Winning at Recruitment: Creative Hiring and Retention Strategies

Winning at Recruitment: Creative Hiring and Retention Strategies

Join us at the Centre Dufferin New Horizons Seniors Club in Shelburne, ON (*Entrance E) for an interactive session designed for small businesses, featuring HR, marketing, and hiring experts who will share innovative approaches to attract and retain top talent. This workshop will include an expert panel, providing valuable insights into creative hiring and retention strategies. Participate in hands-on activities and discussions to craft compelling job postings, enhance your employer brand, and implement effective retention strategies to keep your workforce engaged, and motivated, and drive your business forward.

The workshops will also provide an opportunity for Shelburne Economic Development to gather valuable information for a 5-year Action Plan aimed at guiding the community's growth and prosperity. We seek input from business owners, residents, and workers from Shelburne. Participants who meet the criteria will be asked to complete a brief exercise focused on assessing current economic conditions, identifying opportunities, and prioritizing future actions.

While your participation is highly valued, participating in the exercise is voluntary.

Location

New Horizons Seniors Club, 167 Centre St, Shelburne, ON (Entrance E)

Workshop Hosts

Dana Gidge

Dana shows dedication and care in everything she does. She has been an HR professional for most of her career and her passion started early as she realized the best part of HR was relationship building. She enjoys creating an environment where employees can think big, have fun, and do good work. She understands that people are a business’ best asset and working on engaging employees is rewarding for all involved. Dana is well versed in many HR functions but her many years in the manufacturing industry has given her valuable experience in health and safety, training and development and legislative compliance. She is no stranger to hands on work and draws from a diverse knowledge base. She is certified in WSIB, ISO 14001 (environmental) and many other Quality Standards (ISO, QS and TS) and is a Certified Human Resources Leader.

Her ability to make relationships makes her a valued member of the RLB HR consulting team. What makes client work interesting and rewarding for Dana is the relationship that she forms with the client. They trust her and in return she ensures they receive the best personal service and top notch HR practices in the industry.

Dana’s unrelenting passion outside HR is her family. She married her university sweetheart and moved to Ontario. She is the mother of two active boys who keep her on her toes! She knows what hard work is and prides herself on passion for her job, her family and her friends. She is a regular volunteer at her son’s schools, a Director on the Guelph District Human Resources Professional Association and a Sunday school small group leader at her church.

Alexandra Magder

Alexandra is the co-owner of a multidisciplinary health and wellness clinic, recognized both provincially and locally for its exceptional work in the industry. Under her leadership, the clinic has grown from a team of two to over 25 employees within five years.

She is committed to embracing AI technologies to streamline both recruitment, administrative processes and treatment, enhancing the experience for patients and employees alike.

Prior to opening the clinic in Shelburne with her husband, Alexandra was the first Social Media COE and Director for General Motors Canada, overseeing brands such as Cadillac, Chevy, GMC, and Buick. In this role, she represented the Canadian business line and collaborated with international teams to advocate for social media adoption and governance across all GM divisions. Alexandra successfully led and managed several agencies, handling multiple departments including paid social, analytics, content creation, influencer programs, governance, social media management software, and government relations. She also worked on high-priority projects with GM Canada and GM International, which included leveraging social media as a recruitment tool for software engineers in the autonomous technology sector.

Stephanie Williams

Stephanie enjoys her current role as an Employment Services Consultant within the Career and Community Employment Services at Georgian College. In this role, she supports members of the Dufferin community, primarily youth with guidance on becoming and staying employed. Stephanie provides clients with employment related supports and coaching to alleviate and significantly reduce their individual barriers to attaining and keeping work. Stephanie also creates content for and facilitates job search related topics as well as one-on-one coaching sessions. Stephanie works with growing employers in Dufferin County to effectively develop work experiences for and with clients.

Stephanie has a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Human Resource Management from York University. Stephanie’s talent to communicate effectively with clients and employers with both empathy and thoughtfulness has proven to be a great strength, especially as it relates to communicating with the diverse groups within the Dufferin community.

Stephanie absolutely loves to volunteer, especially when it comes to programs involving youth. She is an avid crime and history podcast listener who loves to walk and stay active by playing tennis, badminton and utilizing her home gym.

Diana Morris

Diana Morris is the Executive Director of the Dufferin Board of Trade (DBOT) and an Accredited Chamber Executive. She holds a diploma in Business Marketing and a certificate in Human Resource Management from St. Clair College and has taken the Certificate in Economic Development program at the University of Waterloo.

Diana joined DBOT in 2015 after relocating to Dufferin to pursue farming in the Hills of Mulmur with her husband. Together with their two teenage daughters, they are raising field crops, a small herd of pygmy goats, a few pigs, and some chickens. Building on her extensive experience in finance, marketing, and organizational management, Diana is committed to advancing the Dufferin business community through strategic initiatives and fostering connections that drive economic growth.

The project is funded in part by the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Agribusiness, South Georgian Bay Community Futures, and the Town of Shelburne.