Canadian HR Strategy

4 executive Series digest hrreporter.com aDvErtiSing inDEx ABC Life Literacy Canada www.EssentialSkillsDay.ca ....... 15 Brock University www.brocku.ca/education/ futurestudents/adulted .............. 22 Canadian Payroll Association www.payroll.ca ........................... 18 Conference Board of Canada, e www.conferenceboard.ca/ hrworkshops .............................. 11 DLGL Ltd. www.dlgl.com ............................ 32 Express Scripts Canada (ESC) www.express-scripts.ca/ believeit ....................................... 14 Industrial Relations Centre-Queen's University www.irc.queensu.ca ......................2 Osgoode Professional Development www.osgoodepd.ca .................... 19 Strategic Capability Network www.scnetwork.ca ..................... 30 Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada www.sunlife.ca/brightpromise ....5 www.sunlife.ca/moneyup ......... 23 e Niagara Institute www.niagaraInstitute.com........ 28 EDITor'S NoTES ToDD HumbEr The hiddeN beNeFiTS oF a healThy culTure i t's one of the biggest frustrations for man- agement and employers in general: De- spite all the resources that go into benefits packages, and all the effort that goes into creating and maintaining a healthy cul- ture, employees rarely understand the full value of what their organization is offering. Offerings such as maternity leave benefits, short- and long-term dis- ability and bereavement leave are barely on the ra- dar when it comes to what jobseekers are looking for — generally, it's "How much does the job pay?" and "How much vacation do I get?" Unfortunately, I got to put one of those under- appreciated benefits to the test when my mother passed away this summer. Her death wasn't completely unexpected, but it happened far faster than we anticipated. ankfully, I got to spend some time with her at the end — moments I will cherish forever. I was able to take a full week of bereave- ment leave to spend in my hometown of Windsor, Ont. — which made me thankful on two fronts: First, that my employer offered the leave. And second, and perhaps more impor- tantly, that it has a culture that encourages em- ployees to take the time off to spend with loved ones and start the healing process. I know some people who have struggled with the decision of how much time to take off, and were even pressured not to be gone too long. But in the days aer my mom's death, there was no question where I needed to be. Not having to worry about work — and working with a team and in a culture that gave me the luxury of truly putting it out of my head — made the days aer my mom's death easier. I was able to focus on my family rather than worrying about deadlines and reports and who was doing what back at the office. It allowed me to spend time with friends, to reminisce about my mom's remarkable life and everything she accomplished as a teacher, as a scouter and as a mom, aunt, sister and grand- mother. It allowed me to spend time with my niece and nephew, to see my aunt — who flew in from B.C. — and to be there for my sis- ter, who was there so oen for my mom in recent years as her health worsened. Until that happened, I never thought of bereavement leave as an employee engage- ment and retention factor. But I'm firmly in that camp now. Regardless of how well you communicate your benefit of- ferings to employees, they may never fully comprehend the value of the total rewards package. But take solace in this fact: When the day comes that they actually have to dip their toes into the lesser-known benefits pool, they will appreciate them tenfold. I had the privilege of delivering my mom's eulogy at the celebration of her life. My favou- rite line summed up everything about her: "She was a friend to the needy, an enemy to the bully and she lived her life with a kind heart." Aer I returned to work, our CEO took the time to come to my office and express his con- dolences. ese are the moments that build a healthy culture — small gestures, piled on top of each other, that shape and define your orga- nization for better or worse. Our roundtable (see page 6) covered a lot of ground on the issue of a healthy culture. e conclusion? is isn't a buzzword or an HR trend: It's critical and, done right, it's a tremen- dous competitive advantage. aFTer my mom paSSed away, i waS ThaNkFul For bereavemeNT leave. buT eveN more imporTaNT waS The culTure ThaT Said iT waS ok To Take iT.

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