Document Highlights:

• Christine Cosby presents an overview of how Bruce Power continues to improve its emergency response systems and the lessons learned from the multi-stakeholder participation in Huron Challenge.
• Giselle Kovary and Adwoa K. Buahene offer insight into how the five organizations they interviewed have added a generational component when defining, measuring, and managing human capital risk.
• Ru Taggar outlines Sunnybrook Hospital’s drivers and objectives; its risk assessment process; the likelihood of occurrence and strength of mitigation plans; the peer review process; and the hospital’s ERM portal.
• Chris Corless explores why organizations need to monitor the effectiveness of operating controls in real-time and not just when they were understood to have failed.

Risk Watch is available free of charge to The Directors College alumni and faculty only. DC alumni and faculty can follow these steps to access the May 2013 edition of Risk Watch and previous editions as well:

1. Log into your DC profile.
2. Click on “View my Electronic Course Reading Materials.”
3. Click the “Risk Watch: Thought Leadership on Risk and Governance” folder.

The Risk Watch (May 2013) review is also available to the public as a download for a fee. Download Now!

The study’s controversial findings, that female board directors score higher on the ‘Complex Moral Reasoning’ dimension which essentially involves making consistently fair decisions when competing interests are at stake, was published in March 2013 in the International Journal of Business Governance and Ethics. The study, Why Women Make Better Directors, has created much stir in academic and online communities and prompted this discussion with Women of Influence on the importance of director education, board governance, board culture and dynamics as well as the value of diversity of thought and decision-making at the board and executive table.

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Toronto, March 5, 2013 – Dr. Richard Florizone, currently the Vice-President, Finance and Resources at the University of Saskatchewan and incoming President of Dalhousie University, is the 2013 recipient of the Gil Bennett Gold Standard Award.

Left to Right: Dr. Chris Bart (Principal & Lead Professor, The Directors College, Dr. Richard Florizone (2013 Gil Bennett Award Recipient), Ron Stokes (Partner, Ernst & Young LLP)

Presented annually by The Directors College, the award recognizes a graduate of the Chartered Director (C. Dir.) program who demonstrates dedication to raising the bar for professional standards in corporate governance. The award was presented Monday at the graduation ceremony for newly-certified Chartered Directors. Daniel Johnson of McCarthy Tétrault, a former Premier of the Province of Québec, was the featured speaker at the ceremony.

“Effective governance of both public and private institutions is critical to society,” says Dr. Florizone, recipient of this year’s Gil Bennett Gold Standard Award. “It is a great honour to receive this award on the 10th anniversary of the Directors College and to share it with so many talented past graduates that are making a positive difference to governance standards in Canada.”

The Directors College is marking its 10th anniversary this year. Founded in 2003, The Directors College is a joint venture of McMaster University and The Conference Board of Canada, and is Canada’s first university-accredited corporate director development program.

Dr. Florizone will become the 11th President of Dalhousie University in Halifax on July 1, 2013. Since 2005, he has served as the Vice-President of Finance and Resources at the University of Saskatchewan. Dr. Florizone served as Director, Strategic Initiatives at Bombardier Aerospace in Montreal, and as Consultant and Project Leader with the Boston Consulting Group in Toronto. Dr. Florizone obtained his PhD in Physics from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Named in honour of former Canadian Tire chairman Gil Bennett, the Gold Standard Award has been presented annually since 2006 to a graduate of The Directors College. Previous winners include Don McCreesh, Michael MacBean, Andy Poprawa, John Ryan, Jim Adamson and Reena Sagoo.

“To win the Gil Bennett Award, a Chartered Director has to accomplish two objectives. First he or she must excel in the qualifying final examination of the Chartered Director Program and second the winner must demonstrate to the faculty through their behavioural skills that they possess more than just the technical and legal knowledge to be a director in the 21st century,” said Chris Bart, Principal & Lead Professor, The Directors College.

The criteria for the award include placing in the top 10 per cent on the final exam for Chartered Directors; providing leadership during class discussions; and making a unique contribution to the Board Simulation exercise of the Chartered Director program.

For more information on The Directors College and its Chartered Director Program, visit: www.thedirectorscollege.com.

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FOR MORE INFORMATION:
Brent Dowdall, Media Relations, Tel.: 613- 526-3090 ext. 448
E-mail: corpcomm@conferenceboard.ca

The Governance Development Program is uniquely designed for governors in health care and allows directors to learn at their own pace, whenever and wherever they want. Master skills, develop knowledge, gain Insight – be the difference. Register at http://www.cha.ca/learning/ today.

Founded in 1931, the Canadian Healthcare Association leads informed and continuous health system improvement. Visit www.cha.ca to learn about our solutions to health system challenges. Follow us on Twitter @CHA_ACS.

Tony Di Emanuele, MBA, C.Dir., President and CEO, Mohawk Shared Services

The Community for Excellence in Health Governance (CEHG) is proud to announce the sponsorship by the Directors College of its newly launched Governance Development Program. The Directors College will be providing faculty referrals, and contributing to the development of the CEHG’s distance learning program through curriculum guidance and review. The program will be targeting health board members and senior executives across Canada, at all levels of the health system.

The Governance Development Program is an online, interactive course aimed at boosting the capacity of health sector boards across the country. Governance in the health sector is particularly challenging as boards need to manage not only financial performance, but also quality of care in a politicized environment. High performance often begins with the board, whose responsibilities include, amongst others, the selection of the CEO and approving strategy.

“The sponsorship of the Directors College is most welcome, and should go far in advancing health governance education. It will help us provide a superior learning experience for board members and senior executives in a highly accessible way,” said Thomas Philpott, Executive Director of the Community for Excellence in Health Governance.

“The Directors College seeks to enhance the capabilities of corporate directors in all sectors through education. We are delighted to support CEHG’s innovative distance learning program to improve health governance across the country,” said Dr. Chris Bart, Principal and Lead Professor of The Directors College.

The Directors College, a joint venture of The Conference Board of Canada and McMaster University’s DeGroote School of Business, is a national leader in governance education. The Directors College is widely recognized for its Chartered Director Program, which grants a university designation to those who have completed the entire program.

The Community for Excellence in Health Governance helps boards and senior leaders drive performance in their organizations through innovative governance and leadership education, networking and web-based support services, as well as evidence-based collaborative projects.

For more information, please contact:

Thomas G. Philpott
Executive Director
The Community for Excellence in Health Governance
Thomas.philpott@myhealthboard.ca
Office: (514) 412-4435

Yvonne Squires
Communications Specialist
The Conference Board of Canada
corpcomm@conferenceboard.ca
Office: (613) 526-3090, ext. 221