Presidents of Enterprising Organizations Opens Up a Dialogue Online

The business world will be getting a lot more transparent. Presidents of Enterprising Organizations (PEO), a peer-advisory association for the nation’s top business leaders, has started a blog (www.peo.net/blog) to share insights with the business world.

“PEO values the trusted discretion found between the leading executives in our membership,” said Leon Goren, PEO president, whose members embrace the idea that future business success derives from the wisdom and resources of an integrated peer network. “But there are many important issues to discuss that are of public interest and that our network of business leaders can provide a wide range of special insight into.”

PEO is the place for top executives to go for answers, advice and to gain the tools to grow as leaders. Goren, former President of Canadian online success story, Justwhiteshirts.com, is familiar with business success and has assisted many of the country’s top presidents, senior executives and entrepreneurs understand the needs and challenges of excellence in leadership.

The PEO Blog’s first post concerns the 2010 “War for Talent” that has broken out all over the business world. The blog discusses the reality of the situation, and offers tips for business leaders to prevent losing their best staff.

“Today’s headhunters act like silent night raiders” said Goren “They come in after dark, steal your valuable staff, and leave before managers know what hit them.”

PEO will continue to post new blog articles regularly that focus on current business issues, concerns and triumphs. By tapping into the wealth of information among PEO members and leaders the blog intends to provide the business world with information straight from the top.

PEO is a networking space for top business professionals to communicate, learn, and grow as leaders. PEO members lead Canadian and international businesses with annual sales ranging from $500,000 to over $12 billion including recognizable brand names as well as up and coming organizations. The process is a proven success.

More information can be found at www.peo.net.

To arrange an interview opportunity please contact:

Richard Rotman
416-464-2194
rotman-pr@rogers.com

How leaders can recognize and build a defense against stress

When Dr. Dwight Chapin, Clinic Director at High Point Wellness Centre in Mississauga, started his practice one of his first patients was the President of a financial organization. Chapin recognized his patient as a leader who was a high achiever. He also saw a man suffering from painful backaches brought on by excessive stress.

“I treated his muscle spasms with acupuncture. Following his first treatment he sat up abruptly and started to cry,” says Chapin. “He was embarrassed by his emotional release and apologized to me, telling me that his teenage daughter had just been diagnosed with an eating disorder. This family stress was the source of his back pain. The experience taught me a valuable lesson early in my career: that physical pain can often be a manifestation of stress from other sources.”
It was a lesson that stayed with Chapin, and in the 12 years since then he has been helping his patients come to grips with stress – its sources, symptoms and ramifications. He and his team of practitioners have been running corporate wellness programming for such organizations as The Globe & Mail, General Mills Canada Corp., Canada Post Corporation, JTI-Macdonald Corp., Redpath Sugar, and Bell-Creekbank Campus.

Working with some of Canada’s top executives and athletes he has seen firsthand how individuals who have reached the apex of their professions cope with stress. “Stress can provide you with incredible power and capacity when you get it working for you,” says Chapin. “But you can’t harness stress without first understanding and respecting the impact it can have on your health.”
Understanding and recognizing stress

For executives facing the daily pressures of running a business or achieving corporate goals, understanding stress is vitally important. Most business leaders wouldn’t be where they are now without a certain amount of performance-related stress to bolster their determination to take risks and succeed.

Yet when leaders are constantly performing at an elevated level of stress, it can become overwhelming. Under pressure, many tend to ignore the symptoms of chronic stress; attributing the aches and pains and other problems they are experiencing to the aging process. As long as they’re not getting sick and they can continue to function, why worry? Far too many individuals define health as simply the absence of illness or disease.

It’s a mistake, says Chapin, to expect an inevitable decline in health as we age. Lifestyle dictates 80% of how a person over 50 ages, and living with chronic stress day after day without respite can have serious consequences on a person’s health.
“Often leaders have been operating at such a high level of stress for so long they find it hard to relax when they have time off,” notes Chapin. “You need a crowbar to get the Blackberries out of their hands and get them to unwind. Executives can become so used to operating in overdrive that slowing down and relaxing can leave them feeling very anxious.”

