Board of Directors Meeting
June 5, 2012, 10:00 am EDT
Minutes
Attendees
Page 5 of 6
Directors:
Jim Bergeron (by phone, as of 10:30)
Darren Christle
Ray Dufour (by phone)
Brent Ellis (by phone)
Chris Gonsowski
Dwayne Hihn
Paul Howatt (by phone)
Jean Loitz (by phone)
Linda Lucas (by phone)
Joe Malon (by phone)
David McCormick
Richard Moore (by phone)
Hervé Pilon (by phone)
By Proxy:
Don Borsk
John Gauvreau
Frances Humphreys
Lesley Smith
Observers:
Ed Arial
Regrets:
Maria Lindenberg
Tracey Raimondo
Guests:
Ken Babich (by phone, as of 10:40)
Linda Craig (by phone)
Sandra Ferguson
Brian Fleming (by phone, until 10:30)
Yvon Leger (by phone)
Anil Mislankar (by phone)
Isabelle Moo Sang (by phone, as of 10:30)
Caroline Tompkins (by phone)
Staff:
Kim Biggar
Sheryl Keenan
Kevin Maynard
Beverly Myers
Page 5 of 6
Meeting Materials
Right click to open files
§ Agenda
§ Reference 3.1 – Minutes of the Meeting of March 22, 2012
§ Reference 6.1 – Key Results Areas and Strategic Objectives
§ Reference 7.1 – Research Committee Report
§ Reference 7.2 – Marketing and Communications Committee Report
Reference 8.1 – Financial Report
o 8.1a: Core Infrastructure Budget
o 8.1b: Core Infrastructure Cash Flow, Year 2 Projected
o 8.1c: Core Infrastructure Cash Flow, Year 2 Actuals
o 8.1d: Financial Results, April 2012
o 8.1e: Non-Government Funds
o Vacation Accrual Report (originally posted with AGM materials)
Agenda
Review and Acceptance of the Agenda Dwayne Hihn
§ No suggestions were made for changes to the agenda.
Motion to approve the agenda:
Moved by Chris Gonsowski
Seconded by David McCormick
All in favour
Motion carried
Review and Approval of Minutes David McCormick
See Reference 3.1 – Minutes of the Meeting of March 22, 2012
§ Linda Lucas noted that the minutes should show, in the last section on page 4, that demand for labour in the 10 key occupations that affect the Asia Pacific gateway and corridor is expected to be 50,000 people over the next 10 years, not five years.
Motion to approve the minutes of the meeting of March 22, 2012, with above-noted amendment:
Moved by Darren Christle
Seconded by Ray Dufour
All in favour
Motion carried
Chair’s Report Dwayne Hihn
§ The Council had a good year: The NAP is going well and is a source of revenue; the Recruitment and Retention Toolkit was launched.
§ We are challenged to keep up with demographic shifts, evolution in the sector; for example:
· There is a need for 50,000 people just in 10 key positions in Western Canada over the next 10 years.
· There is a shift to distribution.
· In Northern Ontario/Quebec, the economy is booming, it’s hard to get employees. Generally, there is a shift away from big cities; positions are becoming more available in other places.
· People are working longer.
· Ontario and Quebec economies are likely to struggle as manufacturing erodes.
· Some oil and gas projects are on hold, growth in mining is slowing... Are we going back into recession? There is nervousness in the economy, China is slowing down.
Feedback
§ Darren Christle: The public sector is in hold mode, with no new initiatives. Significant cuts are expected this year; many provinces are undertaking the same kind of program review as the federal government. Cuts will also have an impact on the private sector.
§ David McCormick: In 2008, just before the recession started, there was an uptick in hiring; he is seeing the same kind of uptick now, causing concern about the economy. A recent survey showed that a third of employers are struggling to find the talent they need.
§ Chris Gonsowski: The supply chain sector employs a lot of older people; it lacks glamour to attract young people. Companies that are required to downsize employees lose people and don’t usually get them back. His company is looking at sharing employees with other companies in the sector to help maintain a pool of skilled workers for all involved. This is being done in Europe and Asia.
