The field of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) is not regulated in Canada. There is no official body that governs the conduct of ADR professionals.
However, the ADR Institute of Ontario (ADRIO) plays a key role in setting educational and ethical standards for mediators and arbitrators throughout the province. Membership is voluntary, but comes with a number of benefits.
If you’re a manager or administrator in an area like health care, law enforcement, human resources, or education, your team members are likely interacting with mentally ill individuals every day—even if they don’t always realize it.
Unfortunately, many people don’t know the signs of mental illness and aren’t sure how to respond when they encounter someone struggling with it.
Mental health training in the workplace teaches employees to recognize and understand common mental health conditions. This can be valuable for anyone, but it’s especially important for community-serving employees who frequently deal with individuals with mental health challenges in the course of their work. That includes healthcare providers, teachers, police officers, librarians, and HR professionals.
Keep reading to learn more about the importance of mental health training in the workplace and how it can benefit your team.
Many people aspire to become managers. They want the added challenge, authority, and salary that comes with moving from team member to team leader. They work hard, put in the time, and get that promotion.
Photo: Janet Guaca, online project management expert and educator
Even as pandemic restrictions ease, many organizations are sticking with remote or hybrid working arrangements. A recent Statistics Canada surveyfound that 25 per cent of Canadian adults still work from home at least part of the time.
We developed the Online Project Management certificate to help team leads and managers thrive in this reality.
This week, we interviewed the instructor, Janet Guaca, a virtual project management expert with over 20 years of experience in the field.
She walks us through some key challenges project managers are facing right now, and how this course can help.
Are you eager to take on a new challenge in your human resources career? Ironically, HR professionals spend much of their time helping employees with their career development, but they often neglect to devote the same care and attention to their own advancement.
The good news is that there are concrete steps you can take to improve your HR skills, impress your boss, and get where you want to go.
Read on for eight practical tips on how to advance your HR career.
Over the last few years, we've seen a tremendous increase in corporate training programs in diversity and inclusion. Leaders are finally recognizing the critical importance of fostering a genuinely inclusive workplace culture.
The problem is, management often lacks the skillset and knowledge needed to recruit, nurture, and retain a diverse workforce.
Pamela Perez has built a career around helping companies navigate this challenging process. She has a proven track record in human resources, with a specialization in diversity and inclusion training, coaching, and consulting.
And now, Pamela has signed on to teach the new Diversity and Inclusion certificate at Kompass Professional Development.
We interviewed her this week to learn more about her background and what skills she'll be teaching in class. Read on for the highlights.
Updated April 2023
Considering a career in mediation? Your first priority is to understand the types of mediation certification available in Canada, at both the regional and national levels.
It can get a bit confusing because technically, mediation is not a regulated profession in Canada. There is no legally mandated training or licensing process for mediators.
However, Canada does have a powerful organization that sets clear standards and guidelines for mediator training and professional practice. This organization is called the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Canada (ADRIC). It encourages mediators and arbitrators to self-regulate by offering a variety of designations that are highly respected across the country.
It comes down to this: if you want to be recognized as a competent mediator, you'll need to earn a designation from the ADR Institute.
So where do you begin? What rules and steps must you follow to become a certified mediator?
In this post, we break down the process from start to finish. Here's what you need to know.
Updated January 2023
When people spend a significant amount of time together, conflicts are sure to arise. And when you add the pressures and stresses of the workplace, disputes become not only inevitable, but costly.
A global study from 2008 found that on average, employees spend roughly 2.1 hours each week dealing with conflicts at work. That equates to approximately one day each month in lost productivity.
The study also found that letting such disputes go unaddressed can lead to personal attacks, physical sicknesses, and project failures.
That's why workplace conflict resolution is a key area for mediation. A growing number of business leaders are using mediation to resolve corporate conflicts and restore harmony at the office.
Whether you’re an aspiring mediator, HR professional, or business manager, there are proven mediation techniques you can use to defuse conflicts and build a healthier work environment.
Start by following these seven key steps.
Updated December 2022
The field of human resources encompasses some of the most important functions in today’s businesses: attracting and retaining talent, fostering employee development, and resolving internal conflicts.
Increasingly, it also includes collaborating with senior managers to set corporate policy and ensure workforces are set up to align with business goals.
And as companies look to navigate the operational and labour market changes wrought by the pandemic, the need for skilled HR professionals is growing.
So which specific roles are on the rise? What HR careers are seeing the most rapid growth across Canada?
Keep reading to explore five of the top options.
Photo: Andy Livingston, CEO of Dexterity Consulting and arbitration instructor at Kompass
Over the last few years there's been a considerable uptick in demand for alternative dispute resolution services like arbitration and mediation.
The pandemic has only accelerated this trend as people look to settle their conflicts outside of court.
And lawyers aren't the only ones pursuing careers in ADR.
People from diverse professional backgrounds are taking mediation and arbitration training to better handle workplace disputes - or set up private ADR practices.
This week we spoke with Andy Livingston, a social sciences graduate turned certified ADR professional, who runs a private practice and teaches arbitration training at Kompass.
Andy walks us through the online arbitration certificate and explains different pathways to becoming an arbitrator in Canada.
Think you might be interested in this course? Read on for an inside look.