You appreciate the importance of downtime more when you understand the physiological changes your body undergoes when faced with a stressful situation. Approximately 1,500 different chemical reactions take place when faced with an acute stress– proteins are secreted, hormones are released, the cardiovascular system ramps up, the stomach and gastro-intestinal function slows down, blood is shunted to certain areas of the body to make you stronger and faster – there are literally hundreds of minute reactions that take place, all carefully orchestrated to help you deal with stress. “You essentially become a superhero version of yourself. Your body chemistry changes as though you are preparing for a physical threat,” says Chapin.

This stress response initiates a heightened physical and psychological performance, which can be highly beneficial. Whether giving a key business presentation or entering a difficult negotiation, the stress response can help us take our performance to the next level. Many leaders and athletes deliberately initiate this reaction for this reason. These individuals have taught themselves to mentally visualize a situation, anticipate what the experience will be like, and then bring on the dramatic rush of the stress response to give them the edge they need. Chapin uses the example of sprinters who acutally run a race in their minds before they line up at the starting line. Strategically tapping into this ability at times when you must be at your best can give you a real advantage in business.

“It takes the body 30 to 60 minutes to revert to its normal state of equilibrium after an episode of stress,” says Chapin. “If the body doesn’t get a chance to relax and return to its normal state before being faced with another stressful situation, a secondary stress response is launched. It’s biological impact is greater as it builds on the first. When the stress response stays on high alert for too long it can become detrimental to your health. Everyone has a breaking point. Chronic stress contributes to diminishing performance, efficiency and health. It’s even worse if you’ve neglected the basics: getting plenty of rest, excersising regularly and eating properly.
Be aware of the underlying sources of stress

Long wait times to access primary care health professionals coupled with procrastination leaves many people reacting to a health crisis because they have missed the early warning signs. Chapin believes, “medical practitioners need to help patients explore the lifestyle practices that may be contributing to an underlying health concern and not just focus on the symptoms.”
Like an iceberg, the underlying causes of stress are mostly hidden. The symptons of stress can be cognitive, emotional, behavioural, relational, even spiritual. Recognizing the early warning signs of stress will help people cope better. For example, you may suffer from headaches (physical), smoke too much (behavioural), get easily upset (emotional), have trouble remembering things (cognitive), feel doubt (spiritual), and have fewer contacts with friends (relational).
“So much of a person’s stress comes from their perception of the situation they are faced with, and if they can control their perception, they can control how the body changes physically,” says Chapin.

Small everyday stresses can have a cummulative effect. Many everyday occurances like your daily commute to work, sitting in front of a computer all day, skipping meals can amplify the stress response. For many people, their working lives are mostly stationary and it causes stress to their nervous systems. Chapin cites one of his clients, The Globe & Mail, as an example. “We set up a clinic for them to deal exclusively with repetitive strain injuries and teach employees how to adjust their workstation to meet their needs and alleviate the physical challenges of sitting at a computer all day.”

Of course, people can be their own worst enemies as well. Much of the chemical stress our bodies undergo is exacerbated by the intake of nicotine, caffeine and alchohol and consumption of processed foods. Chapin stresses the importance of avoiding these stimulants, and taking the time to eat properly. “Many people tend to skip breakfast and/or lunch and don’t drink nearly enough water,” he notes. “As a result, their nervous systems become irritable and their defenses are compromised because they don’t have enough of the building blocks to ensure a healthy body.”

Addressing the issue of stress in the workplace
If leaders are failing to cope with stress themselves, it’s highly likely they are unaware of the signs of stress in their own organizations. Symptoms of sick corporate cultures include poor job satisfaction and morale, high turnover, high absenteeism, and escalating health costs associated with claims management, short and long term disability and drug benefits. Employees who are stressed will end up missing more work due to illness. This has an obviously impact on productivity. The seven most common physical manifestations of stress are: headaches, fatigue, back/shoulder/neck pain, trouble sleeping, digestive trouble, irritability, and high blood pressure. These are the early warning signs of trouble.

When leaders disregard their own stress and that of their employees it makes motivating and inspiring people that much harder,” says Chapin. The corporate culture can become very reactive.

