Balancing La Familia
Monday, February 20th is Family Day in New Brunswick, Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario, Saskatchewan, and British Columbia. The intention was to create a holiday that would give hard-working people the opportunity to spend more time with their loved ones in a month that can be quite dreary.  

I wonder how it is working out. Will one extra day, while a step in the right direction, really help balance the time we spend between our work and personal lives? And do we really want balance? An equal distribution of our time? The scales are bound to be tipped one way or another depending on our situation.

When my children were young, my job required a fair bit of travel. To achieve balance, one summer, as often as I could, I packed them up, seconded my teenaged nieces to babysit, and off we went to whatever hotel or inn I was staying at. I had breakfast with them, worked during the day, and reunited with them for dinner and the evening. It was the best of both worlds.

But I also remember the days of driving away from our home and looking back to see the two of them crying at the screen door because I was going to work. I know it only lasted until I was around the corner but guilt? You betcha! 

So where am I going with this trip down memory lane? 

Times have changed. The pandemic forced us into more time at home yet did it help with the balance? Let’s look at less commuting. Ideally, this should have resulted (and for some it did) in a leisurely breakfast or having time at the end of the day to relax instead of being stressed by rush hour traffic. For others, that extra time was used to do more work. And what about people with school-aged children? Parents became teachers with online learning; work and life certainly became integrated sharing workspaces with children (and pets!).  

Whose responsibility is work-life balance/work-life integration? I suggest it is a shared responsibility. Employers have a responsibility to look after their employees and employees have a responsibility to look after themselves. Create a culture where this can happen. Provide options to support employees; condensed work weeks, paid personal days, and professional development days infused with fun and laughter.  Encourage transparency, enabling employees to be open about how they are doing and when they might need a little extra understanding and support. 

Make work-life balance a daily effort not just one more day off. 

And speaking of days off, I have made the difficult decision to retire this year. My last day as CEO of MCE will be June 30th. I feel privileged to have led MCE through good times and challenging times over the past eleven and a half years. It has been an amazing ride. 

A message from
Audie McCarthy | President & CEO
Welcome Irene
MCE is pleased to announce that Irene Grant will be joining us on a part-time basis as an Office & Training Administrator beginning March 6, 2023.

Irene will be working alongside the current admin, Lorraine MacDonald, in a transitional role as our beloved Lorraine will be leaving for retirement pastures as of July 1st, 2023. Irene will then take over full-time responsibilities.

What will be very tough shoes to fill, we feel that Irene is just the one to fill them.
What's Up and Coming
THE FINAL COURSE IN OUR WINTER SEASONAL SERIES!
Conflict Resolution is a need at any time of the year. Perhaps some more than others, but we can assure you now is a good time. Early Bird until February 28, 2023.

DON'T IGNORE THE ABOVE SERIES, BUT NOTE THE UPCOMING SUMMER SERIES:
And, we have some brand new, dynamic facilitators coaching this series: On June 14th, it's Creating Amazing Customer Service with Nahla Kor. On July 12th, it's Dealing with Difficult Behaviours with April Morganti. On August 9th, it's Mastering Effective Communication with Joe Xamin. The next newsletter will have live links to register, without the crazy Ticketmaster queue and prices.

A NEW YEAR, A NEW LEADER;
Another enticing Future Ready Leadership Essentials is happening on September 5th, 2023. Around that time those with kids get sent back to school, allowing plenty of time to commence training. Impress your kids and your boss by insisting you get started on a leadership path to set you apart.

COMING UP SOON: ENROLL YOUR DEVELOPING LEADERS WITH HIGH POTENTIAL IN THE NEXT FRL1;
Future Ready Leadership 1 is back with a start date of April 12, 2023.

FOR EXPERIENCED LEADERS, FRL 2 HAS HAD A DATE CHANGE;
Look to the future. Future Ready Leadership 2 starts on September 12, 2023.

ADVANCED LEADERS LOOKING TO ACCELERATE INTO A NEW FUTURE-READY LEADERSHIP ROLE;
Future Ready Leadership Acceleration has an open-seat cohort underway, so look at this space for the next available cohort. It's an award-winning course, you know.
Oxford: A Case Study
Have a look at our case study with Oxford County, as it recently appeared in CAMA's newsletter to all members. 

CAMA member Oxford County is a two-tier, municipal government made up of 8 area municipalities. Oxford worked with MCE to create a customized program that incorporated internal competencies, values, and practices, towards developing succession planning through leadership development to address an aging workforce, while boosting employee attraction and attention. 

Learn more HERE.
Central Looks West
We have an 'agent' in the western city of Calgary and it's outlining municipal areas, looking to discover what is, if any, the differences in leadership development between Central and Western Canada.

MCE Facilitator, Shona Welsh, who now resides in Alberta and is networking to help support the development of a unique seminar on 'Central Meets West' - an interactive 1 1/2 hour virtual look at best practices in municipal leadership development from Ontario to B.C.

Targeting municipal decision-makers, MCE is also involving James Ridge, an acclaimed author of 'Welcome to the Hall' (BOOK) and former City Manager in Burlington, ON, and former CAO of North Vancouver, B.C., (BIO), for a detailed perspective from both regions.

Obviously, lots more to come. Share any thoughts if you have them. We tend to listen well.
Lucky Number 13
Finally, congrats goes out to MCE partner PATH for their recent 'Consumer Choice Award for Best Employment Services.'

It's been the 13th consecutive year for PATH, rising to the top as the very best employment service in the Hamilton and Niagara area.

Kudos!
For more program information or general inquiries, contact us at info@mcecor.com
Mohawk College Enterprise