Message from the President & CEO
“Reading is still the main way that I both learn new things and test my understanding” Bill Gates 

Those of you that know me or follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn might already know that I am an avid reader. I completed 50 books last year and have set a goal for this year of 60. By the time you read this, I will have finished my third since the start of the year. And that doesn’t take into account all the articles and magazines I read. Why, you might ask, would anyone spend that much time reading? Doesn’t she have a life? 

Reading to me is like sports to someone else. It’s a release, it’s fun, it’s what I do in my leisure time; it’s my hobby. It also fulfills a curiosity I have for continuous learning, which happens to work well with the business I am in! It is important for me to be on top of current trends whether that be who the latest leadership guru is or understanding BlockChain technology. This enhances the service I provide to our clients. It also enhances my ability to mentor my team.  

The world is moving quickly. Why read a book when you can Google something and get the answer ten times faster? There is something to be said about immersing oneself in learning and understanding the whole picture as opposed to speed or microlearning. Don’t get me wrong, there is a need for micro learning; I engage in that as well but if I really want to understand, remember and put something into practice then I read, make notes and share.  

As Carrie points out in the HR Corner below, one of the top HR trends this year is training. Reading can complement training and mentoring programs. It is an easy component to implement, cost-effective and can be used to encourage discussion.  

I should point out that I don’t just read “work” books, I read fiction too. I alternate; one fiction then one non-fiction. The non-fiction books include books on leadership, biographies, autobiographies, business and more. 

And there is an added bonus to how much time I spend reading - my Jeopardy Game has improved! Alex Trebek would be proud. 



Audie McCarthy
President & CEO
What You Tell Us. Your Testimonial Stands Out!
I have taken a great deal of courses while working for the City of Burlington (since 2009) and this is one of the best experiences I have had. Sandra has a way to innovatively bring her messages across that lights up our proverbial light bulbs. In fact, there were so many classes where students had that “aha moment”;
some more than others. 
For me, I truly enjoyed her variety of activities, video clips, and the notes she carefully orchestrated together for us to build our leadership competence. 

Jamie Rychard, 2018 FRL Graduate
Announcements
The City of Burlington capped off 2018 with an amazing graduation day that saw many innovative and creative presentations. A leader-packed Leadership Panel rounded off the day with a very insightful Q&A.

Check out some of the pictures from the day HERE.
The story of Nestor Espinosa is a good one. Nestor immigrated from Colombia in 2013, eventually residing in Mississauga. From here, Nestor connected with MCE partner Newcomer Centre of Peel, and hasn't looked back.

Read the whole story HERE.
With the official launch of LEAN training for leaders in healthcare, MCE and CI360 have issued a media release to announce the partnership. If you're a member of the media or are in regular contact with a media rep, please read the release below.

HR Corner:
Top 3 HR Trends in 2019
After enjoying a wonderful holiday season with friends and loved ones, returning to work can be a challenge. For HR professionals, it means returning to potentially new standards, laws and HR trends. While there are many emerging trends each year, here’s what you should focus on in 2019:

ENGAGING EMPLOYEES
For employees to be engaged, they need to feel appreciated, respected and valued. This can enhance the overall workplace culture and increases productivity, resulting not only in the retention of staff but increases general organizational performance. Think about conducting a survey asking your employees what would make them feel more engaged. Remember, be ready to follow through on the results or employees may not see the value in these surveys going forward. Survey Monkey is an easy and great tool to use for your employee engagement survey.

HEALTH AND WELLNESS
Mental health is one of the largest talked about issues in the workplace. Helping employees achieve a good work-life balance means acknowledging pressures, having open communication and providing ongoing support on both personal and professional levels. What is one thing you can do to achieve this? You could consider implementing the Canadian Standards for a psychologically safe workplace.

INCREASING TRAINING IN THE WORKPLACE
The personal and professional development of employees is by far the single most important trend for 2019. It contributes to engagement, health and wellness, supports succession management, results in increased performance, productivity and organizational effectiveness. How can you address training gaps in the workplace?

·         Develop Core Competencies for each position description
·         An open discussion about growth and opportunities
·         Review Independent Development Plans and develop ongoing training plans

Training plans should be tracked by HR and updated on a regular basis. If you are interested in hearing more about MCE training options or HR Consulting services, please email me.

Carrie Deon
Human Resources Generalist
Trainer of the Month: Bob Jones
Bob is an executive with extensive experience in Organizational Effectiveness, Leadership Development, and Human Resources leadership within both privately and publicly held companies. A skilled and experienced presenter and facilitator he has served as an emcee, knowledge expert panelist, trainer, facilitator and coach. He brings insight, humour, positive energy, intelligence and experience to these roles.

Bob has led Future Ready programs for PHRI (Population Health Research Institute), as well as participated as a panelist during Leadership days. Bob is currently facilitating in the Algoma Leadership Program as well as the St. Catharines Firefighters FRL.
Course of the Month: Building Relationships with Council
In this one-day course, participants will learn the high level roles and responsibilities of council, the Mayor/Reeve and the Chief Administrative Officer (CAO)/City Manager. They will learn different strategies to build a respectful relationship with council members with the mutual goal of advocating for the members of the public. Participants will work on case studies and activities to learn how to gain the respect of councillors. They will also learn how to adjust their approach to create a win-win outcome with council members.

This course was developed as 75% of municipal workers that we recently polled indicated that they would like to have a day of learning on how to improve their relationships with a council member. Only 21% of workers found their relationship with council excellent. More course information HERE.

Of Special Note: MCE Business Development Officer, Dianne Jones, is coordinating a special cohort for the area of Bracebridge for February-March. Please contact Dianne if you're interested in saving a seat.
For more information about our programs, contact:
Lorraine MacDonald
905-575-2534
Mohawk College Enterprise | 905-575-2534 | info@mcecor.com | www.mcecor.com