Speakers
The schedule for the 2022 Contact Conference is in the works. Scroll below to see our featured keynotes and panelists, and check back soon to see who will be added to our list of great speakers!
The schedule for the 2022 Contact Conference is in the works. Scroll below to see our featured keynotes and panelists, and check back soon to see who will be added to our list of great speakers!
An educator with 16 years of classroom experience and a Master’s degree in Curriculum Studies, Aaron is currently a Program Coordinator with the SIEC. Aaron works with the SIEC team on programs such as Spotlight on Careers, and he works closely on the development of SaskMoney—a financial literacy program and website to help educators integrate financial literacy seamlessly into their instruction. Career education and financial literacy programming are perfect vehicles for Aaron’s interest in leading practical professional development and maximizing student engagement and motivation.
Norman Amundson is a professor emeritus from the University of British Columbia and is a developer of “Active Engagement” as well as a co-developer of “Hope-Action Theory and Practice”. He is now working with his daughter, Andrea Fruhling, and they have formed a new company, Doubleknot Works. This new work integrates coaching and counselling and includes training, presentation, and workshops. He has worked in the career development field for over 40 years and has published many books and articles. In his work he emphasizes the importance of creativity, imagination, storytelling, dynamic action, metaphors and hope. Dr. Amundson has presented his work at many national and international conferences in more than 30 countries. He holds an honorary doctorate from the University of Umea, in Sweden and has been recognized by many national and international professional associations for his leadership and contributions in the career development field. His workshops and presentations are practical, engaging and interactive.
Thomas Benjoe is the President & CEO for FHQ Developments and is from the Muscowpetung First Nation. His background includes Indigenous Business, Governance and Economic Development as well as Commercial Banking.
Thomas is a founding Board of Director’s member for FHQ Developments and was named President & CEO in 2016. FHQ Developments will lead Indigenous Investments, Partnerships and Economic Development that creates the greatest economic impact where they do business while utilizing Indigenous knowledge, thought and value systems to create a better economic future for the Nations and Citizens of the File Hill’s Qu’Appelle Tribal Council.
Thomas currently serves on the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce as 1st Vice Chair, Innovation Saskatchewan, First Nations University of Canada Spring Celebration Powwow Committee (Co-Chair), Member of Leaders Council at the Hill & Levene Schools of Business, University of Regina, and the Council for Entrepreneurship Growth (Economic Development Regina/Audacity YQR).
Thomas was the 2019/20 United Way “Community Champion”, the recipient of the Crowning Achievement Young Alumni Award from the University of Regina (2017), recognized by CBC’s “Future 40″(2013), the Red Cross’ “Young Humanitarian of the Year”(2009), and a “Top Performer” Convention Winner which recognizes the top 1% of RBC employees (2015).
Thomas was also recognized as a Top 10 Most Influential Economic Developers by Treaty 4 News, a feature that profiles business leaders, job creators and entrepreneurs who have made a valuable contribution to improving the lives of Indigenous people through business and have helped keep Saskatchewan’s economy vibrant and strong.
Working in the not for profit and charitable sector in community development has been a passion of Ashley’s from a very young age, and is the sector she has spent majority of her career in, with a special focus on workforce development. As Executive Director at Work Prep her current focus is driving innovation, greater collaboration across the sector, province and country and taking a 21st century approach to positively disrupt the sector for the betterment of the entire community.
Tony Botelho is the Director of SFU Career & Volunteer Services, an office that was recognized as the Career Development Organization of the Year by the BC Career Development Association in 2018. He was awarded the Rob Shea Research Award by the Canadian Association of Career Educators and Employers (2014) for his research on the role of career education in the contemporary university environment and was the 2019 recipient of the prestigious Stu Conger Award for Leadership by the Canadian Career Development Foundation. Of particular pride, his second grade teacher once said he was “a pleasure to have in the class”.
Jeanny is an active member of the community, beauty pageant mentor, television host, and the reigning Mrs. Canada Worldwide who was awarded Entrepreneur of the Year in an International pageant for her work geared towards empowering women through livelihood and youth through education. She is the first Filipino woman to be named as CBC Saskatchewan’s Future 40 and the only Filipino who won the YWCA Entrepreneur of the Year Award in 37 years.
