advocate JANUARY |

FEBRUARY 2012

Building Blocks for Tomorrow’s Economy First of a Three Part Series

Residential Construction: Housing the Region’s Growing Population to 2031 Owning our Healthcare Challenge Employers and Employees Working Together For the Future Collaborative Workspaces: The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of its Parts

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012 WWW.GREATERKWCHAMBER.COM

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EDITOR-IN-CHIEF:

FEATURE

How Will We Meet the Growing Demand For Health Care Workers? Carol Simpson

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EDITOR:

Heather Hutchings

COVER STORY

Residential Construction: Housing the Region’s Growing Population to 2031 Jamie Adam

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Infrastructure Critical for Connecting Southern Ontario FEATURE

Owning our Healthcare Challenge

CONTRIBUTING WRITERS:

FEATURE

Employers and Employees Working Together For the Future

Bryan Atcheson and Teri Hetherington

FEATURE

Collaborative Workspaces: The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of its Parts

departments MESSAGE FROM THE CHAIR

Think Big, Dream Bigger

Ian McLean

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ADVOCACY

Gambling on Economic and Population Growth Art Sinclair

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Mary Sue Fitzpatrick

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EVENTS

Autumn Networking

NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS

October 1, 2011 to November 30, 2011 EVENTS

Mark Your Calendar SPONSOR PROFILE

Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel

SUBMISSION POLICY:

Proposals and articles are accepted via mail or email c/o Editor - Advocate. Please do not send originals. All contributors articles must be accompanied by a head shot in a jpg file and a 40 word author’s bio. PUBLICATIONS PERMIT:

#40026716

FOR PERMISSION AND REPRINT REQUESTS

Heather Hutchings - hhutchings@greaterkwchamber.com PRINTED IN CANADA BY:

PERSPECTIVE ON HEALTH CARE

Enhancing Primary Care For The Greater K-W Community

January 23, 2012 for March | April March 19, 2012 for May | June May 18, 2012 for July | August July 20, 2011 for September | October Sept. 21, 2012 for November | December Darlene Jones djones@greaterkwchamber.com

MESSAGE FROM THE PRESIDENT

New Infrastructure Critical for Future Growth

ADVERTISING AND COPY DEADLINES:

SUBSCRIPTION AND BACK ISSUE INQUIRIES:

Brian Bennett

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Jamie Adam, Brian Bennett, Roger Farwell, Mary Sue Fitzpatrick, Al Hayes, Karen Hiltz, Lloyd Longfield, Ian McLean, Carol Simpson, Art Sinclair, Aubrey Walter CONTRIBUTORS:

Aubrey Walters

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ADVERTISING AND SALES:

David MacLellan - dmaclellan@greaterkwchamber.com Don Critelli- dcritelli@greaterkwchamber.com JR Waddell- jwaddell@greaterkwchamber.com

Karen Hiltz

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Cober Evolving Solutions Adamski Photography and Chamber staff

Roger Farwell and Al Hayes

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DESIGN AND PRODUCTION:

PHOTOGRAPHY:

FEATURE

Lloyd Longfield

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Art Sinclair

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PUBLICATION OF:

MEMBER NOTABLES

Achieving Success Chamber Members PROFILE

Chamber Star Peter Lehman SPONSORSHIP

Chamber Sponsors

POSTMASTER ADDRESS CHANGES: C/O

ADVOCATE - PUBLICATIONS OFFICE 80 QUEEN STREET NORTH, PO BOX 2367 KITCHENER, ONTARIO N2H 6L4 The Advocate is a bi-monthly membership benefit publication of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce. Advertising content and the views expressed herein are those of the contributors and do not constitute endorsement by the Chamber. The Advocate follows the Canadian Code of Advertising Standards (1990), copies are available through the Publisher. The Chamber cannot be held responsible for any errors or omissions that may occur and has the right to edit material submitted. The Chamber will not accept advertising with competitor comparison claims and has the right to refuse advertising that is deemed to be false, misleading, or inappropriate.

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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message from the chair

Think Big, Dream Bigger BY BRIAN BENNETT Jim Prentice, Vice Chairman of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC) spoke at a recent Chamber Point of View luncheon focusing on nation building across Canada. It is also relevant for us to reflect on region building across Waterloo Region, including whether we have the appropriate infrastructure in place to support our growth. The province is projecting that our Region's population will escalate to 729,000 by 2031, an increase of 194,000. Our region building is well underway, and we are experiencing an exciting evolution from an expanding David Johnston Research and Technology Park, Perimeter Institute and CIGI Campus including the Balsillie School of International Affairs, bringing the best and brightest global innovators to our community. The Communitech Hub and Lang Tannery are full, we now have a School of Medicine and a School of Pharmacy, with the City of Kitchener adopting a new Economic Development Strategy focusing on innovation, start ups and talent attraction. Intensification is starting to occur in the city cores where the community is adapting to working and living. Growth and success create opportunities and also challenges, including infrastructure and talent. As intensification evolves, do we have the necessary infrastructure to support this growth, from goods and services, roads, parks, trails, community centres, to water, sewage capacity and electricity. The Light Rail Transit initiative is our largest infrastructure project supporting intensification, however will residents adopt it, will they give up or reduce reliance on their cars, will it come in on time and budget, and will we see trains from Conestoga Mall to Cambridge? Do we have adequate Employment Lands to accommodate existing growth within the region as well as attracting new businesses? The loss of the Schneiders plant raises new questions, and is something that requires our immediate focus. Talent remains a critical component to our success, including the ability to attract and retain people within our community. The region and local municipalities hosted a Waterloo Region Talent Attraction Camp, to understand the talented people of our region and how to better meet their needs. The new Creative Enterprise Enabling Organization was established to link art, culture, and the

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creative process to the community. Innovation and the entrepreneurial processes will attract and retain a well educated and diverse work force, with the local Immigration Partnership serving and integrating newcomers into Waterloo Region. The recently announced GO Transit train service allows us to export talent to the GTA, but what about bringing new talent to our region? The next evolution of this service needs to be inbound trains from the GTA to Waterloo Region. Also, are commuters prepared for a minimum two hour commute on trains that are restricted to 50 km/hour due to rail bed impediments and other infrastructure that needs to be enhanced? Is a one hour trip a dream? The improvements to Highway 8 and impending improvements to Highway 7/8 will enhance the drive for commuters, but what about Highway 85? What is the infrastructure like outside of the region to enable us to get our goods to market? Highway 401 is becoming increasingly congested as is the International Border Crossing in Windsor, creating delays and increasing costs. Proactively the provincial and federal governments have agreed to undertake the largest border infrastructure project in history to improve approaches and build a new bridge to enhance the movement of goods with our biggest trading partner. Unfortunately the project is being held up in the Michigan Legislature, even though Canada has agreed to provide their $500 million investment. And let's not forget the Region of Waterloo International Airport, which is well positioned to increase both cargo and passenger traffic. Think big, dream bigger.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Brian Bennett CHAIR, BOARD OF DIRECTORS Brian Bennett is a Financial Services Executive and the owner of BME Consulting, a financial consulting services firm.

message from the president

New Infrastructure Critical for Future Growth BY IAN MCLEAN In Waterloo Region, for the next decade and longer, the public policy priority will be managing our population and economic growth. The provincial Places to Grow Act and corresponding growth plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe estimates that in twenty years, the Waterloo Region population will be approaching 730,000. Compared to the approximately 525,000 plus residents across the region in 2011, this correlates to an increases of almost 50 percent. Twenty years may seem like a considerable distance in the future, however infrastructure and related planning can never happen soon enough to ensure we are a modern, accessible and innovative community. One of the critical components of the local infrastructure strategy to meet these growing population and economic demands is the rapid transit system. The debate around this project has been long and sometimes contentious, however Regional Council has made a decision and the community is moving forward. Our Chamber, in a submission to Council last May, conditionally supported Light Rail Transit (LRT) as the preferred technology to meet future local transportation requirements. While we support LRT and asked the Region of Waterloo to expeditiously proceed with a system that will facilitate economic and population growth, a series of issues still must be addressed by regional staff before construction can commence. Priority issues include potential impacts of the system on both residential and business property taxes, public-private options for risk-sharing, future increases in development charges, and compensation for businesses impacted by construction. While we respect fiscal responsibility and ensuring the best value for taxpayers, inaction is not an option and in order to meet future economic challenges, the LRT must move ahead. Another priority infrastructure project for the broader WaterlooWellington district is a new and expanded Highway 7 between Guelph and Kitchener. Serious discussions on this issue extend over a four decade time frame, however very little progress is evident as another calendar year passes.