§ Sandra Ferguson: MicroSkills is experiencing a slowing down of placements and mentoring in the sector; clients are taking much longer to find employment, and many are leaving Ontario to do so.
§ Dwayne Hihn: Newcomers are being pushed to work in areas where the work is.
§ Chris Gonsowski: They’re also being pushed into particular industries where the jobs are.
§ Sandra Ferguson: MicroSkills helps with relocation and re-education.
§ Linda Lucas: How do we make sure that we’re communicating with each other, staying connected to know about trends and needs in various areas? Employers are looking for experience and education, a problem for young people... how do they get the experience?
§ Jim Bergeron: People will be working longer, thanks to stock performance and government changes related to the age of retirement; this will have an impact on needs in the sector. The need is likely larger than is talked about.
§ Brent Ellis: Manufacturing needs to be supported to keep jobs. There are pockets across Canada, including Cornwall, where there is need for supply chain employees. Continuing-education offerings should be delivered to fit the schedules of workers. We need to improve the image of the sector; could emphasize, for example, the ability to work globally.
§ Paul Howatt: APICS is experiencing growth in education registrations and requests for information; people are seeking opportunities.
§ Hervé Pilon: Cégep André Laurendeau still has a high level of enrolment in supply chain programs.
§ Ray Dufour: Although the N.B. Community College supply chain program is at 100 percent capacity for the coming school year, it’s a tough industry to sell. There is demand for graduates from employers (they never have to call employers to place students), but reaching young people about supply chain opportunities remains necessary.
§ Richard Moore: In shipping, trends are noticeable about six months ahead of when they begin to have an impact on others; now they’re seeing a slight decline in volume, not a positive indicator for the economy. In Nova Scotia, rural areas are becoming depopulated by young people, who are moving to cities and to Western Canada for work. Rural areas don’t have enough people available to work. The ship-building industry is booming, which will drain skilled trades available for other industries. We need to increase awareness of the supply chain sector to help combat these challenges.
§ Joe Malon: Not sure that companies are ready to keep on older workers. Is seeing a tightening of consumer spending. There is a trend in supply chain to working more with customers; for example, at Nestle, logistics is outsourced and employees deal with customer management. There is a need to better sell the sector, to let young people known about the management-type jobs in supply chain.
§ Dwayne Hihn: More senior management positions are being created, but recognition of that outside of the sector remains low.
Motion to approve the Chair’s Report:
Moved by Joe Malon
Seconded by David McCormick
All in favour
Motion carried
Executive Director’s Report Kevin Maynard
See Reference 6.1 – Key Results Areas and Strategic Objectives
§ The Accreditation Review Panel should comprise about 20 people; it is currently short in the range of four to six people. Anyone with recommendations for candidates should contact Kevin Maynard or Beverly Myers. The ARP meets four times a year by conference call and does some work between meetings.
§ Work with provincial governments is mainly with Economic Development, Transportation and Education ministries, with which the Council reinforces the impact of supply chain work on the economy.
§ The Council’s LMI tool now allows for projections for all 26 NOC codes; Kevin will hold a webinar to teach people how to use the data. Webinars on other topics could also be held.
§ The NAP is now the most-important work of the Council because of the revenue it provides. Significant growth is needed to support the Council after 2013. Interest is continuing to grow, especially for French-language program and course providers.
§ The Supply Chain Career Awareness Collaborative now comprises 15 members; the group will have a directional (possibly governance) role in the Council’s future.
§ Staff has focused on communicating business-as-usual status of the Council.
Motion to approve the Executive Director’s Report:
Moved by Ray Dufour
Seconded by Chris Gonsowski
All in favour
Motion carried
Research Committee Report Beverly Myers
See Reference 7.1 – Research Committee Report
§ National Accreditation Program:
· Institutions/trainers with accredited programs and courses will be surveyed to give the Council feedback about the NAP’s usefulness and value, which can be used in promoting the program. It would also be useful to know if graduates of accredited programs are getting jobs thanks to the accreditation. Agenda for next meeting is to include a discussion about the value of accreditation, with presentations from educators.
Linda Lucas: We could also include a discussion about articulation agreements and linkages that the Council could help to facilitate.