Jeanny is the owner and creative director of the first Filipino Indigenous Fashion brand in Western Canada, Viahera, as well as few other businesses. Part of her companies’ profit is given back to students in third world countries to finish their education and learn English. As of today, she has helped almost 200 girls and plans to grow this number in the next year.
During her spare time, she serves on the Filipino Canadian Association board and Saskatchewan Human Rights Commission Advisory Council.
Carverhill Counselling & Consulting
Dr. Phil Carverhill is a registered Doctoral Psychologist with an independent counselling practice in Saskatoon. He is immediate Past-Chair of the International Work Group on Death, Dying and Bereavement and a founder of Prairie Hospice, where he also co-developed the volunteer training program. Phil is passionate about advocating for and addressing the needs of those at end-of-life and the bereaved. He facilitates grief support groups, provides individual/couples/family counselling, consults to organizations and teaches at the Universities of Saskatchewan and Alberta. Phil’s practice also includes career, vocational, and psychological assessment and counselling.
Herky’s purpose is to “create possibilities for individuals and organizations to become extraordinary.” He does this through his work as a; Trainer, Speaker, Facilitator, Instructor, Author and Musician.
Herky is a Certified Career Development Professional, and has been training career practitioners for over 15 years. He has created a number of career development workshops and Webinars, such as; “Using Music as a Career Development Tool,” “The Art of Career Development,” “The Rules of Engagement,” and “Non-Traditional Assessment Tools That Rock!” and has presented on these both nationally and internationally.
Herky will push your buttons and challenge you to take risks, so if you’re happy with the status-quo, don’t come to one of his sessions.
Chief Cadmus Delorme, a Cree and Saulteaux, is a citizen and currently Chief of the Cowessess First Nation. Mr. Delorme is finalizing his Institute of Corporate Director designation, received a Master of Public Administration from the Johnson-Shoyama Graduate School of Public Policy and a Bachelor of Business Administration along with a Certificate in Hospitality, Tourism and Gaming Entertainment Management from the First Nations University of Canada (FNUniv). While a student, Mr. Delorme served in several capacities within the student association, including vice-president and president, and also served as a student ambassador. In 2012, he was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for his student leadership and the hospitality he showed to Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, Duchess of Cornwall, when they visited FNUniv in 2012. Mr. Delorme has also been named one of CBC Saskatchewan’s Future 40, which celebrates the province’s new generation of leaders, builders and change-makers under the age of 40. Chief Delorme worked as the Student Recruitment Officer for the First Nations University of Canada from 2013 to 2016 when he was elected as Chief.In 2020 Chief Delorme received a designation from the Institute of Corporate Directors. He lives with his wife Kimberly, brother-in-law, daughter and son on Cowessess First Nation. Chief Delorme was re-elected as Chief of the Cowessess First Nation in April 2019.
Christopher Duff is an entrepreneur, community builder and youth advocate, who is fiercely committed to leaving this world a little better than he found it. He has over a decade of experience in both business and youth development.
Currently, Chris is the Director of Engagement at the Canadian Council for Youth Prosperity, he works to improve policies and system infrastructure in the youth workforce development ecosystem to help young people thrive in the labour market. He is also the founder of a youth development organization called Inspired Initiatives where he is on a mission to help young people develop the skills, insights and competencies they need to thrive in their future.
Chris has designed and implemented social-impact projects in several countries and has provided workshops and programs to tens of thousands of young people globally.
He is passionate about unlocking potential in people and helping them to reach a place where they are living and working in purpose.
He currently resides in Toronto, Canada with his beautiful wife.
Andrea Fruhling is a Certified Organizational Coach (UBC), founder of Doubleknot Works, executive director of the Hope-Action Group, and mentor coach/instructor for the Organizational Coaching program at the University of British Columbia. In addition to a private coaching practice, Andrea develops and delivers blended learning courses for career practitioners and organizations all over the world, helping them find more creatively impactful ways to work with clients. Andrea’s work is practical and engaging with a focus on creativity, active, strengths-based learning, team engagement, and hope.