In March of 2007, former provincial Minister of Transportation Donna Cansfield held a news conference at Regional Headquarters and announced that her ministry was moving forward with plans to build a new four-lane highway to reduce congestion, improve safety, and accommodate growth. For the local business sector, a new Highway 7 will also provide an important eastern linkage to the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). At the time of the aforementioned announcement, Minister Cansfield indicated that it would be at least three years before any shovels hit the ground with construction extending over a five year period. However, as Jeff Outhit noted in a recent Waterloo Region Record article, four years later the start has been delayed to an unknown date past 2015 and the entire project appears to be off the agenda of priorities for the provincial transportation ministry. Our Chamber has been a long-standing supporter of GO Transit commuter trains for the Region, and the commencement of service in late December provides another important linkage with the GTA. Support is strong in Waterloo Region, and all areas served by GO, for improved two-way and all day routes. Deficit issues at Queen’s Park have the potential to present significant obstacles to this expansion, however the Liberal Party under Premier McGuinty made some major commitments during the recent election campaign which many municipalities will want fulfilled. The challenge remains for all levels of government and the local business sector to plan and construct the infrastructure to meet future requirements, however the dominant requirement is that action be taken now. Traffic congestion and gridlock cost businesses of all sizes and must be avoided.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Ian McLean Ian McLean is President and CEO of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce.

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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awards nominations

2012 BUSINESS EXCELLENCE AWARDS GALA thursday, february 16th at bingemans A gala event to recognize the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce members who have made exceptional contributions through their involvement and leadership for the betterment of our community.

EVENT SPONSORS Cowan Insurance Group Title Manulife Financial Reception BMO Bank of Montreal Nominee Reception Hatch Mott MacDonald Centrepiece WalterFedy Wine BDO Canada Gift Bell Canada Gold

CIBC Gold Gowlings LLP Gold Sun Life Financial Gold Delta Kitchener-Waterloo Bronze CTV Media Sponsor Waterloo Region Record Media Sponsor

CHYM FM, 570 News and KIX 106 Media Sponsor 91.5 the Beat and 107.5 Dave FM Media Sponsor Faith FM Media Sponsor 105.3 KOOL-FM and 99.5 KFUN-FM Media Sponsor Jewel 92 Media Sponsor

AWARD CATEGORIES Business of the Year (Over 20 Employees) Award Sponsored by: University of Waterloo Business of the Year (20 Employees and Under) Award Sponsored by: Lutherwood Environment & Sustainability Award Sponsored by: Union Gas- A Spectra Energy Company Healthy Workplace Award Sponsored by: Grand River Hospital

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Innovation Award Sponsored by: Research In Motion Integration Award Sponsored by: Libro Financial Group Non Profit/Charitable Award Sponsored by: Borden Ladner Gervais LLP Michael R. Follett Community Leader of the Year Award Sponsored by: Equitable Life of Canada Professional Development and Workplace Training Award Sponsored by: Conestoga College

Volunteer of the Year Award Sponsored by: Laurier School of Business & Economics Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award Sponsored by: Conrad Business, Entrepreneurship & Technology Centre Hospitality/Tourism Award Sponsored by: Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel

Purchase your tickets online at www.greaterkwchamber.com or by calling 519-576-5000

WWW.GREATERKWCHAMBER.COM

advocacy

Gambling on Economic and Population Growth BY ART SINCLAIR Predicting population patterns can be a dangerous and risky business, and few jurisdictions can match the record of Ontario during the Bill Davis era.

and a huge water tower that is visible from Highway 3 are the only noteworthy aspects of a community that you don’t pass through on the route to somewhere else.

Over three decades ago, a serious influx of people was forecasted to migrate towards the north shore of Lake Erie. This population growth would be driven by significant industrial development at the Nanticoke Industrial Park. The major employer was a huge state-of-the-art steel facility owned by Canadian conglomerate Stelco. Imperial Oil was establishing a massive refinery and Ontario Hydro had already constructed what would become North America’s largest coal generating station – and Canada’s largest air polluter. A sprawling assembly of smaller businesses serving the aforementioned giants would generate thousands of additional jobs.

In 2004, the province initiated their planning process for the Greater Golden Horseshoe which evolved into the Places to Grow Act – not exactly an original term but nonetheless appropriate for the time and circumstances. Elected and non-elected officials in Queen’s Park decided that some form of integrated planning approach was necessary to manage the anticipated economic and corresponding population growth around the western shore of Lake Ontario.

The combination of an impending economic boom on Lake Erie with concerns over Toronto area urban sprawl lead the Ontario Government to purchase thousands of acres in Haldimand County for a planned world- class community. Existing centres such as Jarvis and Simcoe did not have the capacity for the anticipated growth, therefore a new city called Townsend would rise out of local farmland and incorporate extraordinary urban planning functions to house 100,000 people by the year 2000 – and continue growing thereafter. In the early 1980s, restructuring across the North American steel industry initiated heavy job casualties in Pennsylvania, Ohio and western New York. Stelco’s Lake Erie Works was constructed and became operational, however production and employment never reached anticipated levels. Stelco exited from bankruptcy protection in 2006 and a year later was purchased by United States Steel. The Nanticoke Generating Station has evolved into Ontario’s oil sands. The McGuinty Liberals would prefer operations be terminated tomorrow morning, however replacing the coalgenerated electricity with other sources is a challenge for a province always one extremely hot day away from a blackout. The Imperial Oil Nanticoke Refinery supplies a quarter of the provincial petroleum market, however the related businesses never arrived.

Most residents of Waterloo Region are now familiar with our projected population of 729,000 by 2031. This estimate was supplied by the same government that predicted 100,000 people in Townsend. A Bank of Montreal Report in July of 2008 noted that as development leapfrogs the Greenbelt – areas within the 416/905 designated for protection – growth in Waterloo Region and Guelph will expand rapidly. The scenario is eerily reminiscent of the provincial plan in the 1970s to slow development in the Toronto region and direct some of that growth to Haldimand County. There is no suggestion here that Waterloo Region will suffer the same fate as Townsend and the accompanying industrial development on the north shore of Lake Erie. However there is the consistent knowledge that predictions, whether they are related to sports, elections, or stock markets can often result in the bizarre and unusual. The only certainty is that there are no certainties.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Art Sinclair Art Sinclair is the Vice President Policy and Advocacy for the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce.

The current population of Townsend is a thousand residents. The original plan of development radiating out from the town centre

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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perspective on health care

Enhancing Primary Care For The Greater K-W Community BY MARY SUE FITZPATRICK

Working to Solve the Physician Shortage

Engaging Family Medicine Residents

The Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce has successfully led a community and business focused physician recruitment effort since 1998.

One of the key Chamber recruitment initiatives is the annual Family Medicine Resident Weekend which took place in early November 2011 when the Chamber played host to 14 first, second and third year family medicine residents and their partners.

Chamber volunteers and staff have made considerable progress over the past thirteen years and more recently since the establishment of the Chamber Health Care Resources Council in 2006 with full time chamber staff support and financial investment from the cities and corporate community. Over 140 family practitioners have been recruited since 1998 and the number of people without a family physician in greater K-W has been cut in half, from over 40,000 to just over 20,000 today.

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Organized by the Health Council’s Family Physician Liaison Task Force, chaired by Al Hayes of WalterFedy, the weekend is a major recruitment initiative that positively engages young physicians and promotes the community as a welcoming, attractive, leading edge centre of medical excellence, with promising practice opportunities for physicians and employment opportunities for their partners. Over the years, this annual event has influenced many residents’ decisions to establish their family practices in the area.

*Photography by Adamski Photography

feature

“The weekend is a wonderful opportunity for these first and second year family medicine residents to get better acquainted with the community and our health care facilities” said Hayes. “While the physicians toured medical facilities and met and spoke with local family practitioners, their partners toured the community and had an opportunity to explore employment opportunities with local business and community leaders.” There has already been some very favourable comments from the young physicians, three of whom are training here in the K-W Family Medicine Residency Program. With the interest expressed not only by the local residents but others training across the province, we hope to recruit a number of these physicians over the next year or two.

