Canadian HR Reporter

Cheryl Fullerton, CHRE EVP People and Communications, Corus Entertainment Managing the dual portfolio of People and Communications at a bustling media company means Cheryl Fullerton has to stay at the top of her game. "I've been (at Corus) just under two years, and it's been an extremely exciting couple of years. We underwent a large acquisition shortly after I joined the com- pany," she said. "For an HR leader, it's been like a kid in a candy shop. It's been a chance to really look at what makes sense, what we're trying to achieve and forget how everybody else does it and really think about what's right for us right now." Earning the CHRE designation has provided a strong grounding for large strategic projects like the acquisition. "It's about the breadth of experience that's been built up over a career. And it's really those experiences that have helped me be able to have an impact here at Corus," she said. "I do think that HR designations are very important." HR professionals are experts about people, and why people do what they do – but more importantly, they are experts in how to best organize and motivate and reward and lead people to bring out the best in them, says Fullerton. And that requires a high baseline of expertise and skill. "We can only be successful as an organization if every single person in the organization is successful. So how do we, as a leadership team, live towards that? How do we achieve that strategic objective from a people and culture perspective?" Norm Sabapathy, CHRE EVP People, Cadillac Fairview For Norm Sabapathy, leading HR for a multinational real estate firm means a lot of time up in the air. But even so, there are elements of his work that he enjoys a lot more than jet-setting. "I love many things about my job. I love the fact that I can figure out how to marry together people strategy and business strategy to make a real difference in a business," he said. "I love getting to work with other leaders in other functions that inspire me to be a better leader and a better business person. And I love working with an HR team that's passionate about making a difference in the business and seeing that come to life in the organization." The Cadillac Fairview Corporation is one of North America's largest commercial real estate companies. They have a $30-billion portfolio across countries like Canada, the U.S., Brazil and Colombia – which means Sabapathy needs a strong strategic component to his work in HR. "I lead an HR team, and they are people experts focused on maximizing the effectiveness of people in our business to drive results," he said. "HR is involved right from the beginning in terms of developing and setting the strategy for the company, along with all of the other functions. Then, the unique value that we provide is we create a people strategy and a people plan to enable those business goals across all the different functions." Holding the CHRE designation has helped him reach this point in his career, as it's a respected designation based on a globally recognized body of knowledge, he says. "It signifies that I have a higher level of skill and responsibilities that I've picked up over the years, and some executive-level competencies," Sabapathy said. "I think the CHRO role, and HR roles in general, are becoming increasingly demanding – and it's important that HR as a profession not only keep up, but step up to the increasingly complex, demanding world that they're operating in. And being part of a regulatory body like HRPA is increasingly and extremely important to that end." Susan O'Dowd, CHRE VP Human Resources, The Hospital for Sick Children Working at one of the top pediatric hospitals in the world gives Susan O'Dowd the opportunity to work with people at all levels who care deeply about the children, patients and families that they serve. "I certainly play an important strategic role in HR – but I'm working with people who are saving lives every day," she said. HR plays a particularly strategic role at Sick Kids, because the talent they employ is highly specialized and delivers incredible value. "We have a strategic map, and the people quadrant is a very important element of [that]," she said. "In addition to that, we drive strategic initiatives... such as quality, infrastructure, innovation and other parts of the institution's mandate." It's already apparent that having an HR designation leads to bigger paycheques and faster promotions. There's more than a $10K jump in median pay for HRPA-certified versus non HRPA- certified HR professionals, according to 2017 Payscale research. But at the most senior, strategic levels, an HR designation can make a critical impact on business results. The highest-tiered designation, the Certified Human Resources Executive (CHRE), is designed to equip HR executives with the rarified, tactical skills to deliver on C-suite business objectives. Here's what the top HR executives at four Canadian organizations have to say. Designated for Excellence HR is taking on an increasingly strategic role within organizations – and designations are a key factor for success By Liz Bernier

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