Recently, Andrea developed and co-facilitated “Certification in Hope-Action Theory and Practice”, a course for international career influencers in Singapore. She has developed several asynchronous online courses in partnership with Dr. Norm Amundson and the Canadian Career Development Foundation, and has delivered keynote presentations, workshops, and webinars for national and international career development conferences and associations.In response to the Covid-19 unemployment crisis, Andrea joined an elite panel of career development professionals to provide content for Hope Central, a holistic system developed by Kuder, providing resources for displaced workers and the workforce development professionals supporting them.
Gaudry Consulting Inc.
Koralie has been a program and project consultant for mental wellness, and has worked with various organizations during her 20+ year career in Mental Health. As a Psychological Health Consultant and Speaker, her work on wellness related strategy, organization and policy change, always remains grounded in the knowledge and connection to those on the front line. She values those living through the experience as the true experts, and is grateful for the teachings offered. Koralie is internationally certified in Convergent Facilitation, a practitioner of mental wellness, and a trainer of mental health awareness workshops. In strategy facilitation, Koralie utilizes her unique wholistic perspectives, clinical, community and leadership experience. Maintaining active membership with RPNAS, Koralie devotes her time to her three daughters, husband, farm life, and consulting business. She is a changemaker and creates opportunities for authentic community collaboration through her active community presence on wellness related boards, and steering committees. As a woman with core values of connection and community, she has spent her career advocating for awareness, and inclusion of mental wellness consideration across multi sectors. Koralie facilitates groups to have a safe space to have the tough conversations required lead to breakthroughs and greater collective impact. Braving the “New World”, Koralie has recently expanded her capacity for knowledge exchange, and her community to include membership in International Association on Workplace Bullying and Harassment, the PHRI and other national and global associations.
Katrina German is an award-winning entrepreneur specializing in communications, technology and digital strategy. She works with organizations around North America to make good ideas louder. A seasoned executive, leader and strategist, she has reached millions of people through digital storytelling and online media. Katrina is in the CBC Future 40 Under 40, has won the YWCA Women of Distinction Award for Entrepreneurship, Startup Canada Prairie Award for Innovation, represented Canada at the G20 YEA Summit in Berlin and won the prestigious International Women in Tech award for “Women in Communications”. When she launched her book, “Action Tracking: Master your Digital Marketing Strategy in Under 30 Days” she appeared as a tech expert on TV shows around Canada including “The Social”. Katrina is a strong believer in measured results, radical creativity and using technology to improve workflow.
Bonnie Grove is the Choices Coordinator at SaskAbilities, Partners in Employment. She is a best-selling author of fiction and non-fiction, including the book, Your Best You: Discovering and Developing Your Strengths. Her years of experience in the not-for-profit sector, combined with her background in counselling and psychology, inform every aspect of her approach to the helping profession. She has developed strength-based programming for parents, children, and older adults. When she’s not working or writing, Bonnie likes to daydream, read, and hang out with her husband and two teenage children. Her YouTube channel, A Message From Mom encourages teens and young adults with supportive, positive messages and advice based on viewer requests. She lives in Saskatoon with her husband and two young adult children.
Dr. Catherine Hajnal works at the intersection of trauma, loss, and grief connecting to both the hurts and the transformative growth potential that can be found there. She is committed to creating spaces that invite a deeper understanding of the human condition, where individuals are met with curiosity, compassion, safety, and belonging.
Michelle Hardy has been a Program Coordinator with the Saskatoon Industry Education Council for the past three years. With a Bachelor of Education and a Master’s in Educational Administration, Michelle was a secondary school home economics teacher for ten years before transitioning to her role with the SIEC. Michelle facilitates specialized programming such as Spotlight on Careers and Connected: Young Women Exploring Careers, which provide experiential learning opportunities for youth as they explore pathways to their future. Michelle loves seeing students grow as they develop an understanding of their potential and discover their future path.
Gordon Heidel spent 30 years in education working as a PAA teacher, Work Study coordinator, Learning Leader, Consultant, PAA Coordinator at the Ministry of Education and most recently Executive Director of the Regina District Industry Education Council. He was Vice Chair of Skills Canada Saskatchewan for 15 years and also served on the Saskatchewan Apprenticeship Commission Board of Directors. He is currently Past President of the Saskatchewan Career and Work Education Association and is passionate about connecting students with business and industry.