Chamber physician recruitment initiatives are made possible through the generous support of our corporate and community partners.

Members of the Health Council’s Family Physician Liaison Task Force are to be congratulated for exceptional planning and organizing a great itinerary for our visiting guests. Your support and personal involvement and that of Chamber Board members and local business and community leaders over this important annual weekend made it especially warm and welcoming for the visiting residents and their partners. This weekend is made possible through generous community investment in Chamber Health Care Resources Council initiatives. Along with the Cities of Kitchener and Waterloo and the Township of Woolwich, major corporate investors include Manulife Financial, Research In Motion, Sun Life Financial, The Economical Insurance Group, Cowan, KPMG, Heffner Lexus and Heffner Toyota and WalterFedy. Along with these major corporate and community investors, the Chamber extends special thanks to this year’s resident weekend supporters who added the special touches that thoroughly impressed our visiting family medicine residents and their partners: the Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel for their fine food, service and accommodation; Open Text for hosting the luncheon; Bearskin Airlines for their conference flight discount, Airways Transit for the shuttle service; Brick Brewing Company Limited for their fine product and Kennedy’s Catering for a delicious taste of Waterloo County fare!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mary Sue Fitzpatrick Mary Sue is Vice President Family Physician Resources and Health Advocacy.

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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networking

Autumn networking 1

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1) ASHLEY SHANE, KEN BROOKS AND STEPHANIE LONGEWAY AT CHAMBERFEST. 2) DAN GIRARD, PARVEZ PATEL AND MARK EAMER. 3) PATTI BROOKS, KEN BROOKS AND HEATHER MELROSE AT CHAMBERFEST.

4) 5) 6) 7)

KERI ZEHR AND KARL NIEVA. IAN MCLEAN, JIM PRENTICE AND BRIAN BENNETT. AUTHENTIC GERMAN-STYLE DANCERS PERFORM AT CHAMBERFEST. MARK KRELLER AND IAN MCLEAN.

*Photography by Adamski Photography

Chamber Members 50% off DQ速 Cakes Save 50% on all 8" and 10" Dairy Queen速 Cakes Dairy Queen Laurelwood

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Offer Valid Only at Dairy Queen速 Laurelwood, 600 Laurelwood Drive, Waterloo (Food Basics Plaza at corner of Erbsville and Laurelwood Drive) Expiry: January 31st, 2012

WWW.GREATERKWCHAMBER.COM

519.883.0000

DQ and the ellipse shaped logo are trademarks of Am. D.Q. Corp. Mpls. MN 息 2007. Printed in Canada

networking

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8) SOME OF THE CROWD AT THE FIRST ANNUAL CHAMBERFEST. 9) DON CRITELLI, NAHLA KOR AND DAVID MACLELLAN. 10) DR. BRAD DAVIS DELIVERING HIS PRESENTATION ON MARKETING YOUR BRAND INTERNATIONALLY.

11) NEW CHAMBER MEMBERS POSE FOR A GROUP SHOT AT THE COWAN NEW MEMBER WELCOME. 12) OKTOBERFEST VOLUNTEER STEFAN SCHUSTER. 13) IAN MCLEAN, CAMERON RAPP, DAVID CALDER.

*Photography by Adamski Photography

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new members

October 1, 2011 to November 30, 2011 5D Computer Systems Inc.

Chainsaw

Gibsons Home Furnishings

Computer Sales & Service Duane Rose, Owner 180 Frobisher Drive, Unit 3 Waterloo, ON N2V 2A2 Email: duane@5dcomputers.com Web: www.5dcomputers.com Phone: (519) 725-5535 / Fax: (519) 725-4479

Restaurants Ryan Good, Owner 28 King Street North, Waterloo, ON N2J 2W7 Email: rgood@cabri-management.com Web: www.chainsawlovers.com Phone: (519) 954-8660 / Fax:

Furniture Dealers Jamie Roberts, President 140 University Avenue East, Waterloo, ON N2J 2W3 Email: gibsons@golden.net Web: www.gibsonshomefurnishings.com Phone: (519) 746-7070

Absolute Soccer & Rugby Supplies (Waterloo)

CMA Realty Ltd. Brokerage

Gillian Wells, Clinical Therapist

Real Estate Duncan McLean, Vice President - Business Development 82 Weber Street East, Unit 201 Kitchener, ON N2H 1C7 Email: duncan@cmarealty.ca / Web: www.cmarealty.ca Phone: (519) 578-0337 / Fax: (519) 578-0025

Counselling Gillian Wells, Owner 684 Belmont Avenue West, Suite 304 Kitchener, ON N2M 1N6 Email: gillian@gwells.ca Phone: (519) 635-6550

EchoSims

Goliger's TravelPlus

Marketing Consultants Jeff Horst, Co-Founder 31 Louisa Street, Kitchener, ON N2H 5L7 Email: info@echosims.com / Web: www.echosims.com Phone: (519) 830-0100

Travel Agencies Peter VanDerHeyden, President 234 King Street South, Waterloo, ON N2J 1R3 Email: peter@goligerstravel.com Web: www.gotravelplus.com Phone: (519) 741-8166

Sporting Goods David Esenbergs, Owner 425 University Avenue East, Unit D Waterloo, ON N2K 4C9 Email: dm@absolutesoccer.ca / Web: www.absolutesoccer.ca Phone: (519) 576-5398/ Fax:

ACTIVE VISION Charity Association Charitable & Community Organizations Narine Sookram, President 119 Frey Crescent, Kitchener, ON N2E 4K9 Email: info@activevisioncharity.com Web: www.activevisioncharity.com Phone: (519) 579-4680 / Fax:

First Class Shutters Inc. Home Improvements & Renovations Paul Jaworsky, Owner P.O.Box 155, Elmira, ON N3B 2Z6 Email: paul@firstclassshutters.com Web: www.firstclassshutters.com Phone: (519) 669-1962 / Fax: (519) 888-9883

Grand River Hospital

Fitness 360º & Spa

Grand River Occupational Health & Safety Inc.

Health, Fitness & Exercise Service Kelly Walsh, Owner 283 Northfield Drive East, Unit 13/14 Waterloo, ON N2J 4G8 Email: kelly@fitness360.ca / Web: www.fitness360.ca Phone: (519) 885-0072 / Fax:

Safety Consultants & Training Wes Mazur, President 138 Main Street, Unit 102, Cambridge, ON N1R 1V7 Email: info@grandriverohs.com Web: www.grandriverohs.com Phone: (519) 267-8600 / Fax: (519) 267-8700

Forest Hill Hearing Inc.

Hagon Design Inc.

Computer Software Gerald Ford, Owner 15 Stock Court, Cambridge, ON N3C 3R4 Email: grford@csolutions.org / Web: www.csolutions.org Phone: (519) 658-8289/ Fax: (519) 658-9064

Hearing Aids Jo-Anne Kropf, President 421 Greenbrook Drive, Unit 18B, Kitchener, ON N2M 4K1 Email: jokropf@rogers.blackberry.net Phone: (519) 743-2323 / Fax: (519) 743-2325

Advertising Agencies & Consultants Ben Hagon, President 72 St Leger Street, Unit 321, Kitchener, ON N2H 6R4 Email: info@hagondesign.com Web: www.hagondesign.com Phone: (519) 954-9263

Cartridge World

Four Points by Sheraton - Cambridge

Ideaca Knowledge Services

Office Supplies Joshua Bannon, Owner 470 Highland Road West, Unit A2 Kitchener, ON N2M 3C7 Email: kitchener@cartridgeworld.com Web: www.cartridgeworld.com Phone: (519) 576-8889/ Fax: (519) 576-7779

Hotels & Motels Sarah Spooner, Director Sales & Marketing 210 Preston Parkway, Cambridge, ON N3H 5N1 Email: sarah.spooner@fourpoints.com Web: www.fourpoints.com/ontario Phone: (519) 653-2690 / Fax: (519) 653-6901

Athena - Infusion Gift Retail Todd Crouse, President 300 Gage Avenue, Kitchener, ON N2M 2C8 Email: todd@athenaartonline.com Web: www.athenaartonline.com Phone: (519) 725-1355 / Fax: (519) 954-5071

Bre Creative Entertainment - Family Michelle Peer, President 213 Dick Street, Waterloo, ON N2L 1N3 Email: info@bre-creative.com / Web: www.bre-creative.com Phone: (519) 897-4855 / Fax:

Cambridge Solutions Inc.

