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Leadership Succession: A Top Challenge Among Canadian Organizations
Canadian organizations are facing serious leadership succession challenges. Many senior executives are approaching retirement and Canadian organizations don't have enough people capable of taking over. For every two senior executives, organizations have only one person ready or nearly ready to assume the roles. Canadian organizations need greater investment in leadership development, or this will continue to be a long-term problem.
More human resources insights
Helping Children in Care Succeed
New Conference Board research estimates that a former foster child in Canada will earn, on average, about $326,000 less over his or her lifetime than a child who was not involved in the child welfare system. This gap is due largely to lower levels of high-school graduation. Investing in initiatives to help improve the education and mental health of children in care could help arm these youth with the necessary means to succeed as they transition into adulthood. The long-term social and economic benefits could ultimately outweigh the costs.
Read more about improving support for children in foster care
Business Innovation Summit
Business Innovation Summit 2014 will feature an outstanding lineup of Canadian and international speakers who will talk about how to build innovative organizations for the 21st century. Participants will share best practices and insights on how to implement effective processes to help make it happen. The Summit will also highlight the Conference Board's Centre for Business Innovation research findings, including funding innovation through capital markets, discovering and developing talent with innovation skills, best practices to manage and measure innovation, and the "secret sauce"—corporate culture.
Find out more about the summit
Canada Could Support 10 NHL Teams
There may be only one Canada-based team in this year's Stanley Cup playoffs, but there could be as many as three more Canadian franchises in the National Hockey League (NHL) within the next two decades. The Conference Board of Canada's new book, Power Play: The Business Economics of Pro Sports, assesses the market conditions and other key factors required to support an NHL team. And it finds that both Hamilton and Québec City have the right market conditions, and Toronto could eventually support a second NHL team too.
Find out more about the business economics of pro sports
The Future of Canadian Forestry
Canada has a strong competitive advantage in forestry thanks to its natural environment. But that is not enough for continued success. Many of Canada's current forestry products and services can be easily matched or replicated in other nations, often with the advantage of lower labour and growing costs. The best way to keep building on our natural resource advantage is to find ways to raise the "IQ" of our forests—creating more value from the forests by using more brain and less brawn. That means investing in research to create specialized forest-based products that could be used in emerging sectors, such as bio-fuels, life sciences, or industrial inputs that are produced via 3D digital printing.
Read the commentary originally published in The Globe and Mail
The Conference Board of Canada Turns 60
This year marks The Conference Board of Canada's 60th year in Canada, dating back to when we first opened our doors in Montréal as a division of the American National Industrial Conference Board. We will be commemorating this anniversary in various ways throughout 2014 to recognize and celebrate our many accomplishments as Canada's leading independent, evidence-based think tank. Stay tuned!
CBoC Highlights
Satyamoorthy Kabilan appears on the Business News Network to talk about the anniversary of the Boston Marathon Bombings and the lessons learned.
The Conference Board's director of Leadership and Human Resources Research, Ruth Wright, discusses why measuring HR effectiveness is so important for Canadian ogranizations.
Power Play: The Business Economics of Pro Sports
Co-authored by our chief economist, Power Play looks at the business and economics of professional sports in Canada.
Human Resources Trends and Metrics: HR Measurement Benchmarking, Third Edition
Building Capacity to Manage Change
Provincial Outlook Economic Forecast: Winter 2014
Skills for Business Innovation Success: It's People Who Innovate
Provincial Outlook Long-Term Economic Forecast: 2014
Labour Relations Outlook Webinar: Where Are We Headed in 2020?