Jake Hirsch-Allen works with North America’s governments, workforce development organizations, colleges and universities, to leverage LinkedIn’s Learning Solutions and Economic Graph data to close skills gaps. Jake is passionate about supporting disadvantaged groups such as newcomers and refugees, indigenous populations, the formerly incarcerated and people with disabilities.
Jake speaks regularly on the changing nature or future of work and learning. Jake is a Director on the Boards of the Canadian Council for Youth Prosperity, Information and Communications Technology Council, and the Canadian Club. He is on the Advisory Boards of the Hot Docs Cinema and Code for Canada and an Executive at the International Council on Badges and Credentials. Jake founded Lighthouse Labs, Canada’s foremost software development bootcamp and Hacking Health. A former intellectual property and international criminal lawyer, Jake was also Chair of the Technology Committee of the Global Education Platform, taught Global Health at McMaster University and clerked at the Supreme Court of Israel.
Michael has been involved in the career development field as a counsellor, practitioner, trainer, and counsellor educator since the early 1990s. He is a Registered Psychologist, counsellor, and associate professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary, Alberta, where he provides counselling addressing personal, educational, and career-related concerns. Michael continues to teach graduate courses and facilitate practitioner workshops focused on counselling skills and intervention strategies. His areas of interest and exploration include counsellor training, career intervention, stress and coping, and counselling outcomes and evaluation. He is particularly interested in the various connections between career development, mental health, mental illness, and wellbeing.
Ministry of Immigration & Career Training, Government of Saskatchewan
Tanveer Islam is the Acting Director in the Saskatchewan Ministry of Immigration and Career Training’s Labour Market Intelligence unit. He has served as the senior economist in the unit for several years. Tanveer’s professional experience spans a variety of sectors, including labour market policy and data analytics in government, financial advising in the banking sector, academic research in economics at the University of Saskatchewan, and consulting and project management in the non-profit sector. Tanveer has led stakeholder teams globally (France, Belgium, Thailand and Vietnam) to foster business and export linkages.
College of Education, University of Winnipeg
Marc Kuly is an Assistant Professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Winnipeg where he coordinates the Service Learning program. Marc worked for fifteen years in Winnipeg public schools as a teacher, consultant, and mentor. His use of storytelling to build cross cultural understanding earned him the 2008 Manitoba Foundation for the Arts Roberta Christianson Award and the YM/YWCA Youth Peacemaker Award – a distinction he shared with his students. Marc has offered keynotes and workshops for schools across Canada and his research has been included in books and conferences across North America. Currently a PhD Candidate at the University of Manitoba’s Mauro Centre for Peace and Conflict Studies, Marc is researching the stories inner city youth tell about their time in school.
The City of Calgary, Resilient Calgary
Jeny Mathews-Thusoo has worked in systems change and public policy for over 19 years with a vision that the future of cities belongs to the those who believe in the power of dreams. Currently at The City of Calgary, she is the Program Lead of Inclusive Futures with Resilient Calgary. Her focus is on how governments and other institutions can better trust Calgary’s equity-seeking communities so that we can effectively respond to the stresses and shocks of the 21st century. She also is an instructor with the University of Calgary, Faculty of Social Work teaching social policy and social justice.
University of Saskatchewan
It was only a few years ago that Cole was working as an Electrical Superintendent in the Oil, Gas and Mining industry. In fact, he worked in all manner of trades and in fields from industrial to residential and everything between. Although Cole was on the standard path that most take, or we are told is the proper path, he found himself lacking something. Inside he was not happy with himself. When the Oil industry took a major downturn, he used this as a “shining” moment, and decided to explore other areas of life.
When Cole was younger, before becoming bogged down with adulting, he spent most of his time exploring the beautiful places, riding bikes and snowboards and worrying about the simple things that made him happy. Cole decided this needed to become a part of his life again. It was not long after getting back into the things he loved that Cole realized his life became more complete. He needed to find a way to make this a more permanent part of his life.