Hospitals Mark Karjaluoto, Director of Communications 835 King Street West, Kitchener, ON N2G 1G3 Email: info@grhosp.on.ca / Web: www.grhosp.on.ca Phone: (519) 742-3611 / Fax: (519) 749-4309

Consultants Brad Blaskavitch, Director, Solutions Consulting 300 Homer Watson Boulevard, Unit 200 Kitchener, ON N2C 2S8 Email: brad.blaskavitch@ideaca.com / Web: www.ideaca.com Phone: (519) 340-1017

What you want to protect the most ... We Protect the Best! Insurance is the last thing business owner’s think of when times are good. But, when there’s a claim it’s their first call. With Erb and Erb, you know you have best coverage possible. Get an Expert Opinion on your Commercial Insurance Needs insure@erb-erb.com · 519-579-4273 · www.erb-erb.com · Commercial Property · Commercial Auto · · Professional & Business Liability · Surety ·

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new members

Intuition For Women

Payworks Canada

Sun Life Financial - Waterloo Grand

Women's Apparel - Retail Sheela Visram, Manager 1005 Ottawa Street North, Unit 25 Kitchener, ON N2A 1H2 Email: intuitionforwomen@rogers.com Phone: (519) 954-3913

Payroll Services Tara Beardmore 6 Hillsdon Place, Guelph, ON N1K 1Y8 Email: tara.beardmore@payworks.ca Phone: (905) 699-7688

Insurance Lorraine Graham, Financial Centre Manager 94 Bridgeport Road East, Waterloo, ON N2J 2J9 Email: lorraine.graham@sunlife.com / Web: www.sunlife.com Phone: (519) 885-4000 / Fax: (519) 885-9532

KW Blood Donor Clinic

Physically Active Supports and Supplies Inc.

Sun Life Financial - Waterloo Wellington

Health Care Supplies & Service Michelle Healey, Owner 65 University Avenue East, Unit 10, Waterloo, ON N2J 2V9 Email: passbracing@sympatico.ca / Web: www.passbracing.com Phone: (519) 884-1600 / Fax: (519) 884-3996

Insurance Paul Ingram, Financial Centre Manager 94 Bridgeport Road East, Waterloo, ON N2J 2J9 Email: paul.ingram@sunlife.com / Web: www.sunlife.com Phone: (519) 888-4000 / Fax: (519) 885-9532

Power Tans - Premier Tanning Salons

The Salvation Army

Tanning Salons Curtis Power, Owner 470 Highland Road West, Unit 7, Kitchener, ON N2M 3C7 Email: powertans@hotmail.com / Web: www.powertans.com Phone: (519) 571-3264 / Fax:

Charitable & Community Organizations Gary Brown, Area Director of Public Relations & Development 151 York Boulevard, Unit D1, Hamilton, ON L8R 3M2 Email: gary_brown@can.salvationarmy.org Web: www.salvationarmy.ca Phone: (905) 521-1660(905) 521-0244

Lowe's Home Improvements & Renovation Summet Sindwani, Store Manager 345 The Boardwalk, Waterloo, ON N2T 0A6 Email: paul.d.witzel@store.lowes.com / Web: www.lowes.ca Phone: (519) 576-5776 / Fax: (519) 585-3268

Maxium Financial Service Inc. Financial Services Products Pierre Sauvé, Director, Originations 187 King Street South, Suite 209 Waterloo, ON N2J 1R1 Email: pierres@maxium.net / Web: www.maxium.net Phone: (226) 476-1371 / Fax: (519) 340-0325

Money In Motion Inc. Financial Services Products Sean Spencer, Corporate Account Officer 175 West Beaver Creek Road, Unit 4 Richmond Hill, ON L4B 3M1 Email: sean.spencer@moneyinmotion.on.ca / Web: www.moneyinmotioninc.com Phone: (905) 597-9451 / Fax: (905) 597-7802

Nautica Infrared Inspections Home Inspection Service Brian Zinger, Owner 469 Citadel Court, Waterloo, ON N2K 3Y4 Email: nautica.zinger@gmail.com Phone: (519) 497-0412

Overlap Associates Inc. Management Consultants Lisa Grogan, Partner 260 King Street West, Suite 100, Kitchener, ON N2G 1B1 Email: lisa@overlapassociates.com / Web: www.overlapassociates.com Phone: (519) 502-7028

Power Tans - Premier Tanning Salon Tanning Salons Curtis Power, Owner 842 Victoria Street North, Unit 4, Kitchener, ON N2B 3C1 Email: powertans@hotmail.com / Web: www.powertans.com Phone: (519) 741-1504

Reitzel Insulation Co. Ltd. Insulation Contractors John Stefan, Controller 120 Northfield Drive East, Waterloo, ON N2J 4G8 Email: admin@reitzel.ca / Web: www.reitzel.ca Phone: (519) 886-6100 / Fax: (519) 886-6101

Six S Partners Inc. Computer Software John Preiditsch, President 510 Innsbruck Place, Waterloo, ON N2V 2N9 Email: john@sixspartners.com / Web: www.sixspartners.com Phone: (519) 746-4533 / Fax: (519) 746-4331

SmartKlean Kitchener-Waterloo and Area Environmental Products & Services Debbie Ross, Owner 2 Kennedy Avenue, Kitchener, ON N2G 2Z8 Email: debbie.ross@smartklean.com Web: www.smartkleankw.com Phone: (519) 496-8219/ Fax: (519) 208-0609

Sun Life Financial - Kitchener Insurance Geoffrey Ollson, Financial Centre Manager 22 Frederick Street Oxlea Towers, 4th floor Kitchener, ON N2H 6M6 Email: geoffrey.ollson@sunlife.com / Web: www.sunlife.ca Phone: (519) 744-7325 / Fax: (519) 744-1382

The Westmount Retirement Residence Retirement Communities & Homes Jodi Meier, General Manager 190 David Bergey Drive, Kitchener, ON N2E 0E7 Email: megriesbach@chartwellreit.ca / Web: www.thewestmount.ca Phone: (519) 571-1110

Tria Folia Website Design & Development Costin Sandru, Co-Founder, Business Operations Specialist 112 Mallard Crescent, Waterloo, ON N2V 1E4 Email: info@triafolia.com / Web: www.triafolia.com Phone: (519) 573-5822

W.R.M Safety Solutions Consulting Safety Consultants & Training William Matetich, President 617 Douro Street, Unit 202, Stratford, ON N5A 6S5 Email: administration@safetysolutions24-7.ca Web: www.safetysolutions24-7.ca Phone: (866) 291-7644 / Fax: (866) 840-0250

Waterloo Wellington Community Care Access Centre Home Health Care Services Kevin Mercer, CEO 800 King Street West, Kitchener, ON N2G 1E8 Email: information.waterloo@ww.ccac-ont.ca Web: www.ww.ccac-ont.ca Phone: (519) 883-5500 / Fax: (519) 883-5555

Wilmot Technologies Inc. Computer Repairs, Cleaning & Service Everton Wilmot, President 1420 Victoria Street North, Kitchener, ON N2B 3E2 Email: info@wilmottech.com / Web: www.wilmottech.com Phone: (519) 571-9745 / Fax: (519) 571-0409

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Charitable & Community Organizations Tara Gutscher, Community Development Coordinator 94 Bridgeport Road East Waterloo, ON N2J 2J9 Email: tara.gutscher@blood.ca / Web: www.blood.ca Phone: (519) 884-5728 / Fax: (519) 884-9085

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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feature

