30 www.hrreporter.com
LEADERSHIP SERIES
ORGANIZATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
THE VALUE OF
EDUCATION IN A
TIME OF CRISIS
The Queen's University Industrial Relations
Centre [IRC], a professional development
unit within the Faculty of Arts & Science,
delivers programs in labour relations, human
resources and organizational development,
based on 80 years of experience and research.
Our programs are led by industry leaders and
designed for busy practitioners who want
to directly apply their knowledge to their
work environment.
Human resources: Learn how to build
and engage teams in multi-disciplinary
environments, manage change, and transform
key HR data into business strategy.
Labour relations: Develop the skills to
effectively handle disputes and negotiations,
build trust, and manage unionized
environments.
Organizational development: Diagnose
organizational challenges, explore design
issues and develop robust solutions. Choose
from two to five-day open enrolment programs
delivered across Canada or customized
on-site training solutions that address your
organization's specific needs. We also offer
certificate programs in advanced human
resources, organizational development,
labour relations and advanced labour relations
for professionals who want to continue to
develop their skills and contribute to their
organization's success.
Why Queen's IRC?
• Opportunities to network with high-level
colleagues from across the country
• Coaching from internationally renowned
facilitators with real-world experience
• Experiential programming to test
theories and ideas
• Skills and strategies that directly apply
to work environments
• Mentoring beyond classroom sessions
Learn more at irc.queensu.ca
Through the first weeks of crisis and into the new
normal, Queen's IRC has developed new resources
for HR leaders to meet any change and challenge
WHEN THE COVID-19 pandemic struck and HR
professionals saw their world crashing down all
around them, Stephanie Noël got to work. The
director of Queen's IRC knew that the professionals
her centre served were facing the biggest changes of
their careers and the IRC needed to step up as a
resource for them.
Rather than going back to the textbooks, the IRC
drew on its deep bench of talented facilitators and
instructors, launching a series of webinars designed to
address the rapidly changing needs of HR professionals.
They weren't preaching from on high, though. Their
webinars hinged on Q&As and participant questions
submitted before the session. The IRC team looked for
the key trends in what their participants were saying
they faced and sought to address them through the free,
hour-long webinars.
"We launched our first in week five or six of the
lockdown," says Noël. "It was via Zoom and we could
see all the participants' and speakers' faces. When
we saw them, it gave us all an emotional lift, because
were already feeling so isolated.
"When we first started to offer the sessions, we said,
'Maybe 20 people will come, maybe 40 people will
come, won't that be exciting?' There are more than
500 people registered for our next session."
In the middle of a crisis, Noël and the IRC team
knew the education they offered had to serve the
ABOUT QUEEN'S IRC:
