Opening Keynote Speaker
Katie Bennett
Website: http://www.dbdcoaching.com/
Katie's company is Double black Diamond Coaching. To understand the origin of the name, you need to know that Katie is an avid skier and in fact celebrated her 40th birthday by going heli-skiing - a dream she’d had for many years. It is from her passion for this sport that the name originates. The double black diamond symbol is marked on runs that are for experts only, meaning you have to be gutsy and committed to conquer this terrain. This metaphor powerfully translates into coaching. Katie works with people who are up to big things - who are determined to raise the bar on what they want for their lives, their careers and their organizations. These are people who are truly passionate and inspired about something, and have the guts and the courage to make it happen. Her clients, which have included CEO's and artists, presidents and writers, VP's and moms... people who thrive on being challenged, people who want to go to their edge and peer over to see what’s possible, and then go for it. Individuals who dare to be great.
Katie is a Professional Certified Coach (PCC) with the International Coach Federation, has completed certification with The Coaches Training Institute and , has an honours degree in Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario. (Sorry ladies, I'm a UWO grad!). Prior to coaching, Katie spent 11 years as an advertising executive in both Toronto and Vancouver, rising to the senior management position of Group Account Director. Katie is also a regular contributor to the Career Section of the Globe and Mail.
Personally, she has been married for 10 years, and is proud mother of 2 boys, Jake and little Tyler. When she’s not at home with her boys or coaching her clients, you’ll find her on the ski slopes at Whistler or biking or running on the trails on the north shore, trying to fulfill her passion each day for living a Double Black Diamond life.
Power of Positive Networking™ for Women
Judy Thomson and Gayle Hallgren-Rezac
Website: http://www.workthepond.com/princess/index.html
Judy is a chartered accountant, team builder and trainer. Her over twenty-five-year career of team development and mentoring in North America and Asia emphasizes building strong networks both internally and externally. A dynamic and entertaining speaker on the power of Positive Networking in work and life and on networking for women. Judy’s career spans both the corporate and entrepreneurial worlds. She held senior positions with a global accounting and consulting firm in Canada and Asia. These included director of administration and human resources in Hong Kong for an office of 800 as well as setting up services for the firm in China. She was also part of the senior management team involved in the successful start-up of the now world famous Rocky Mountaineer Railtours.
A marketer, entrepreneur, and writer, Gayle is also Darcy Rezac’s excellent tag team-mate and has spent the last decade and a half observing networking around the world. A master of the art of conversation, she makes networking fun. Her workshops and presentations are described as fresh and imaginative. She speaks on the power of positive networking to change lives and on The Art of R.E.A.L. Conversation™. An innovative entrepreneur and marketer who co-founded two of Canada’s most unique business ventures, Cookies by George and OTOOZ, she is the recipient of the YWCA’s Women of Distinction Award as an entrepreneur.
Lunch Keynote Speaker
Nicole Williams, founder of WORKS Media
Website: http://www.nicolewilliams.com/
Forget everything you think you know about your career…
Career expert and best selling author Nicole Williams has long believed, “it’s not your career…it’s your life!” Her honest, real-life approach to career development feels more like advice from a friend; albeit an extremely accomplished friend who never hesitates to call your bluff. Nicole actually walks the walk, meaning she truly loves her job – and she wants you to love yours, too.
After nearly a decade of success in the corporate world, Nicole looked for a way to take her career to the next level. Her search led her to the neighborhood bookstore where she spotted a gaping hole in the career book category. Immediately, she set out to write the kind of book that she herself would like to read, and the rest (as they say), is history. The book, titled, Wildly Sophisticated: A Bold New Attitude for Career Success, earned her a record-breaking six-figure advance from Penguin Group Inc. and became a national bestseller. While writing the book, Nicole launched Wildly Sophisticated Media, a company dedicated to redefining the world of career development – making it glamorous, fun and relevant to modern women.
In January 2005, a second book, Earn What You’re Worth: A Wildly Sophisticated Approach To Investing In Your Career and Yourself was released. That same year, Nicole co-created a reality television series based upon her real-world career strategies. The show, called, Making It Big is now in its second season on the Oxygen Network. Her website, worksnw.com, reads like your favorite magazine. Packed with fashion tips, revealing blogs, entrepreneurial profiles, and real-world take-aways, it’s quickly becoming the on-line destination for young professional women.
This spring, Wildly Sophisticated Media has been re-launched as WORKS by Nicole Williams; the ultimate, modern lifestyle brand. “Women see their lives through the lens of their careers,” says Nicole. “It’s where they wear the latest fashions, build friendships, date – it’s where they define themselves.” The growing company is uniquely positioned to inform, inspire and empower women to create more exciting and fulfilling careers. It delivers substantial career information packaged as hip, edgy entertainment.
Nicole’s uniquely accessible approach has made her a popular guest expert on television’s Good Morning America, CNN, Good Day New York and Fox News. She is also a press favorite, contributing to articles in Elle, Cosmopolitan, Glamour, The New York Post, The Washington Post and the Financial Times. Her reputation as an authority in her field has attracted corporate partners such as Ford Lincoln Mercury, Banana Republic, Saks and Electronic Arts.
Workshop Series One: ‘Brand You’ - Developing your Leadership Brand
Tara Cree, Senior Consultant at Knightsbridge Consulting
Website: http://www.knightsbridge.ca/
Tara Cree is the Western Region Lead for Knightsbridge’s coaching practice. Tara has been providing consulting services for over 10 years, and specializes in the areas of leadership development, executive assessment, executive coaching, and strategic succession planning.
Tara has identified and developed leadership talent at all levels – from emerging leaders to executives. This has involved conducting full leadership and psychological assessments followed by one-on-one coaching. Tara combines her Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology with her background as a leadership specialist and organizational development advisor to consult with public and private sector clients on strategic leadership issues. Dr. Cree has designed and delivered numerous leadership development programs that include group sessions and one-on-one coaching. Tara has also designed on-line, self-directed leadership development programs. Dr. Cree is an experienced executive coach, team facilitator, and feedback consultant. The major focuses of Tara’s work are helping leaders develop their potential, building senior leadership teams, succession planning, and constructing corporate leadership development programs.
Tara also brings extensive consulting experience in areas of organizational development and human resources, with a particular focus on the design of contemporary human resource systems and processes including performance management, employee selection, and succession management programs. She is also an experienced training designer and facilitator.
Dr. Cree’s consulting experience includes senior consultant positions with a multi-national leadership development firm and two multi-national human resource consulting firms, as well as the role of Co-Executive Director of a university-based consulting group. Tara has been a keynote speaker at many conferences and industry associations, including the Vancouver Board of Trade, Wired Women, APEGBC, and the Professional Women’s Network..
Tara received her M.A. and Ph.D. in Industrial-Organizational Psychology from the University of Guelph, Ontario.
Workshop Series Two: How Big is your Building?
Doug Turner, Owner of True Balance Coaching
Website: http://www.truebalancecoaching.com/
In his professional life, mentoring and tutoring his associates have always been his hallmark. Most of the people who have worked for Doug have gone on to enjoy great success. Personally he has always taken great interest in high-performance youth, from track and field champions, to delegates to the Forum for Young Canadians, academically advanced students, and many successful sports teams. In 2003 he started True Balance Coaching to help people of all ages discover that it is indeed possible to achieve their desired level of success and enjoy a balanced life while doing it. He has since coached people from all walks of life to support them while they cross the “gap” from where they are today to where they dream of being. Students, athletes, entrepreneurs, executives, business people, parents, housewives have all benefited from Doug’s coaching. His credo is “Add a Zero”.
Workshop Series Two: What's the Fizz in Your Ginger Ale?
Michelle Dunn, Equilibrium Coaching
Website: http://www.michelledunncoach.com/
Michelle is a dynamic workshop leader and skilled coach. She brings her energy, enthusiasm and humour to individuals and organizations to help them unlock their innate leadership capabilities. Her coaching helps individuals uncover new perspectives, communicate with impact and implement highly innovative solutions to their challenges. She is committed to working with people who want to make lasting changes in their lives and to live life to their fullest potential.