How Will We Meet the Growing Demand For Health Care Workers? BY CAROL SIMPSON Meeting the health care demands of a growing and aging Waterloo Region population continues as a significant local public policy priority. Along with recruiting family physicians and specialists, training and retaining workers across the entire health care system remains a challenge for Ontario’s growing urban centres. Demand for workers in health care occupations continues to grow at ever increasing rates as do the number of businesses in the health care sector. In Waterloo Region, from December 2008 to June 2011, the number of businesses in nursing and residential care grew from 93 to 209, an increase of 124.73%. During the same period, ambulatory health care increased by 157 businesses and employment in health care and social services increased by 19.5% in small and medium enterprises (SME’s) with under 100 employees. This speaks not just to our aging population but also to our growing population and we don’t expect either of these trends to disappear anytime soon. The escalating requirement for workers is related to both the retirement of current employees and an aging population naturally adding to the relative demand for health care. A 2008 study by economist Larry Smith for the Workforce Planning Board of Waterloo Wellington Dufferin (WPB) concluded that, between 2008 and 2017, a minimum of 4700 new workers would be required in just 16 local health care occupations and the number of retirees needing to be replaced increases to 292 percent over that same time period. At least another 1421 new nurses and 701 more personal support workers will be required to meet local demands. One method for meeting this labour market demand is through immigration. A 2009 WPB study found that among new immigrants arriving in Waterloo Region with an educational background in health and fitness, 45 percent were working in health care within the first 5 years of arrival. Unfortunately, however, we have no way to determine if they are employed at their highest level of training, e.g. a trained medical doctor

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possibly working as a nursing assistant, etc. and so the need remains to provide supports to new immigrants if they are to achieve their maximum potential and provide us access to their much needed skills. A new initiative to Waterloo Region, the Immigration Partnership has recently been established to develop a comprehensive local strategy around helping new immigrants settle, work and belong in this community. This strategy will include the attraction and retention of talent and skills required to meet the demand for new workers, not just in our health care sector but in other industry sectors where employment demand is high. A number of local initiatives have now been incorporated into the Immigration Partnership including the successful mentoring and internship programs developed over the past several years. As our existing labour market struggles to meet the future demand for new workers, immigration will play an ever increasing role in bridging the talent gap. If you would like more information about the Immigration Partnership contact Nora Whittington at nwhittington@regionofwaterloo.ca.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Carol Simpson Carol Simpson has been the Executive Director of the Workforce Planning Board for 11 years. She is currently a member of the Waterloo Region Immigration Partnership’s Working Action Group and is also Co-Chair of the Guelph Wellington Immigration Partnership.

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cover story

Residential Construction: Housing the Region’s Growing Population to 2031 BY JAMIE ADAM The Region of Waterloo forms part of the Greater Golden Horseshoe (GGH) in southern Ontario and is one of the fastest growing regions in North America. The Provincial Growth Plan for the GGH provides a framework for implementing the Government of Ontario’s vision for building stronger, prosperous communities by managing growth in this region to 2031. This Plan is intended to guide public and private decisions on a wide range of issues – transportation, infrastructure planning, land-use planning, urban form, housing, natural heritage and resource protection. Infrastructure may not be the most exciting topic, but it is of critical importance to our quality of life and economic prosperity in our Region. It is therefore not surprising that the most pressing local issue for the residential construction industry is the timely provision of infrastructure to accommodate not only the growth that has happened over the past decade, but the anticipated growth expected in the coming decades. The Region of Waterloo is expected to see substantial growth over the coming decades therefore it is vital that all three levels of government provide substantial sums for transportation, water and wastewater systems, health care, schools together with community and social services. If this rapidly growing region is not managed and guided in the way that it should be, then there is a serious and significant risk that we will stop being the economic engine that we currently are. The residential construction industry strongly supports increased hard infrastructure investments . The Region of Waterloo has many critical infrastructure priorities which include: - Construction of the new Highway 7 between Guelph and Kitchener; - A new 401 interchange at the west end of Kitchener;

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- Upgrading of water and wastewater systems to conform with new regulations and support growth through development within the built boundary and greenfield areas ; and - Improvements to both the Inter and Intra-Regional Transit Systems. The immediate primary requirement is for local municipal infrastructure investments to be planned and implemented to deliberately enhance housing affordability and choice by: • Supporting infill, intensification, brownfield and redevelopment opportunities which supports community rejuvenation; • Supporting planned greenfield areas to assure competitive land markets; and • Resolving bottlenecks in urban transport networks. The Region of Waterloo has one of the youngest demographic profiles in Canada and this trend is expected to continue into the future as this region continues to attract young families. Each segment of the population typically has housing preferences that reflect their requirements and what they can afford. The homebuilding industry has always been consumer-driven, since they can only sell what the consumer wants and can afford. If the Provincial and Regional plans for “growth management” mandate developments that do not align with the demands of the consumers, then there will be difficulties meeting the objectives of the Growth Plan. Currently (and for the foreseeable future) demand for singles, semis and townhouses (i.e. ground-related dwellings) will continue to comprise a substantial proportion of the market. It is acknowledged that the mid rise residential market is growing and current market conditions are meeting this demand. A housing mix that does not match with this demand will create scarcity in the preferred market segments and result in an unbalanced housing market and potential price escalation.

cover story

We should all be concerned about housing affordability. Builders are faced with growing government imposed costs (taxes, levies and fees) which are in turn passed on to the consumer and negatively impact affordability. In the Region of Waterloo, government imposed costs add almost 20% to the cost of an average new home which is the fourth highest among municipalities across Canada. Our economy is at a point of a fragile recovery that should be nurtured. It is therefore imperative that all levels of government take a sober second thought when considering additional regulatory, financial or land supply restrictions on an industry that creates jobs and is one of the few bright spots in Ontario’s economy.

Established in 1946, the Waterloo Region Home Builders' Association (WRHBA) has been the official voice of the residential construction industry in Waterloo Region. WRHBA is actively involved in all facets of the new home construction and residential renovation industries. As a voluntary association with over 240 member companies, WRHBA's network of professionals effectively manage industry issues across the region including the cities of Kitchener, Waterloo, Cambridge, and the Townships of North Dumfries, Wellesley, Wilmot and Woolwich. WRHBA's primary goal is to positively impact the communities where their members and their customers live, work and play through addressing important issues head on and ensuring a strong presence that benefits members and contributes to housing affordability and the wellbeing of communities. WRHBA encourages innovations and excellence in the planning and building of sustainable communities and in the redevelopment and renovation of existing communities. WRHBA works with government at all levels, and it regularly facilitates discussions between the industry and the federal, provincial, regional, and local governments to establish fair and effective policies that affect development, building, and home ownership in Waterloo Region.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jamie Adam Jamie Adam is the 38th President of the Waterloo Region Home Builder’s Association and President of Pioneer Craftsman Ltd.

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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events

Mark Your Calendar BY CHAMBER STAFF

January 19, 2012

January 25, 2012

January 26, 2012

Research In Motion Chamber Young Professionals Present Speed Mentoring

Knightsbridge Leadership Series Presents Gateways and Corridors

Networking Breakfast Series Presents Speed Networking

7:30am-9:00am Location: Hacienda Sarria 1254 Union Street, Kitchener ON Member: $35 +HST General Admission: $50 +HST

7:15-9:00am Location: Holiday Inn KitchenerWaterloo 30 Fairway Road, Kitchener ON Member: $28 General Admission: $40

5:00-7:00pm Location: Delta Kitchener-Waterloo 425 Bingemans Centre Drive, Kitchener ON, N2B 3X7 Member: $5 General Admission: $10 A good mentor is hard to find. That’s why at Speed Mentoring you’ll be in a room full of experienced mentors looking to connect and help. Come out and meet those who have been in your position before!

Join William G. Morrison, Associate Professor (Economics) and Director of the Laurier Centre of Economic Research & Policy Analysis (LCERPA), as he will discuss the Emerging Issues and Trends in Transportation, Infrastructure and Supply Chains. Title Sponsor:

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January 31, 2012 125th Anniversary Publication Networking Event 5:00-7:00pm Location: Victoria Park Pavilion Members: Complimentary General Admission: $10 +HST Join us and over 200 other business professionals to commemorate the Chamber’s 125th Anniversary report that is being created to celebrate our historic milestone. This event is free for Chamber members and complimentary food and beverages will also be provided. Publication Sponsor:

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events

February 7, 2012

February 8, 2012

AML / Rogers Chamber Connections

125th Anniversary Point of View with Frank McKenna

5:00-7:00pm

11:30am-1:30pm Location: Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel 475 King Street North, Waterloo ON Members: $35 +HST General Admission: $45 +HST

Location: KW Humane Society 250 Riverbend Drive, Kitchener ON Member: Complimentary General Admission: $10 Exhibitor: $75 Does networking intimidate you or do you thrive on meeting new people? Come out to this casual bi-monthly event with friendly faces and easy conversation that provides an opportunity for B2B networking. Title Sponsor:

Join the Honourable Frank McKenna, former Canadian Ambassador to the United States, 27th Premier of New Brunswick, and current Deputy Chairman of Toronto-Dominion Bank as we celebrate the Chamber’s 125th Anniversary. Title Sponsor:

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General Admission Individual Ticket: $175 +HST General Admission Table: $1350 +HST This annual Black Tie Affair is your opportunity to recognize nominees in 12 categories of excellence, at a night that is held in their honour. Title Sponsor:

March 8, 2012 Point of View with Berry Vrbanovic 11:30am-1:00pm Location: Bingemans – Embassy Room 425 Bingemans Centre Drive, Kitchener ON Member: $35 +HST General Admission: $50 +HST

February 16, 2012 Media Sponsor:

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2012 Business Excellence Awards Gala 6:00-10:00pm Location: Bingemans – Marshall Hall 425 Bingemans Centre Drive, Kitchener ON

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advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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feature

Infrastructure Critical for Connecting Southern Ontario BY LLOYD LONGFIELD Transportation has been a topic of discussion of Chambers of Commerce and Boards of Trade for hundreds of years. Commerce does not happen without strong communication links between communities, and these links need to evolve as communities evolve. What worked years ago needs to adapt and change, whether moving goods, people, or information. Our region has always had strong ties between our four communities, with some roads dating back to the early 1800’s connecting Guelph, Cambridge, Kitchener, and Waterloo. Unfortunately the main arteries are congesting more and more as the years go by. Connecting Woodstock to Alliston through the automotive parts manufacturers and suppliers involves at some point either a trip along Highway 124 or Highway 7. These two lane car roads with their traffic lights and multiple access points not only create inconsistent delivery times, but also become safety hazards with the frequent stops and left hand turns along the way. And it is not only parts that are not moving. A recent engineering study showed 25% of Waterloo’s commuters go to Guelph each day, and 25% of Guelph’s commuters go to Waterloo each day. One solution would be a mass trading of jobs, but people working in production jobs do not always make the best code writers in technology jobs. Highway design is only a part of the solution. Regional transportation links need to be improved, including bus and rail transit between the four communities. The GO train is coming back to Guelph and Kitchener in December. Unfortunately the times are designed to go one way: to Toronto. Bringing workers to our region in the other direction is not a part of the current plan. Our communities all have job shortages in certain areas, whether it is in the Technology jobs in Waterloo or in the manufacturing jobs in Guelph. As well, students living in Guelph have no easy way to get to colleges in Kitchener or Cambridge, or universities in Waterloo. And the same is true no matter which direction we are looking at. Guelph is in the process of opening a regional transportation hub, connecting city buses to regional buses, VIA rail, and GO Service. Now we need to develop links within the region and north – south connections to Brantford, Burlington, and Hamilton that do not go through Union Station.

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The Region of Waterloo International Airport has a great strategic advantage for regional business travelers, with an ever expanding route schedule. For travelers that are in the automatic pilot mode, driving to Pearson, Hamilton, or Buffalo to go through airport security and customs, there is definitely a better way to travel. The Region of Waterloo International Airport, YKF, not only has friendly staff at check in, and $6.50 a day parking rates (yes, really), you can get home in a fraction of the time it takes from touchdown at Pearson. Luggage lines simply do not exist, there is no parking shuttle, and your home is 78 km closer any way you cut the deck. With new services to the USA, you have to check out http://www.waterlooairport.ca/en/ and check into a more civilized way to travel. And as the saying goes, “use it or lose it”. An often overlooked infrastructure is our fibre optic connecting links. As the demand world-wide for intelligent communities grows, we need to look at our connecting speeds and capacities. We have a concentration of world class universities, colleges, and businesses but this means little if we cannot move our information to the rest of the world. This becomes the latest in the world of Chamber of Commerce transportation discussions – transporting knowledge. And we have a long way to go to keep up. Your regional Chambers need your help as we advocate for these improvements on your behalf.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Lloyd Longfield Lloyd Longfield is President and CAO of the Guelph Chamber of Commerce, and currently co-chairs the Institute for Canadian Citizenship in Guelph. He also serves as Vice President of the Chamber Executives of Ontario, director of Innovation Guelph, the Guelph Wellington Business Enterprise Centre, and the YMCA-YWCA Guelph.

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feature

Owning our Healthcare Challenge BY ROGER FARWELL AND AL HAYES A critical need for family physicians in the Kitchener-WaterlooWoolwich area arose in 1998, to which the Chamber responded by creating the Physician Recruitment Task Force. At that time, approximately 40,000 residents did not have access to a family physician. This was a serious concern, not only for residents but also for the business community. Lack of access to family physicians made it very difficult to attract qualified staff from other parts of Ontario and the world. In response, funds to support the Task Force were raised within the local business community. Using largely volunteer resources, the Task Force made good progress, seeing approximately 10-12 new family physicians establish themselves in the community annually. In 2006, the Greater Kitchener-Waterloo Health Care Recruitment Council (CHCRC) was established, stressing the need for increased emphasis on recruitment through an investment in full time staff. The CHCRC also had a broader set of objectives: 1. To attract and retain family physicians, ensuring that every resident in Kitchener-Waterloo-Woolwich had access to primary health care; 2. To support local hospitals with recruitment and retention efforts in order to ensure a level of specialist support for all hospital patient care services, and for family physicians to have access to specialist care for their patients; 3. To make Kitchener-Waterloo-Woolwich attractive not only to family physicians and specialists, but to all other health care professionals and support workers; 4. To develop policy and advocacy initiatives to address critical community health care issues and needs, as well as broader provincial policy on the funding and delivery of health care. Since its inception the CHCRC has evolved significantly and is now known as the Chamber Health Care Resources Council, reflecting an emphasis on physician recruitment and retention, health policy and advocacy. As a result of the many and varied efforts across the KitchenerWaterloo-Woolwich community since 1998, over 140 physicians have been recruited. The number of residents without access to a family physician has reduced to approximately 20,000. This significant reduction represents the hard work and dedication of the Chamber, private business, and local municipalities. However, as our population continues to grow and existing family physicians contemplate retirement, the need to recruit new physicians continues.

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With a full understanding of the existing situation in our community’s health care sector, it is clear that we face an ongoing challenge – one that requires our collective effort, investment, and focus. This challenge is particularly timely as we aim to provide a physician for each individual in our community at its present size, and look toward a significant increase in population within the next 10 to 20 years. Success in this kind of growth demands our attention as we strive towards a healthy and prosperous community. Our economic prosperity requires creative talent and ambitious workers to maintain our existing economic base. At the same time, new talent will be the driving force of innovation in our community; it is our responsibility to develop these young minds. The drive towards increased innovation and discovery via young and creative minds (supported by expert mentors) will see our community pioneer new ways to meet the needs of our community, province, and country. Without doubt, an essential part of the positive growth of our community and the success of the infrastructure of the KitchenerWaterloo-Woolwich region depends upon adequate health care facilitated by skilled health care professionals and clinics. Moreover, the retention and acquisition of heath care professionals will fuel the promotion and guidance of healthy living across our community. This is important work. At WalterFedy, we believe that unless we succeed in this challenge, we cannot be confident about securing a healthy future for the next generation. As such, this challenge is not one that we (and that means all of us) should take lightly. ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Roger Farwell and Al Hayes Roger Farwell is an architect at WalterFedy, where he is responsible for business development, design, and project management. Roger is known throughout the community for his dedication to arts & culture, and is involved in a multitude of community-developing initiatives, including serving as chair of the Creative Enterprise Enabling Organization. Al Hayes is an accomplished civil engineer, and serves as the Chief Executive Officer at WalterFedy. Al is highly active with our community, serving on boards such as the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce, the Rotary Club of Waterloo, Junior Achievement of Waterloo Region, and United Way.

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Employers and Employees Working Together For the Future BY KAREN HILTZ The workplace continues to become more innovative and challenging. Adaptability and flexibility have become essential to success. To successfully meet the competitive edge required, the working environment and relationships between employers and employees will continue to evolve. Being a great employer becomes essential in attracting and retaining talent. A work culture where employees find engagement and satisfaction is part of the total rewards package. It isn’t just about salary. Employers and employees are pioneering new and better practices to address the diverse work environment and challenging business issues. Both employers and employees continue to be committed to employee engagement. When an employee is engaged, he/she is more motivated, productive, fulfilled and helps the organization to be profitable. An employer who is committed to surveying their employees on a regular basis, and then committed to the continuous improvement opportunities required will certainly reap the benefits. These benefits include increased profitability, customer satisfaction, reduced safety incidents, reduced absenteeism and increased employee retention. High performance cultures include managers doing the things that matter the most, including working at gaining trust, communicating frequently and transparently, and displaying excellent leadership behaviours. Without appropriate and timely follow-up action, engagement surveys may actually decrease engagement levels. For employees, job satisfaction drivers may include the ability to apply their talents and influence decisions, career development, and training. Employees need to own what they want and work to match their wants with the organization’s needs. Managers need to understand and match their employee’s talents, interests and needs to the organization’s objectives and create trusting and personal working relationships, aligning business practices and constantly communicating the strategies and objectives of the organization. Employees want to be part of an ever-learning work environment. This requires support from employers in several ways. Tuition reimbursement programs are a benefit for both the employer and an employee. And the ability to have time off for study or exams requires some flexibility from the employer. The benefits of

supporting employees in a continuous learning environment are many – but most of all lead to an innovative and creative workplace – a competitive edge. Work / Life balance has become essential to employees – this is where the need for flexibility shows up. With globalization and working in different time zones, the need for employers and employees to conduct business competitively and yet respect each other’s need is evident. For each person and each organization, there are different boundaries – and so, both will need to respect, and be creative, flexible and adaptable to find a solution. Employees are seeking greater vacation benefits in order to establish this balance between work and home. Employees are requesting additional personal time to look after personal wellness, and the health and well-being of spouses/partners, children, aging parents, other family members or friends. Employers again are looking at innovative and creative solutions like flexible working hours, greater paid personal and vacation times, and flexible benefit plans. Employees are wanting assurance that there is an organizational strategic plan and that it is well communicated to employees at all levels, a sense of value within an organization, to have input and decision-making abilities at some level, input into their teams, transparency, collaboration, regular feed-back performance reviews, career planning opportunities, involvement in benefit choices and compensation – these should all be addressed by employers. Both employers and employees play a valuable part in developing a thriving and profitable organization – it is important that these conversations continue for years to come.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Karen Hiltz Karen Hiltz is a Senior Human Resources Professional, active with Immigration Partnership (Executive and Council), WRIEN and the high tech community, and passionate about networking and talent management.

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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sponsor profile

Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel The Makings of a Different Kind of Inn It’s a home away from home. It’s a trusted partner to corporations and organizations across Canada. It’s a true asset to Waterloo Region. Nestled next to a conservation creek in Waterloo is the Waterloo Inn, a world class independent hotel property offering its clients continually upgraded guestrooms, meeting spaces of all sizes, and exquisite cuisine both through the award winning Rushes Restaurant and the hotel’s state of the art banquet kitchens. Facing brand name competition everyday, this hotel provides those things that every hotel guest and client expects…and more. Beyond the elegance of the suites and the 24-hour room service, the hotel surrounds each client with friendly service and staff dedicated to anticipating guest needs. From the rich oak paneling in the lobby, to the surround WIFI and sophisticated ambiance of Rushes, the spirit of warm, welcoming hospitality is there. In 1972, the Waterloo “Motor” Inn opened its doors on (what was then) the outskirts of Waterloo. Farms and trees were the closest neighbours. The hotel offered 40 guestrooms, a large ballroom, the Vintage Dining Room for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and the Kellar Room as a German style beer hall. It provided a place to meet, eat, drink and enjoy life. Another 40 rooms were added in 1973, responding to the growing number of visitors to KitchenerWaterloo. 1982 saw another increase in the hotel size, as 76 more suites and guestrooms, more meeting/trade show and banquet space were added, the outdoor pool was enclosed for year round enjoyment, and the Terrace Café was created as an alternative to the more formal Vintage Dining Room. The lower level saw a variety of

transformations from the Kellar Room to Fat Albert’s in 1978. In 1982, Fat Albert’s morphed into Ruby’s allowing Waterloo to boogie the night away with food service til 3 a.m., a first in town! In the late 90’s, Ruby’s became the Regent Room, a first class facility for meetings, conventions, tradeshows, and press conferences.

Where Guests Come First Completed in 2011, the expanded three car wide porte cochere offers guests a place to exit their vehicles without getting rained or snowed upon. The automatic sliding main doors and new ramping accessibility makes struggling with luggage a thing of the past. For executives and corporate clients doing business in Canada’s Technology Triangle, or with our stellar educational institutes, there are oversized desks, voice mail, Wi-Fi throughout the hotel, and a Business Centre off the main lobby, all fully accessible. These corporations choose the Waterloo Inn as the home-away-fromhome for their out-of-town business partners, clients, and relocating staff. “ Our corporate partners know that we are not a cookie-cutter chain. They don’t bring us their clients because we’re the only choice in town, but because we are their first choice,” explains Sally Burns, Director of Sales. The Waterloo Inn Conference Hotel has hosted the World Figure Skating Championships, Canadian Celiac Foundation, Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police and the War Amps to name a few, who have chosen the Inn as the location for their annual conferences. This summer, the Waterloo Inn is not only the host hotel for the LPGA, but was an integral part of bringing the event to the community. We’re extremely proud to have been a part of so many events that are not only notable in our community, but in Canada as well. We work hard to have a positive impact on our community in executing great events, making Waterloo Region a world-class destination as we understand that service is not just towels and smiles. It’s in everything we do. Our goal is always to make sure guests, individual or corporate, want to come back. The Waterloo Inn is one of the region’s largest convention hotels with 155 guest rooms, 20 meeting and banquet rooms, 3-way divisible ballroom and the award-winning Rushes Restaurant. They also support their own generator system, allowing uninterrupted service through any city-wide power disruption and giving guests and clients peace of mind for safety and security throughout their stay.

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sponsor profile

Community Support Apart from serving our guests and clients, the Waterloo Inn has been a strong supporter of the Waterloo Region business sector and community at large. We have been a member of the Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce for over 30 years and our President Mary D’Alton served as Board Chair for 2009-10.

Awarding-winning Rushes Restaurant Rushes Restaurant, a culinary gem with its imaginative menu is seasonally refreshed to reflect local tastes and local foods. Rushes Restaurant has been recognized by Wine Spectator magazine with an Award of Excellence for its world-class wine cellar, also receiving the VQA Award from the Ontario Wine Council and most recently won the first Oktoberfest Iron Chef Award. The combination of fresh, seasonal menus and selected vintages provide for a truly exceptional experience.

The exclusive Private Dining Rooms seat groups of 30 or 60 and offer unique menu selections featuring local, in-season appetizers, dishes and desserts. Every menu is carefully crafted to ensure that all guests’ tastes are fulfilled. A traditional Sunday Brunch is served all year around, and is one the best in the region and beyond!

Quality Catering. Quality Service. Weddings, AGMs, holiday parties—no matter the occasion, guests will delight in amazing food and service. Every event is unique and treated as such. Menus are carefully planned and exquisitely prepared. Servers are professionally trained and go the extra mile to make sure guests are enjoying themselves.

Excellence in Everything We Do Every visitor, whether they are a guest, attending a function or visiting Rushes for an unforgettable dinner, is treated to unparalleled quality and service. Every greeting is genuine. Every meal is impeccably prepared. Every bed made with care. A first class hotel, meeting place, wedding venue and retreat in the heart of our community where the people are what make it the best!

advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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feature

Collaborative Workspaces: The Whole is Greater Than the Sum of its Parts BY AUBREY WALTERS Is it a trend or is it something that just seems to be common sense for smaller businesses and social profit organizations? Has it become a creative new way to run a business?

Downtown Kitchener Business Improvement Area and the Kitchener and Waterloo Community Foundation. It has proven to be an inspiring five months.

Collaborative or shared workspaces are becoming more and more popular in Waterloo Region. One of the most notable examples is the reclaimed land and refurbished historic structures that make up the Communitech Hub, the digital media centre located in downtown Kitchener’s landmark Tannery building.

Our relationship and collaboration with our partners has several benefits, including the very practical and tangible. For instance, we have been able to reduce costs by sharing equipment like photocopiers and fax machines as well as amenities such as our kitchen. The three of us share a large boardroom, which otherwise would be used only occasionally by our individual organizations.