So the first step in addressing stress in the workplace is for leaders to understand what they themselves are going through. They need to understand how their daily routine is influencing their health. For example, not drinking enough water and consuming too much caffeine can dehydrate the body and lead to headaches. These headaches can be debilitating. Many turn to over-the-counter pain medications and more caffeine to battle the headaches that often start increasing in frequency and intensity. This strategy can complicate the headache profile, leading to “rebound headaches” which are the number one cause of headaches and are due directly to the overuse of pain medications and the dehydration. “Headaches are a sign that something is not right. “Find the source of the problem, don’t just treat the symptom,” says Chapin.

Leaders should also take note of the personal and professional traits that have been shown to provide a resilience to stress. Decisiveness is a key trait: the ability to make a decision when faced with a challenge, and to live with the consequences of that decision. A clear sense of purpose and core values (both personal and professional), will help leaders make tough decisions during times of stress. Having a sense of responsibility to the people who work for you, and understanding how your decisions impact on them as the organization undergoes a stressful period, will help you deal with stress. And being flexible will allow you to adapt when the business landscape changes.

Additional resilience traits include being able to take care of yourself; you should be able to recognize stress symptoms and practice prevention. A sense of humour is also important, as is having a social support network of family friends, and colleagues you can call on in times of need. Having the courage to make this call is equally important. Optimism is also a major factor in confronting and overcoming stress.

“Leaders need to recognize their own strengths and weaknesses when it comes to these resilience traits,” says Chapin. “You need to know which ones you’re good at and when you need to call on your support network for assistance. When faced with a stressful event deliberately draw on the particular resilience traits from this list that you possess.”
Chapin points out that those leaders who are optimistic and happy will experience less stress. Research into the science of happiness has shown that individuals who have a positive mindset will experience many health benefits. “The science of happiness is not about being happy all day. It is about controlling your reaction to stress and your perception of your environment.” This control has shown to provide a protection against the toxic effects of chronic stress and allows you to use the stress response to your advantage.

“Building resilience to stress requires understanding the cause of your stress and having the discipline to do something about it,” says Chapin. “You have to become proactive about prevention: eat healthy foods, exercise regularly, and get plenty of rest. You can control stress and make it work for you. After all, you are the CEO of your body.”

If you would like to find out more about stress resilience contact Dr. Chapin at (905) 624-0233 or dchapin@highpointclinic.com.

PEO Member Johanne Bélanger, President, AVW-TELAV is appointed to sit on InfoComm International Board for two more years

Toronto, ON...AVW-TELAV Audio Visual Solutions is pleased to announce that Johanne Bélanger, President, has been appointed to continue serving on InfoComm International's Board of Directors for another two years. InfoComm International is the trade association representing the audio visual and information communications industries worldwide.

Having been elected to serve a one-year term on Infocomm International's 2009 Board of Directors, Bélanger is actively involved in promoting and serving the professional AV communications industry. As President of the largest audio visual company in Canada since 2005, she also serves on the Audio Visual Board of Directors of AVW-TELAV's parent company - Freeman - the leading provider of integrated services for face-to-face marketing and brand building events, including expositions, conventions, corporate events, meetings and exhibit programs.

"The opportunity to sit on the Board of Directors of this international, standard-setting organization for the AV industry for another two years is a leadership role I will continue to take seriously, and I will utilize my areas of expertise in an effort to make a difference," said Johanne Bélanger, President, AVW-TELAV Audio Visual Solutions. "As the leading non-profit association serving the AV industry, InfoComm International shares my objectives and, therefore, is the perfect outlet to lend my voice to."

Established in 1939, InfoComm International has 5,000 members, including manufacturers, systems integrators, dealers and distributors, independent consultants, programmers, rental and staging companies, end-users and multimedia professionals from more than 70 countries. InfoComm International is the leading resource for AV market research and news. Its training and education programs set a standard of excellence for AV professionals.

AVW-TELAV Audio Visual Solutions offers a complete range of audio visual and presentation technology services throughout North America. These services include audio visual and computer equipment rental, event staging, simultaneous interpretation, digital services including presentation management, audience response, video capture and webcasting, multi-microphone discussion systems, exhibit and tradeshow solutions, press conferences and technical coordination for meetings, conventions, corporate events and trade shows.
AVW-TELAV is also established as an industry leader in system design and integration of permanent audio, visual, and videoconferencing equipment.

AVW-TELAV is one of the Freeman companies. For more information, visit www.avwtelav.com.