· Employers are being encouraged to hire graduates of accredited offerings. Wills Transfer, for example, is doing so with its material-handling employees. Word of mouth is still much used as a way to hire; basing hiring decisions at least partly on graduation from accredited programs would be a better way.
Dwayne Hihn: The Council should approach some employers to get them to formally adopt a policy of hiring graduates of accredited programs and talk about it.
· The first accredited offerings are due this year for renewal. The Council’s projections call for a renewal rate of 80 percent. About half of the organizations due to renew have already indicated that they will renew. The current policy for any organization renewing after the expiry of the accreditation is to treat the offering as a new submission. Because of the large number of renewals to be reviewed this year, that policy may be changed. The Board representatives of associations with accredited programs/courses are asked to check with association staff and report to the Council on whether or not the association plans to renew its accreditation(s).
· Dwayne Hihn asked what the target number of submissions is for 2012/2013. That number should serve as a benchmark to assess our success with the program.
[Targets are: for new business – 16 programs and 1 course = $12,100; for renewals – 9 programs and 0 courses = $2,925. Total revenue for the year: $15,025. Expenses for the same period are projected as: market development - $1,060, cold calling - $3,300, administrative support - $400, ARP meetings - $5,500; total costs: $10,260. Net NAP profit: $4,765.]
§ Career Focus Program:
· The Council is still waiting to hear about future funding for the program.
§ HR Study Recommendations for the Council:
· Re outreach to students:
§ Partnership with Junior Achievement – It is hoped that initial placements of supply chain volunteers to deliver JA programs will happen in the fall. PMAC has pledged a donation of $2,000, which it is providing in lieu of giving presenters at its annual conference speaker gifts. CPPC plans to make the same kind of contribution after its November conference.
§ Partnerships with schools – Based on the process developed in partnership with the Toronto District School Board, the Council is developing partnerships in Cornwall, Kitchener/Waterloo, and Lower Mainland B.C./Vancouver Island.
· Re participation of internationally trained workers in the sector:
§ The Council helped ACCES Employment Services to develop its Supply Chain Connections program (for which the Council will receive non-HRSDC revenue).
· Re underrepresented groups:
§ The Council is involved with the Calgary Logistics Council in the new Women in Supply Chain initiative.
· Board members and others are asked to contact Kevin Maynard with any suggestions to implement the study recommendations.
Motion to approve the Research Committee Report:
Moved by Chris Gonsowski
Seconded by David McCormick
All in favour
Motion carried
Marketing and Communications Committee Report Kim Biggar
See Reference 7.2 – Marketing and Communications Committee Report
§ Supply Chain Career Awareness Collaborative:
· Another organization is interested in joining the SCCAC, which would bring the number of members to 16. For now, however, the Collaborative is not accepting new members; depending on what happens with the Council’s transition, new members may be required to pay to join. The fee would recognize the input of originating members of the group.
§ KPIs:
· Monthly visits to the Council’s website were at their highest ever in April 2012, probably reflecting the release of the HR study report.
Motion to approve the Marketing and Communications Committee Report:
Moved by Darren Christle
Seconded by David McCormick
All in favour
Motion carried
Transition Planning Committee Report Kevin Maynard
§ SCL’s Board has approved a merger in principle. In such a merger, the Council would become a program committee of the association.
§ At the Council’s March 2012 Board meeting, a decision on transition was tabled for discussion at a later date.
§ The Transition Planning Committee is waiting for information about SCL’s leadership succession plan; members would like to see Kevin Maynard take over Bob Armstrong’s role. [Bob was expected to retire from SCL in the summer of 2013, but he recently left to join CILTNA.] SCL requested time to prepare a plan after its AGM in May, so the Committee expects to hear from the association soon.
§ The Committee is also concerned about the makeup of the Board at SCL, and would like to see information about its plan for succession on the Board.
§ The Committee will meet in July, after which a special meeting of the Council’s Board may be called.
§ A decision about the Council’s future is expected to be made within three months.
§ The work and outputs of the Council, particularly in the area of the NAP, will not disappear or be discontinued.
Motion to approve the Transition Planning Committee Report:
Moved by Ray Dufour
Seconded by Joe Malon
All in favour
Motion carried
Financial Report Darren Christle