The Hub is a business “accelerator centre” with collaborative openconcept workspace encouraging early-stage companies and established firms to share a dynamic environment and support each other. There have been several other exciting examples that have grown up in the Region lately, including the Treehaus Collaborative Workspace and the new Breithaupt Block. In each of these examples, the idea of collaborative workspace is much more than open-pod areas where several departments of a single company might work together in the traditional business sense. Now, the idea of a shared workspace concept is that it draws together distinct but similarly-minded businesses for the purposes of formally sharing office space but in new and different ways. Depending on the nature of your business, collaborative workspace could have a profound effect on your staff’s productivity, imagination and motivation, as well as their general well-being. It can make for a very liberating and motivating environment. Early last year, Junior Achievement of Waterloo Region (JA) moved from an office location where it had been operating for eight years. During that time, JA enjoyed occupancy costs well below market rates as tenants of our very generous landlord, Union Gas. Their growth meant we needed to find a new space – on a limited budget. After many months of searching and evaluating options, we chose to relocate in downtown Kitchener, the city’s central business district that is currently undergoing tremendous rejuvenation and growth. We also entered into a partnership with two other well-known local organizations to share office space at 29 King Street East: the

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But in addition to saving on hard costs, the collaborative workspace has given us a boost in the “softer” components of doing business. It provides JA with the shared energy of our partners that our small staff wouldn’t have been able to experience if we rented space by ourselves. The larger, collaborative office is now a place where ideas can be shared and where feedback from a colleague outside the organization can frame a new perspective on a particular issue. It is useful to be able to talk to someone who is in another business, but is just across the room. We call it “cross-pollination.” Like any “living arrangements” a single workspace shared by more than one organization is not without its challenges. There is a checklist of components you’ll need in place to make it work: shared values; compatible cultures; similar missions and a landlord that supports your vision.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Aubrey Walters Aubrey Walters is the President & CEO of Junior Achievement of Waterloo Region. JA delivers classroom programs that encourage young people to stay in school, stay out of debt and to discover their potential as business and community leaders.

member notables

Member notables Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors Elects New Board of Directors Sara Hill of Re/Max Twin City Realty Inc. was recently appointed president of the board of directors for the Kitchener-Waterloo Association of Realtors. Joining Ms. Hill as officers of the Association are former Greater Kitchener Waterloo Chamber of Commerce board member Dietmar Sommerfeld of CBRE Limited as 1st Vice President, Lynn Bebenek of Team Realty K.W. Inc. as 2nd Vice President, Past President George Patton of Royal LePage Wolle Realty and Executive Officer Bill Duce. Returning directors are Horace Coelho of Coldwell Banker Peter Benninger Realty, Ted Scharf of Royal LePage Scharf Realty, Roy Singh of Century 21 Home Realty Inc., Brian Spall of Re/Max Twin City Realty Inc., and Neil Strickler of Royal LePage Wolle Realty. Chris Kotseff of CBRE Limited is a new director. Sara Hill

ODG in New Hamburg Celebrates 50 Year Anniversary Since 1962, Ontario Drive and Gear Ltd. (ODG) has been successfully operating in Canada’s Technology Triangle and is proud of its people, the basis of the company’s growth story. Numerous performance awards from customers are testimonials to ODG’s commitment to innovation and superior quality. The company will be organizing several events during 2012 and the local community is cordially invited to celebrate with the team, customers and guests from many continents. ODG’s gear division has built a solid reputation for the design and manufacture of quality gears and transmissions. The vehicle division has established the ARGO as the recognized world leader in amphibious all-season, off-road vehicles for outdoor enthusiasts and commercial applications. The space division develops innovative rover concepts for future lunar exploration in partnership with the Canadian Space Agency and NASA. Congratulations to ODG President Joerg Stieber and staff on this anniversary and their on-going successes.

Delta Hotels Named One of Canada’s 50 Best Employers Delta Hotels and Resorts was ranked 9th on the 2011 “50 Best Employers in Canada” list compiled by AON Hewitt. This is the twelfth consecutive year Delta has placed on the list and the first designation in the top ten. “We are honoured to once again join the ranks of Canada’s 50 Best Employers,” said Alan Boivin, General Manager, Delta Kitchener-Waterloo in an October 20, 2011 release. “We have a special culture here at Delta KW and that’s really because of all the people who work here. And that gets translated into the guests who stay at our hotel – our employees make them feel at home.” Delta has also been named a Founding Partner of Excellence Canada (formerly the National Quality Institute) further illustrating the company focus on a healthy and supportive workplace. Other companies in this distinguished group include the Bank of Canada, National Post, and Manulife Financial to name a few.

(continued on page 28) advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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member notables

(continued from page 27)

Kraemer Woodcraft Celebrates 60 Years of Business Established by Daniel Kraemer in 1951, Kraemer Woodcraft Ltd. of St. Jacobs continues to provide exceptional woodworking products and services to customers across southern Ontario. As they celebrate 60 years of operation, their success is attributable to a traditional work ethic and unwavering commitment to delivering on time. Excellent customer service and quality craftsmanship have made Kraemer Woodcraft the primary vendor for Home Hardware’s Build a Better Home millwork program. Congratulations to President Lloyd Bauman and Vice President Terry Kraemer on their accomplishments and this significant milestone.

Dennis Watson Announces His Retirement Dennis Watson, Vice President and General Manager of CTV Southwestern Ontario since 1995, recently announced his retirement. Along with his impressive record in broadcast management, Dennis has compiled an enviable record of service across Waterloo Region as Chair and Vice-Chair, respectively, of the Board of Governors at Conestoga College and Cambridge Memorial Hospital. His community work also includes Kitchener- Waterloo Oktoberfest, United Way of Kitchener-Waterloo & Area, and The Kitchener and Waterloo Community Foundation. He was awarded The Lions Club of Kitchener Citizen of the Year Award in 2007 The Chamber, and community, thank Dennis for his support over the last sixteen years and wish him all the best in his retirement.

Dennis Watson

Member Notables are taken from local news sources and member submissions. In order to be considered “notable” an item must be an accomplishment or event that is outside of the ordinary course of business and therefore deemed newsworthy. While we would like to include all submissions, space constraints make it necessary for the Advocate editors to choose items that best fit the above criteria and are most timely.

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profile

Chamber Star - Peter Lehman The Chamber Star was developed to recognize volunteers and is a way for the Chamber to show appreciation for their significant efforts. It is awarded to an active committee member three times a year, following a Committee Chair nomination process. We are excited to announce that Peter Lehman is the newest recipient of the Chamber Star.

currently lending his expertise in marketing and problem solving to a number of different projects including an eco-based product and distribution line launch and business development initiatives with several companies. As well, he has assisted not-for-profit associations in the area with raising awareness and promoting benefits of membership.

Peter is Chair of the Volunteer and Member Services Committee, a role he has held for several years. He has spearheaded a number of initiatives within the volunteering branch of the Chamber, including the recent adoption of new policies outlining volunteer and chair roles. Along with the VMS committee, Peter has helped refine a number of training and orientation programs for volunteers and members alike. Peter’s desire to create positive change is clearly evident in his enthusiasm for his role.

Peter, along with his partner Jan, launched their company The Brandmark Group in 2006. Thank you Peter for all of your efforts!

Alongside his work with the Chamber, Peter is very active in both the commerce and community development sectors. He is

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Throughout the winter winter,, it’ it’ss essential esssential to keep walkways and parking lots ice-free. At the same tim time, me, it’ it’ss important to reduce our reliance environment property.. Excess on salt to help protect the en nvironment and our property Exxcess sources salt can seep into the groundd and ultimately affect our sour rces of water.. It can damage drinking water damagge buildings, properties and landscaping, landscapin dscaping, resulting in needless expense. se se. Why not become a Smart about Salt™ certified site? It’ It’s a small investment of time that will pay long-term dividends to both you and our commun community. nity. Become certified and make sure your snow removal cont contractor tractor is too.

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sponsors

Helping us make our vision possible A special Thank You to each of these Chamber Sponsors.

CHAMBER CHAIR’S CIRCLE

CHAMBER PATRON

CHAMBER

CONNECTIONS Manulife Financial

TITLE SPONSOR

LEADERSHIP SERIES

CHAMBER TRUSTEE

MEDIA PARTNERS advocate JANUARY | FEBRUARY 2012

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