What Works for ERM and What Does Not
How to Manage Workplace Romances: Looking for Love in All the Wrong Places
Full webinar calendar
Cyber and Hybrid Threats to Canada and Its Allies
Brent Dowdall
<table class="blogAuthor"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="baImg"><img src="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/bios/retrieveImages.aspx?id=83526" alt="Brent Dowdall"></td> <td> </td> <td class="baText"><strong><a rel="author">Brent Dowdall</a><br> </strong>Senior Manager, Research and Business Development</td> </tr> </tbody> </table> <p>Cyber security threats are now considered a global security concern on par with traditional conventional military threats. Our interconnected world means that cyber threats and hybrid warfare incorporate a complex mix of hostile actors and a wide range of tactics. The rapid evolution of technology, combined with the ability of attackers to quickly adopt new offensive tools and techniques, further exacerbates the threat. Open liberal democracies have an interest in overcoming the risks of cyber attacks—to protect the critical infrastructure we rely on, personal privacy and business continuity, and even democratic institutions themselves.</p> <p>The Government of Canada is developing cyber capabilities to protect the country from virtual threats and to work within defence alliances. Among its key partners should be European countries, working both within the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and with the European Union (EU) itself.</p> <p>With Europe on the front lines of hostile state and non-state actors, the EU has taken a more assertive role in organizing its own cyber security defences and those of its member states. The EU's <a href="https://pesco.europa.eu/">Permanent Structured Cooperation (PESCO)</a> initiative has put cyber security at the top of the priority list for greater collaboration and cooperation among member states.</p> <p>The <a href="https://pesco.europa.eu/project/cyber-rapid-response-teams-and-mutual-assistance-in-cyber-security/">Cyber Rapid Response Teams (CRRT) and Mutual Assistance in Cyber Security</a> project is among the most advanced of the projects under the PESCO initiative. CRRT will allow member states to help each other to ensure higher level of cyber resilience and to collectively respond to cyber incidents. Lithuania leads the EU cooperation project in cyber defence, with eight more EU member states—Estonia, Spain, Croatia, Poland, Netherlands, France, Romania, and Finland—participating in the project (Belgium, Greece, Slovenia, and Germany are observers of the project).</p> <p>The aim of this project is to integrate the expertise among member states in the field of cyber defence. The rapid response teams are able to assist with training, diagnostics, and attribution forensics, and to provide assistance in operations.</p> <p>At the <a href="https://www.eucanada.eu/">5th&nbsp;European Union Security and Defence Symposium</a>, held in Ottawa on March&nbsp;20, 2019, the panel session PESCO in Action: Confronting Hybrid/Cyber Threats will outline the progress being made on the CRRT and how Canada and the EU can work together to strengthen our shared responsibilities in the field of cyber threats. The Conference Board of Canada is a partner in developing the program for the event. Participants include senior EU officials, Canadian governments officials, and experts from both sides of the Atlantic.</p> <p>Canada is far from exempt from the potential consequences of cyber threats. The Canadian Centre for Cyber Security's most recent threat assessment says that 2019 could be a particularly harrowing year for Canadian individuals, businesses, and institutions.<span class="sup"><a href="#ftn1-ref" name="ftn1" id="ftn1">1</a></span></p> <p>Given the high and rising threat of cyber attacks, it is also important to promote the concept of cyber resilience. Unlike cyber security, which is usually very focused on prevention and protection, cyber resilience recognizes that successful cyber attacks may be inevitable. Therefore, cyber resilience promotes the need to ensure organizations can maintain critical functions and quickly return to normal in the wake of an attack. Improving organizational cyber resilience will be the focus of the Conference Board's <a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/conf/cyber-security/deafult.aspx">Cyber Security 2019: Building and Testing Cyber Resilience</a> conference.</p> <p>As governments and businesses alike face new threats, decision-makers and organizational leaders need to stay up to date on the latest cyber-security trends. Ongoing research and dialogue—by sharing the successes, weaknesses, and learnings—is perhaps the most effective defensive weapon we can collectively wield against these threats.</p> <hr> <h3>Related Conference</h3> <p><a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/conf/cyber-security/deafult.aspx">Cyber Security 2019: Building and Testing Cyber Resilience</a><br> May 27, 2019, Toronto</p> <br><br> <p class="footnote" style="padding-top: 1.25em;"><a id="ftn1-ref" name="ftn1-ref" href="#ftn1">1</a>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Cindy Baker, <a href="https://www.itworldcanada.com/article/canada-is-a-prime-target-for-cybersecurity-attacks-in-2019/414201">"Canada Is a Prime Target for Cybersecurity Attacks in 2019."</a> <em>IT World Canada</em>, January&nbsp;16, 2019.</p>
Four Employee Trends Disrupting Traditional Benefits Plans
The Conference Board of Canada
