action at every level and help your workforce operate with trust and transparency, embrace proactive change, and focus on the right tasks at the right time.

Takeaways:

• Tactical ways to understand and utilize data to unleash the power of people in your tech organization
• Achieving a holistic view of your data from all angles
• How to present the right facts to the right audience to make the biggest impact and effect change
• Demonstrating the benefits of data-driven decision making

First came the great resignation, then came the quiet quitting and then layoffs. Are you ready for the great re-shuffle? Your low attrition numbers aren’t low because employee satisfaction is at an all time high – the economy, tech layoffs and interest rates are playing a major part. Tech employees are anxiously waiting for the economy and hiring to kick-start again and when it does, a great re-shuffle of talent will happen across every major player in tech. What will this mean for retention of top performers? What will this mean for your onboarding? The current lull gives smart HR teams an opportunity to look at people practices and hone in on what’s needed to welcome a new batch of talent, arm leaders with change management skills to navigate flux and prep the organization for knowledge loss.

Attendees will leave with practical approaches to start discussions with business leaders on how to properly prepare every part of the employee offering including perks/benefits, talent attraction, leader development and onboarding for the swift in and out of talent that will take place over the next 18-24 months.

Since the start of 2023, over 300 tech companies have laid off 100,000+ workers. These decisions to layoff or furlough employees are not easy for the employers, laid-off workers, or the staff that remains. Maintaining and enhancing company culture after personnel cutbacks may be as challenging to a business as operational downsizing. The ‘new normal’ after layoffs are often littered with feelings of mistrust, burnout, ‘workplace survivors’ guilt, employee disengagement, and high staff turnover.  This session will explore tactical tips on what employers can do to reinforce their commitment to their remaining employees, boost morale, and capitalize the opportunity as a catalyst to improve company culture.

Takeaways:

• Boosting employee morale, trust and persuading your remaining employees to emotionally reinvest in your company after making workforce cuts
• Strategies to reduce employee turnover and retaining top employees during restructuring
• The importance of transparency, open communication, and commitment to your corporate values and purpose during restructuring