She is a Certified Professional Co-active Coach through the Coaches Training Institute (San Raphael, California), and is a certified member of the International Coach Federation. Michelle is a grad of the University of Western Ontario and of Windsor University with extensive experience in the education field.
Workshop Series Two: Understanding your Core Values
Signy Wilson, University of British Columbia
She holds a Bachelor of Commerce and a Master of Industrial Relations and Human Resources with specialties in leadership and change management from Queen's University; is certified in Insights Discovery and MBTI; and received her extensive coaching training and certification through the Coaches Training Institute and now serves on their Faculty, training coaches worldwide.
Volunteers for various women’s crisis centers and organizations, and presently is the cocurriculum coordinator for Minerva’s Learning to Lead conference. Signy’s coaching niche is working with female leaders who are seeking work life balance and to live authentically from their values.
Workshop Series Two: 7 Steps to Boost Your Inner Confidence
Emma-Louise Elsey, Simplicity Life Coaching
Website: http://www.simplicitylifecoaching.com/
Emma-Louise runs a boutique life-coaching business, getting women unstuck, finding joy and moving forwards in life with happiness and confidence! Previously she spent 10 years in technology, working her way up from a programmer to a project and programme manager at some of the world’s largest companies. She has always found people fascinating and gravitated towards leadership roles. Finally in 2003, after realising she wanted more from life and searching for alternative careers she discovered life-coaching. She threw herself into retraining and graduated in 2004 with Distinction from The Coaching Academy in England. Shortly thereafter, Emma-Louise moved to Vancouver for space and the outdoors with her husband and cats and set up Simplicity Life Coaching Ltd.
Workshop Series Two: Women in Negotiations
Carrie Gallant
Carrie specializes in helping women leaders and professionals to imagine and achieve extraordinary outcomes. A former practising lawyer who has also held a number of key leadership positions, Carrie has unique insight and understanding of the challenges facing women leaders. Her expertise in negotiation, mediation, conflict resolution and career management provides a rich foundation to her passion for helping others to uncover what really matters and to solve problems creatively. Carrie loves to help clients learn new skills that will guide them to communicate, negotiate, manage and resolve conflict more creatively and effectively.
Workshop Series Three: Strategic Alliances
Heather Martin, Women’s Enterprise Centre
Website: http://womensenterprise.ca/
Heather Martin is the Skills Development Officer of Women's Enterprise Centre, the leading business resource centre for women business owners across BC.
Prior to joining Women's Enterprise Centre in 2007, Heather was a Development Officer with Blue Water Community Business Development Corporation providing business counseling and loans to small businesses in rural Nova Scotia.
Heather received a Master of Development Economics (MDE) in 2006 from Dalhousie University and a BBA from Atlantic Baptist University in 2004. She is interested in promoting and supporting entrepreneurship as a component of economic growth in rural Canadian communities.
Getting What You Want in Business and in Life- 10 Golden Rules to Follow
Fiona Walsh
Website: http://www.fmwalsh.com/
Fiona is a passionate advocate for women in business, getting them to think big and go after what they want. As a strategic partner company within the Flett Ventures Group of Companies, she is one of only 3 business coaches in North America approved to provide the highly successful Ghost CEO Business Coaching program, dedicated to giving women the edge in business.
She had 16 years experience in the corporate sales arena before starting her own company in 2004, focusing on sharing with clients practical and insightful solutions that have an immediate impact on revenue, profitability and success. Fiona regularly shares her experience and knowledge on various topics with business groups and associations, as well as doing custom training for corporate clients. She also writes a regular column, 'Sales Pitch' for the publication Make It Business.