<p>As workplaces become more generationally diverse, the needs of employees have become more complex. More than ever, HR professionals are looking for ways to respond to these varied needs.</p> <p>Employers have their work cut out for them when it comes to remaining cost-effective while providing today's workforce with the most valuable health benefits.</p> <p>Based on the <a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/web/benchmarking/index.html" title="" class="" target="">2019 Benefits Benchmarking</a> report, here are the <strong>top four employee trends disrupting traditional benefits plans:</strong></p> <h2>Cannabis in the Workplace</h2> <p>Medical cannabis has been legal in Canada since 2001, and the number of authorized users has grown dramatically. By mid-2018, 342,000 Canadians were registered to use legally.</p> <p>Due to the recent legalization of recreational cannabis, medical cannabis is expected to be more common. Employees are increasingly turning to their employers with questions about coverage. Yet, only a handful of the Canadian organizations we surveyed offer coverage for medical cannabis.</p> <p>Employers should consider creating strategies that are mindful of this new frontier.</p> <h2>Aging Workforce </h2> <p>The needs of Canadian employees have become increasingly complex as Canada's largest generation continues to work past the typical retirement age. This has put pressure on the health care system. Employers find themselves challenged to address the needs of this generation head-on.</p> <p>Organizations are aware of this trend, and they are looking for technology to better manage health care needs.</p> <h2>Increase Use of Biologic Drugs </h2> <p>There has been an increase in the use of biologic drugs and a greater focus on paramedical services. This has made it difficult for organizations to decide where to invest resources.</p> <p>Given this growing trend, having a drug cost management strategy is becoming increasingly important for the long-term sustainability of benefits plans.</p> <h2>Virtual Health Care and Wellness </h2> <p>Organizations are seeking more cost-effective, creative, and proactive ways to maintain and improve employee health. Canadian organizations are increasingly turning to new technologies that focus on prevention, such as virtual wellness technologies to manage health and fitness and pharmacogenetic testing.</p> <p>Different industries align their benefits strategies with virtual wellness technologies in varying ways. Their focuses may include physical wellness, improving financial wellness, reducing stress, absenteeism, or productivity.</p> <p><strong>Get ahead of these disruptors by leveraging data from 217 Canadian organizations in the 2019 Benefits Benchmarking report.</strong> <a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/web/benchmarking/index.html" title="" class="" target="">Read on</a>.</p>
Five Trends That Will Change the Way Your Company Structures Benefits
<p>Employee expectations are changing, and nowhere is this more evident than in benefit offerings. </p> <p> Canadian employers are being challenged to appeal to a multi-generational workforce. Varied employee needs have given rise to an evolved style of benefit offerings: one that is flexible, but keeps an eye on cost. </p> <p> How can you stay ahead of the curve? We surveyed 217 organizations for our new <a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/web/benchmarking/index.html">Benefits Benchmarking&nbsp;2019</a> report, collecting data that reflect the experiences of 1.2&nbsp;million employees. </p> <p><strong>Here are five trends in employee benefits that will give your organization an edge:</strong></p> <h2>More Flexible Benefits</h2> <p>Flexibility is the name of the game in 2019. Increasingly, employers are managing costs by letting employees decide what supports are best for them and their families. In our survey, we found that a record-breaking <strong>two-thirds of Canadian employers are now offering more innovative health care spending accounts (HCSAs) to employees at all levels</strong>.</p> <h2>Wellness Apps Supporting Employee Well-Being</h2> <p>Wellness apps are proving to be a win-win. Employees who use these apps are reaping the rewards of being proactive about their physical and mental health. Meanwhile, employers benefit from happier, healthier employees.</p> <h2>Medical Marijuana Offered as an Employee Benefit</h2> <p>The green wave has arrived in Canada. It's no surprise that medical cannabis is starting to find its way into employee benefit offerings. While only 6&nbsp;per cent of organizations currently cover medical cannabis, <strong>close to half (48&nbsp;per cent) of respondents report they are considering doing so in the future</strong>.</p> <h2>Outsourcing Benefits Administration</h2> <p>With the emergence of new HR technologies, outsourcing your benefits administration can significantly impact your bottom line while meeting employees' wellness needs.</p> <h2>Offering Mental Health Support to Employees</h2> <p>Conversations around mental health in the workplace have hit critical mass, bolstered by the gigantic #BellLetsTalk movement. Approximately two-thirds of all responding organizations report enhancing or introducing strategies to support employees' mental health and wellness. </p> <p><strong>How does your organization stack up? Optimize your employee benefits with data from 217&nbsp;organizations. </strong><a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/web/benchmarking/index.html"><strong>Get the Benefits Benchmarking 2019 report.</strong></a></p> <p><a href="https://www.conferenceboard.ca/web/benchmarking/index.html"><img src="/images/default-source/cboc-images-public/22685_benefits_552x147_final.jpg?sfvrsn=b9274e13_0" data-displaymode="Original" alt="Benefits_552x147" title="Benefits_552x147"></a></p>
Future of Work Summit 2014: Developing People and Transforming Organizations for the 21st Century
May 12–13 │ Toronto
Canadian Immigration Conference 2014: Enhancing Canada's Immigration System—from Invitation to Integration
May 14 │ Toronto
New Thinking in Managing Employee Performance
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