On February 26, 2010, a full day by-invitation event launched CODI's partnership with the Schulich Executive Education Centre (SEEC). SEEC is the professional development arm of the Schulich School of Business at York University. As a young organization, we’re very proud of this partnership – particularly as Schulich is by many accounts the top business school in Canada, and one of the best world-wide.

Despite the storm that day, almost all of the invited senior executives and OD or HR practitioners made it. The day was a huge success, both in and of itself, and as a launch for our partnership. Together, SEEC and CODI are building a Centre of Excellence for OD, consisting of three components:

• A SEEC/CODI Master’s Certificate in Organization Development (MCOD)
• A jointly offered OD Seminar Series, including breakfast and evening sessions, one- to three-day programs, and perhaps an annual conference. These events will all take place at SEEC’s campus in downtown Toronto.
• Custom OD programs for corporate and institutional clients.

The focus on launch day, February 26, was "Enhancing Agility, Productivity and Profitability through Organization Development" – and how OD practitioners can contribute toward those goals at the highest executive level. In the morning we heard from Malcolm Cowan, SEEC's "Executive in Residence", and from Paul Woolner, a Toronto consultant who helped with the creation of CODI and remains close to everyone involved.

The afternoon was devoted to a "conversation cafê". Participants gathered around small tables to explore questions and concepts arising from the morning. Then everyone but the table note takers moved to different tables to continue the exploration in new groups.

So the conversation built. In the subsequent plenary recap, it was apparent that a common theme had emerged: the need for OD practitioners to develop their capacity to understand business and to talk business language. Adding more business acumen to the OD palette is exactly what CODI and SEEC have in mind in developing the entire Centre of Excellence.

For SEEC's follow-up summary of our launch day, click here. Go here for the day’s slides.

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The new SEEC/CODI Masters Certificate in OD jumps off with the fall session of CODI’s four-module,12-day OD and Change Intensive program. Full details of the MCOD will be available shortly, but here is an overview:

• CODI's four-module, 12-day Intensive program
• A four-day Schulich School of Business course, Business Acumen for OD Professionals
• A mentored OD and Change Practicum managed by CODI

CODI’s Intensive program is the successor to our well regarded Intensive program. The first Intensive program will commence September 29/10. So whether you are interested in Intensive alone, or within the MCOD, please apply using the Intensive application. Maximum 21 participants with six places already filled.

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Strategic Stakeholder Engagement

A three-day workshop with online follow-up with Ingrid Richter, CODI Academic Co-Director/Threshold Associates, and Ray Gordezky, Codi Faculty/Threshold Associates

Organizations with continuous and productive stakeholder relationships develop more innovative responses to complex issues, show faster adoption of new ideas, and collaborate more quickly in response to new challenges.

Finding effective responses to today’s complex challenges – from brokering agreements on emissions targets, collaborating on food safety standards, or involving citizens in the creation of sustainable communities – requires productive, lasting stakeholder relationships. Developing these relationships takes a deliberate and thoughtful approach that goes well beyond existing consultation methods.

In this interactive workshop you will learn a framework and practical methods for understanding, planning, and facilitating productive stakeholder collaboration.
This program will address the following questions:

• What is Strategic Engagement and how does it differ from other forms of
  stakeholder participation?
• How do I go about developing a practical and comprehensive
  engagement strategy?
• What methods and processes can I use to create self-managing
  stakeholder networks?
• How do I facilitate strategic engagement?

Fall, 2010

Location: SEEC’s downtown campus

Date, price and location to be announced

Complementing the SEEC/CODI OD Seminar Series, CODI’s existing Advanced Practitioner Series (APS) goes on!

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Information upon request. Send us an e-mail.

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