Thanks to our new Social Media driven world and a work ethic gained from working in the trades for the majority of his life, Cole was given an opportunity most dream of. He picked up his cameras and became a Creative in the adventure sports world. This has led to a career traveling around the planet working with some of the best athletes and businesses. Crazy what some dreams and a little extra motivation can lead to.
Dr. Deirdre Pickerell, CPHR, GCDF-I, Dean of Student Success at Yorkville University/Toronto Film School and Vice-President, Life Strategies Ltd. has been honoured with top awards in career development and human resources management. She is co-author of the career engagement model and has dedicated her career to helping individuals create opportunities to be fully engaged across work/life roles. With Roberta Borgen, she is currently working on a book to be published by Cognella later this year: Optimizing Career Engagement: A Guide for Enhancing Careers and Other Life Roles.
Over the past 10 years Daniel has worked in Canada’s Oil and Gas sector in various roles including Project Management and Recruitment. As the Virtual Reality Marketer at RWPC he works with individuals from various backgrounds including school-leavers to individuals looking for a career change utilizing Virtual Reality to assess core competencies and safely explore a variety of rewarding careers available here in Saskatchewan.
Dave is president of the Life-Role Development Group Ltd. and has been an avid champion of career development since 1988. He has received provincial and national awards in career development and is widely recognized in Canada as a thought leader in the field. His career development expertise afforded him the privilege of teaching thousands of practitioners, developing dozens of courses, delivering hundreds of talks, conducting a number of research studies, and developing a host of career development resources for practitioners and the public. Dave holds a PhD in Educational Psychology from the University of Alberta.
RBC
Melanie joined RBC Royal Bank in 1998 and has proudly spent her 22-year career with RBC in a variety of roles focused on leading multiple RBC advisor teams and working with RBC personal and business clients to successfully achieve their financial goals.
In her current role in RBC Recruitment, Melanie brings her passion for the employee experience, the client experience and the search for great talent to life across the three beautiful provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Ontario. As a co-chair for one of the RBC employee resource groups, Melanie believes in diversity and inclusion as a core value and as way to cultivate top talent among newcomers as they navigate their settlement journey.
Melanie is a two time convention recipient and a Leo Award recipient, the highest honour awarded to RBC employees.
Melanie was born and raised in Southwestern Ontario and resides in LaSalle, Ontario with her two boys, Jacob and Andrew.
Gary is the Credit Counselling Society’s Financial Educator for Ottawa. He has over 15 years of experience in the financial industry, as well as teaching high school in Montreal. Gary strives on practicing what he teaches. Gary is also fluently bilingual in English and French. Gary is a Certified Educator in Personal Finance.
Bannock Express, Saskatoon
Since 2016, Bannock Chef Rachel Smith has been busy serving Saskatoon her traditional style bannock and menu filled with local ingredients.
Bannock Express is in high demand catering over 950 times for local schools, business’s and events and has expanded to open a new commercial location in the Riversdale neighbourhood of Saskatoon.
Not only does Bannock Express serve delicious comfort food they also give back to the community through their donation wall. Where people in need can get a warm meal once a week! The meals are donated by Bannock Express customers and local businesses.
Its been an amazing 2019 with Rachel was one of twelve Chefs featured in Food Bloggers of Canada Tastemakers Series. In addition, she had the opportunity to shoot a live cooking video with celebrity Chef Dennis the Prescott and Food Bloggers of Canada team.
In June 2019 Bannock Express is chosen recipient of Seeds for Dreams business pitch competition. Being a Seeds for Dreams alumni has been a dream come true for Chef Rachel.
In addition, this past year Bannock Express was voted 2nd best caterer in Saskatoon by Planet S Magazines “Best Food Competition, 2019.” An annual vote held yearly and voted by Saskatoon resident.
2020 was the biggest year for Bannock Express, opening there newest location during the pandemic and gaining 80% in revenue increase.
Rachel is not shy to admit her bannock is made from 4 ingredients flour, oil, water and lots of love.
Maureen Souply is the Project Manager for Guided Pathways and a consultant with AWES. She has worked in adult education for over 15 years in a variety of areas including essential skills, language learning, and international educational development.
