Welcome
Welcome to the website of the Human Resources Professionals Association of Halton (HRPAH). The HRPAH is a chapter of the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) serving Members in Halton Region, including the communities of Burlington, Halton Hills, Milton and Oakville.
Our primary mission is to provide professional development and networking opportunities that enable our members' career progression and success. We are also committed to assisting Halton's human resources students launch their careers through the advice, counsel and mentoring of our Practitioner and CHRP Members. Lastly, we also seek to establish and develop positive and productive relationships with our Halton community through relationships with various levels of government, community groups and other area professional associations.
This website is designed to keep our members and potential members informed as to what activities and events the HRPAH is organizing, provide reviews and photographs from previous events as well as a complete archive of our chapter newsletter. There is also a special Members-only section that contains our Annual General Meeting and Executive Committee Meeting Minutes, Member Survey Results and Chapter Financial Statements.
One of the most important and valuable areas within the Members-only section is our Discussion Boards, which will allow our members to ask best-practice questions, discuss current HR issues, organize NKE™ and NPPA™ study groups and post Human Resources jobs at their employers or clients at no-charge.
Another helpful tool featured on the website is the Sponsored Links page, which will connect you to organizations providing Human Resources products and services to HRPAH members and their employers.
HRPAH hopes that this website will become a tool that you use regularly and that we will see you here often.
President's Message - Summer 2009
This is my first communication to you since taking over the Chapter President's role at the May 12 AGM. I am very excited about building on the accomplishments of my predecessor, Mike Bennett, and leading a very capable executive group for the next two years.
The first order of business is to thank the outgoing executives for their excellent work. Heather Reccord (Treasurer), Paul Baillie (Communications) and Jay Brown (Government Liaison) have completed their two-year terms, and Lisa O'Connell (Membership) has stepped down after one year due to the demands of a new job. We truly appreciate the hard work and commitment of this group in providing leadership to both their portfolios and to the Chapter.
A special thanks should go out to Mike Bennett, whose presidency has produced a number of important accomplishments that warrant recognition for Mike and the team:
- Our first on-line membership survey
- Development of our Chapter website
- Strengthening our monthly professional development programs
- Delivery of our first Executive Roundtable
- Migration to a more efficient on-line event registration
Thanks again Mike for your hard work and impressive accomplishments!
Now I would like to introduce our 2009/2010 Chapter Executive. We are very excited to start our new Chapter year with a combination of experienced Chapter executives and fresh faces:
Mike Bennett - Past President
Carmen Braund - Communications (new to team)
Jay Brown - Treasurer (new role but experienced Chapter executive)
Maia Jones - Membership (new to team)
Renee McIntosh - Secretary (entering second year of term)
Samina Sial - Student Liaison (new to team)
Jeff Sutton - Director At Large (new to team)
Irene Wilson - Programs (entering second year of term)
We will have a full agenda for the coming year. Here are some of our priorities:
- Conduct a membership survey this summer to gather member views and feedback
- Increase membership participation and engagement
- Review and revise of our chapter by-laws to align with the new HRPA chapter by-laws template
- Continue to deliver a challenging and interesting programming calendar
- Engage volunteers who have indicated an interest in helping out with Chapter activities - there are quite a few this year!
- Run an event or two in the north part of the chapter- Milton and/or Halton Hills
We will be in transition for the next month or so. Outgoing executives will be briefing incoming executives, the membership survey will be launched, Chapter executive email addresses will be changed over, and the website will be updated.
If you have any questions or input about our plans going forward, you can expect to receive an invitation to participate in our Chapter Membership Survey sometime in June. You can also contact me at president@hrpahalton.org
Have a great summer, and look forward to a fresh start of Chapter activities in September!
David Neilly
President
Human Resources Professionals Association of Halton
Message from Past President Mike Bennett
As much as some days the 2-year term of Chapter President felt like 10, now that it is over and the presidency has transitioned to David Neilly, it seems like just yesterday that I took over from John Hardisty. As I look back at what we've accomplished over the past two years, I am proud and feel that the Chapter continues to be very strong as we built on John's successes and those of Presidents and Executives before us.
We have seen our Membership continue to grow, we've launched a great newsletter and an impressive looking website. We have had, and continue to offer, a great variety of strong speakers at our events and continue a wonderful relationship with Sheridan Institute. These successes are a direct result of the hard work and dedication of our Executive and I am very proud and thankful to have worked with some great people over the past few years and for having such a great team. I would also like to thank all of you for being supportive of us, for participating in events, giving generously to our food bank collection at the Christmas and Holiday party and providing us feedback and suggestions along the way.
I look forward to the coming year as Past-President and working with David to continue moving the Chapter forward. David was instrumental in many of our key initiatives, has a strong vision and the Chapter will benefit from his continued commitment, dedication and leadership. I am also excited to be working with some great new additions to the Executive in Carmen, Samina, Maia and Jeff, along with Renee, Irene and Jay who are continuing on the team.
We continue to need people who have an interest in contributing to the Chapter, either on the Executive or through other volunteer opportunities that may require less of a time commitment. Being involved with the Chapter is very rewarding and fulfilling, so I would encourage you to explore it. This Association, and especially this Chapter is for you and about you. It also needs you if it is to continue to grow and be strong.
Once again, thank you for your support over the past two years and I wish you all a great summer. See you at our next event in September!
Sincerely,
Past President
Mike Bennett