Lunch Keynote Speaker: From Wall Street to Georgia Street
Maili Wong, HSBC
Ms. Maili Wong is an Investment Advisor with HSBC who brings international industry experience from New York City. She helped manage over $5 Billion in assets at Eton Park Capital, a global hedge fund in New York, and prior to that she specialized in providing options and derivative strategies at Merrill Lynch also in New York. As well, Ms. Wong worked in Toronto on the investment team of a global insurance company, was a member of the UBC Portfolio Management Foundation, and was elected to serve on the UBC Board of Governors. Maili graduated as “Top Female Graduate” from the University of British Columbia with a Bachelor of Commerce degree in Finance with Honors, and is a CFA Charterholder and Chartered Financial Planner. Outside of her work, she enjoys classical piano, pilates and snowboarding.
Workshop Series Four: Entrepreneurship
Cybele Negris
Website: http://www.webnames.ca, http://www.constructionbydesign.ca
Cybele Negris is Co-Founder & Chief Operating Officer of Webnames.ca Inc. (www.webnames.ca), one of Canada’s top domain registrars and Internet solutions companies.
In 2000, Cybele and her partners assembled a team of 30 people in 3 months and led them through rapid growth achieving $2.5 million in revenues in their first year. Webnames.ca is the registrar for seven of the top ten .CA websites in Canada (based on 2007 data from Alexa.com) and serve over 40,000 customers including many of Canada’s Fortune 1000 corporations, top trademark agents, government agencies, small to medium sized businesses and more. Since incorporation they have operated with no outside financing, no debt, a healthy cash surplus and substantial annual growth.
Webnames.ca services include full service domain registration including .CA ,COM,.ORG,.NET,.INFO,.BIZ,.US,.CN,.MOBI, .ASIA, domain portfolio management, webhosting, Web Builder, premium email services, digital/SSL certificates and a range of other online solutions.
Cybele’s awards include: PROFIT W100 - Canada's Top Women Entrepreneurs, (2004, 2005 & 2006, 2007), Finalist, YWCA Women of Distinction (2006), Finalist, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Pacific (2005) (Cybele was the only female finalist in the Pacific Region); and Business in Vancouver’s Top 40 Under 40 (2003).
Prior to Webnames.ca Cybele held directorships and officer positions in several public and private companies. She is Founder & President of CBD Consulting Ltd. a management consultancy, with an impressive client list of crown corporations and private companies. She has since merged this with her husband’s business and their construction management division, Construction By Design (www.constructionbydesign.ca) won the prestigious Gold Georgie Award for Best Home Renovation over $400,000 in 2006. CBD Construction continues to grow at a rapid pace and among other projects, they completed the presentation centre for the Arthur Erickson designed Ritz Carlton Tower.
Cybele is currently on the Board of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs (www.fwe.ca) and is the Chair of the e-series program (entrepreneurial training). In 2006, she was the President of Wired Woman Vancouver (www.wiredwoman.com), a not-for-profit organization providing education, networking and mentorship to women in the technology sector. She was a judge for the 2007 Small Business BC Business Plan Contest and speaker at numerous events in the technology industry and entrepreneurial associations.
All of the Webnames.ca managers are socially responsible and give back to the community, serving on the board of the Canadian Internet Registration Authority, serving as Mentor in New Ventures BC and more. The Webnames.ca team also raised over $5500 for the Canadian Cancer Society’s Relay for Life in 2006. The company also has a Charity program for Canadian registered charities.
Cybele balances all of this with raising her 3 1/2 year old son and 17 month old daughter.
Workshop Series Four: Building Professional Relationships
Tracy Heyland, Creative Vision Coaching & Development
Website: http://www.creativevision.ca/
Tracy Heyland is a Certified Professional Co-active Coach and active member of the International Coaching Federation. She brings over 13 years of program development, training, coordinating, sales and coaching experience to her business, Creative Vision Coaching & Development. As a graduate of the Co-active Leadership Program, Tracy helps her coaching clients impact their professions, families, and communities in more powerful and positive ways.