TORONTO - doug agency inc. has launched a new brand identity
and campaign communication for the Presidents of Enterprising Organizations (PEO), including a new logo design, website and tagline: "Connect. Think. Grow."

PEO facilitates peer advisory learning and development for business leaders who are committed to enhancing leadership and business skills while implementing organizational change.
PEO’s rebranding includes a new logo design/identity, website, with associated collateral and advertising in development. PEO members understand that future business success derives from an integrated, high disclosure peer network’s collective wisdom and resources. The essence of this is perfectly captured in doug agency’s new PEO tagline “Connect. Think. Grow.”

“Our goal was to create a brand identity, campaign communication and website that reinforces PEO’s commitment to its members,” explains Doug Robinson, doug agency inc. founder. “The new identity reflects their continued professional and personal growth in a
professional and smart way.”

“In raising our profile in the market, we wanted someone in our corner to provide us with an objective, unbiased push in the right direction, and we found that someone in doug agency,” says Leon Goren, PEO President. “doug’s strategic tools really helped us distill the essence of what our brand offers, which in turn led to the development of our exciting new visual
identity.”

about doug agency inc.
doug agency is a fast-growing, independent, Canadian-owned brand-building communications company that is devoted to providing outstanding creative brand communication solutions to clients who believe, ‘Great creative builds brands faster.’

doug agency’s client roster includes; Art Gallery of Ontario, B2B Trust, Clover Leaf Seafood L.P, The Coalition for Music Education in Canada, College of Massage Therapists of Ontario, Diamond Estates Wines and Spirits Ltd., Dr. Bernstein Diet & Health Clinics, Feigelsohn & Ethical Investments L.P, Olympus Imaging America Inc., Ontario Ministry of Government Services, Oxfam, Presidents of Enterprising Organizations, PRESTO Fare Card, Smart & Biggar/Fetherstonhaugh LLP, The Worldwide Short Film Festival, and York University.

For further information please visit: www.dougagency.com

about PEO

Now celebrating 15 years of operations, PEO facilitates peer advisory learning and
development for business leaders who are committed to enhancing leadership and business
skills while implementing organizational change. PEO members understand that future
business success derives from an integrated, high disclosure peer network’s collective
wisdom and resources. They lead Canadian and international businesses with annual sales
ranging from $500,000 to over $12 billion with recognizable brand names as well as up and
coming organizations. PEO leaders and organizations have been recognized through
repeated selection as the Best Managed Companies, Entrepreneur of the Year, and Canada’s
Best Employers.

For further information please visit: www.peo.net

For further information, please contact:
Doug Robinson
Founder, Chief Creative Officer
doug agency inc.
(416) 203-3470 x 100
doug@dougagency.com

Leon Goren
President
Presidents of Enterprising Organizations (PEO)
(416)335-5884 x 308
lgoren@peo.net

Doug agency wishes the barcode a happy birthday!

TORONTO - Today, doug agency celebrates the 57th anniversary of the day the bar code was patented – October 7, 1952. We adopted this symbol as our corporate identity when opening our doors seven years ago, as it is our constant reminder that we are in the business of building our clients’ businesses. The classic bar code consists of parallel lines at different widths and spacing, and is on almost every product you can buy that is mass-produced throughout the world today. Every time a purchase is made, companies rely on the bar code to measure their results – the ultimate objective of all work doug agency produces. Google is also celebrating the occasion by replacing their logo with a barcode today.

Happy scanning!

MISSISSAUGA – Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) is pleased to announce a new partnership with ACHIEVEBLUE Corporation for the delivery of the association’s international award-winning performance improvement learning curriculum.

The three-tiered curriculum includes ACTIVE Leadership, VISION and Continuous Improvement and has been used by hundreds of organizations across Canada and around the globe.

“CME is pleased to partner with ACHIEVEBLUE to deliver this valuable curriculum,” says CME President & CEO Jayson Myers. “This partnership will better enable CME to provide organizations the tools they need to achieve results through people. Developing and investing in staff is always a key imperative, but in these times of economic challenge it is more important than ever.”

“We are very excited about this partnership with CME as it allows us to bring this great curriculum to CME members and our clients internationally,” says ACHIEVEBLUE CEO, Mona Mitchell. “ACTIVE Leadership is an element in a powerful, integrated learning curriculum that has been awarded three consecutive American Society for Training & Development (ASTD) Excellence in Practice Awards.