Jim Stanford is Economist and Director of the Centre for Future Work. He divides his time between Vancouver, B.C., and Sydney, Australia.
Jim is one of Canada’s best-known economists. He served for over 20 years as Economist and Director of Policy with Unifor, Canada’s largest private-sector trade union (formerly the Canadian Auto Workers). He is quoted frequently in the print and broadcast media, and writes a regular column for the Toronto Star. He is also the Harold Innis Industry Professor in Economics at McMaster University in Hamilton, Canada, and an Honorary Professor in the Department of Political Economy at the University of Sydney.
Jim received his Ph.D. in Economics from the New School for Social Research in New York. He also holds an M.Phil. in Economics from Cambridge University, and a B.A. (Hons.) in Economics from the University of Calgary.
Jim is the author of Economics for Everyone: A Short Guide to the Economics of Capitalism (second edition published by Pluto Books in 2015), which has been published in six languages. Stanford has written, edited or co-edited six other books, and dozens of articles and reports in both peer-reviewed and popular outlets.
He has provided research and advice through numerous federal and provincial government panels and inquiries on economic policy, innovation, jobs, and social policy. Jim is recognized for his ability to communicate economic concepts in an accessible and humorous manner.
RBC
Erin has been with RBC for over 20 years and has held many different roles across several business lines and functions. Currently, she leads the Talent Acquisition and Learning Delivery teams focused on placing the right talent faster; driving an exceptional candidate and hiring manager experience; and delivering an integrated and robust onboarding program.
The first half of her career was spent in the business including Operations, Sales, and Head Office. The latter half of her career has been in Human Resources supporting our biggest asset, our people. This includes as an HR Business Partner for Technology & Operations and Personal & Commercial Banking; as Director, Talent Management; and prior to her current role as Senior HR Director, for Insurance.
She is passionate about advancing talent management, strengthening diversity and inclusion in the workplace and increasing the impact of HR actions that support the delivery of key business objectives.
In her spare time, Erin volunteers within her community including as a Board Director for Visions of Science, an organization that builds awareness in underprivileged communities about the importance of STEM related education.
Megan has been with the Saskatoon Industry Education Council for seven years in the role of Program Coordinator. Megan facilitates programs including the Skills Bootcamp program, Safety @ Work and the Summer Youth Internship Program. With a background in Youth Care, she has worked with Saskatoon and area youth for over ten years in various Community-Based Organizations and Government. Her focus is on skill development and career exploration in addition to connecting and creating meaningful opportunities for Saskatchewan’s future workforce.
Kendra Weenie is an author, inspirational speaker, workshop facilitator and a CBC Future 40 Recipient. She is a Cree woman from Sweetgrass First Nation. Kendra grew up single-parented, on welfare, with minimal opportunity for success. It wasn’t until she became involved in sports, that she developed confidence, work ethic, and a sense of identity. Sports have always been a part of Kendra’s life, from being a college volleyball player, coach, and provincial program coordinator. Sports and culture helped to keep her motivated to complete her Education degree, and heal from past trauma. Kendra is a survivor of domestic violence. Her recent memoir Surviving Domestic Violence was shortlisted for a Saskatchewan book award in 2020. Kendra continues to share her story in hopes of encouraging other women to heal and promotes self-care through youth and women’s workshops. Over the past year, she has co-founded two non-profits. Crystal’s Gift is based out of Saskatoon and is a program designed to assist single mothers in need of gently used furniture items. IndigiFund is a non-profit aimed at empowering Indigenous youth in the areas of sport, education, and culture. Last year, Kendra created a bursary opportunity for single mothers in high school or university. In 2020, she gave out 5 bursaries to single mothers and hopes that eventually she’ll be able to offer scholarships. Although she has her own challenges as a single mother, she believes that true success comes from our ability to help others in need.
Part of the CBO community for 11 years at Work Prep
After working in a variety of sectors, Kathy returned to the CBO community and for the past 11 years has found her home at Work Prep. A passion for growth, an innate curiosity and a high performance team support Work Prep’s innovation and purposeful action to meet the challenges of the changing world of work. Kathy looks forward to learning from and collaborating with like minded organizations across the province and country.