Specializing in Organizational and Relationship Systems Coaching, a groundbreaking model for coaching relationship systems, Tracy brings this work to teams, partnerships, couples, leaders, and individuals, developing emotional intelligence skills such as:
* Designing working relationships with teams and co-workers
* Using conflict to create constructive change
* Positively leveraging diversity
* Releasing creative potential
* Communicating effectively
* Increasing positivity and productivity
Employing a wide array of skills, techniques, and an intuitive awareness in her coaching, Tracy balances the personal with the professional. Clients have included teams within multi-national companies, small businesses, team leaders and individuals wishing to enhance their relationship skills with others. Tracy brings a personalized approach to all her work ensuring a highly interactive environment to embody and process new learning so that the benefits are immediately experienced.
tracy@creativevision.ca (604) 324-9590
Workshop Series Four: Building Professional Relationships
Tereasa Haewood, Chameleon Strategies
Website: http://www.chameleonstrategies.ca/
Tereasa, born of Native American heritage on her father’s side and European descent on her mother’s side, is an in-depth Personal and Team coach trained by one of the world’s leading training institutes, CTI (Coach Training Institute), and is a certified member of the International Coaching Federation. A graduate of CTI’s advanced studies in Co-Active Leadership and Organization Relationships Systems Coaching (ORSC) through the Center for Right Relationship, Tereasa is certified to administer and train using the Team Diagnostic System. She is a Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) practitioner, certified Yoga instructor and has trained in various meditation practices. Tereasa is a proud and grateful partner in Chameleon – Strategies for Creative Change, a grassroots, First Nations company, specializing in relationship and team coaching.
Tereasa combines leading edge individual and systems coaching skills with a business background in corporate communications, sales and marketing, a creative resume in film, television & theatre and a life-long personal quest for deeper understanding of humanity. Her focus on experiential learning inspires her clients to build on existing strengths to achieve excellence in all areas of their personal and business life. She is a passionate entrepreneur, dynamic workshop leader, published writer, and proud parent of 2 amazing boys. She playfully approaches her life work from a deep desire to help others explore, remember and commit to increasing self-awareness thereby living their full potential. Tereasa makes her home close to the water in beautiful White Rock, BC.
tereasa@chameleonstrategies.ca (604) 535-3933
Workshop Series Four: Sales 101
Villette Nolon, President and CEO of Home Savvi, Inc.
Website: http://www.homesavvi.com/index.html
Villette Nolon has a proven track record with over 20 years of general management and entrepreneurial experience for multiple start-ups and Fortune 150 companies.
Prior to Home Savvi, Villette was CEO and President of NetReflector, Inc., an international software company based in Seattle. Under her stewardship, revenue increased over 240%, the company achieved profitability and received numerous regional, national and international awards for fast growth. In mid-2005, she executed the sale of the Company to Global Market Insite.
In 1984 Villette co-founded Ameriscribe Data Resources, a successful competitor to Xerox Business Services which was sold to Pitney Pitney Bowes Management Services for an undisclosed sum. Villette holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics and General Management with high honors from a joint program between Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Russell Sage College in Troy, New York.
Villette is an active participant in the Pacific Northwest high tech entrepreneurial community and serves on the boards of WSA, NWEN and MIT Enterprise Forum, which she chaired from 2001 to 2002.
Workshop Series Four: Entrepreneurship
Lisa Pallson-Stallon, Lotuswear
Website: http://www.chameleonstrategies.ca/
In 2003 Lisa co-founded Lotuswear Designs Ltd. with her husband Andrew.
After spending the 6 years prior to this as a University professor of Business and Marketing, Lisa came into the business quite naturally. With a P.H.D. in International Business Lisa had a keen awareness of the global market and how she wanted to approach being a part of that system. The objective for running a business would not simply be to make a profit, but would have a higher purpose for its existence, which would widely be reflected in high ethical standards and fair practice.
Involved in numerous charity events and sponsors local programs for women with various socioeconomic struggles such as “Dress for Success”, the “Women’s Gym”, “Sundays with Mom” at the YWCA and donates to the Downtown Eastside Women’s Centre.
Lisa’s true passion lies with her 3 little boys and her husband at home, which was what inspired her in the first place.