“This curriculum will strengthen our current leadership and culture programs,” Mitchell adds. “We recognize that the core function of leadership is to produce talent at every level of the organization and the addition of ACTIVE Leadership, VISION and Continuous Improvement to our offerings will help us accomplish that.”

Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters (CME) is Canada’s leading trade and industry association and the voice of manufacturing and global business in Canada.

The association represents more than 10,000 leading companies nationwide. More than 85% of CME’s members are small and medium-sized enterprises. As Canada’s leading business network, CME, through various initiatives including icosmo.ca and the establishment of the Canadian Manufacturing Coalition, touches more than 100,000 companies from coast to coast, engaged in manufacturing, global business and service-related industries.

CME’s membership network accounts for an estimated 82% of total manufacturing production and 90% of Canada’s exports.

About ACHIEVEBLUE

Working with local, national, and international companies, ACHIEVEBLUE Corporation creates effective, sustainable organizational development and training programs that build commitment and understanding. With a hard won mix of professional expertise, vanguard research, patented training programs, and creative enthusiasm, ACHIEVEBLUE helps companies develop a more strategic way of achieving what every executive wants -- company-wide breakthrough performance!

For more information, contact: Ian Howcroft, CME, 1-800-268-9684 ext. 3256

To learn more about ACHIEVEBLUE™ and other program offerings, contact ACHIEVEBLUE at (416) 236-3005 or visit us on the web at www.achieveblue.com.

Every fall there is some kind of flu going around. But this year it’s a different flu season.
Ontario will provide seasonal flu shots to people aged 65 and over and residents of long-term care homes in October, followed by the H1N1 flu vaccination program for all Ontarians.

Seasonal flu vaccine will be available to the rest of the province following the H1N1 flu vaccination program.

To ensure that you are well prepared and have the information you need to deal with this issue, we recommend that you visit www.ontario.ca/flu

Looking for funding for your business? On Nov 18, the second annual Ivey Venture Forum will bring together investment-seeking companies with the venture capital and private equity community in the GTA, at the Sutton Place Hotel in Toronto. The day will include presentations by companies seeking funding as well as a discussion panel and presentations from experienced investors. The day provides outstanding networking opportunities for investors and companies alike. Apply for your company to present its pitch at http://www.iveynetwork.ca/Default.aspx?alias=www.iveynetwork.ca/toronto#Entrepreneurship

How the top companies were selected

The Greater Toronto's Top Employers list was selected from applicants to the national Canada's Top 100 Employers competition.

To develop this year's list, editors at Mediacorp Canada Inc. examined the recruitment histories of more than 75,000 employers across Canada that it tracks for its popular job-search site, www. Eluta .ca.

From this initial group, Mediacorp editors invited 16,000 of the fastest-growing employers to apply, plus another 8,000 companies and organizations in industries that they wanted to examine more closely. Employers completed an extensive application process that included a detailed review of their operations and HR practices.

More than 2,600 employers started this year's application process nationally. The final applicant pool was up 3.7 per cent over last year's total, which was also a record.

Mediacorp editors graded each of the applicants on eight key areas: (1) physical workplace; (2) work atmosphere and social; (3) health, financial and family benefits; (4) vacation and fime off; (5) employee communications; (6) performance management; (7) training and skills development; and (8) community involvement.

These criteria have remained consistent since the inception of the national competition, now in its 10th year.

Congratulations Kevin. This announcement yesterday at both companiesKevin Aselstine will be assuming the role of Canadian Division Leader for Towers Watson post-close, still tentatively scheduled subject to pending regulatory approvals for January 1st, 2010, or as soon as legally possible thereafter. At an announcement yesterday relating to the restructuring of Towers Perrin under the umbrella of the pending "merger of equals" with Watson Wyatt, The role is responsible for growth, profitability, market share, sales pipeline and client satisfaction across all lines of business (Benefits, Risk & Financial Services & Talent and Rewards) and all offices (presently 2 in each of Vancouver, Calgary, Toronto and Montreal, which we will be working to consolidate over time) in Canada. Kevin will continue to be based out of Toronto.