Post M&A HR Issues

Integrating a new corporate culture/ Integrating HR systems
Charles Marful

Merger integration communications: Establishing internal communications mechanisms
Amanda Brewer

Post-merger employment law issues
Howard A. Levitt

HR's role in creating shareholder values organisation
Ruth Clark

Charles Kingsley Marful, CHRP, is the Director of HR for Ernst & Young's Tax Practice. He works with the Tax Leadership to develop and implement People Strategy. Prior to joining Ernst & Young, he was the Director of Human Resources for PricewaterhouseCoopers Consulting (now IBM Business Consulting Services). He has provided leadership in people strategy and HR operational effectiveness including M&A issues in national and international context.

BJ Danylchuk is vice-president, organisational development, for The Thomson Corporation. In this role she supports the organization in transforming itself. She works with businesses to focus and accelerate growth, with infrastructure to align and optimise operations, and across organizations to help identify opportunity and unlock value. BJ's background includes several years' experience in organisational development, change facilitation, human resources management and sales and sales management within Thomson businesses and, in a previous life, the practice of law. BJ is based is Toronto. Thomson businesses are dedicated to getting you the specialised information you need, when you need it, how you need it. Because information not only moves the world, it makes it a better place.

Amanda Brewer is Director of Change and Internal Communications at Hill & Knowlton. During her career, she has provided counsel to both private and public sector clients in regulated industries such as mining and metals, broadcasting and financial services, with an emphasis on corporate reputation building, issues management and employee engagement. She has worked with executives and senior management teams to create visibility with employees and stakeholders, overseen a variety of change and integration projects and implemented strategic internal communications programs designed to deliver on business priorities

Robert Kolida is Senior Vice President, Human Resources - Hudson's Bay Company. Reporting to the CEO of Hudson's Bay Company, the SVP is responsible for strategic and operational support on a broad range of people issues that drive the company's business plan transformation. The scope of the position covers approximately 70,000 employees in 500 stores, Head Office, IT, Logistics and Distribution and Credit Operations. Prior to this position, he assumed various HR roles within his 16 years at the Hudson's Bay Company including his previous assignments as Vice President, Human Resources, Zellers; Director, Recruitment and Succession HBC; and Director, Employee & Labour Relations, HBC.

An economics graduate from the University of Western Ontario, Hugh Munro began his business career in retail banking with RBC, and then joined a boutique investment firm as a retail stockbroker. His interest in economic analysis led him to one of Canada's largest business-to-business information service providers, where he managed one of Canada's first online Bulletin Board message services. As Director of IQ Partners' Financial Services Practice, Hugh works in partnership with some of the brightest minds in the Canadian capital markets and investment banking sector; retail commercial and corporate banking. Hugh is also an active director and a committee member of several key industry associations in Toronto.

Howard A. Levitt is a partner at Lang Michener LLP. He is listed in all editions of LEXPERT, a directory of leading practitioners and law firms in Canada, as a leader in Employment & Labour Law. He is also listed in the "Guide to the Leading 500 Lawyers in Canada," American Lawyer Media/LEXPERT Publishing 1999-2004. Howard is presently Counsel to the firm and a member of the Employment and Labour Law Group. He practices exclusively in the area of labour and employment law. He is the author of the Law of Dismissal in Canada and Canadian Hiring Law, Editor in Chief of the Dismissal and Employment Law Digest and a weekly columnist with the National Post.

David Jamieson is Director, Human Resource Strategy and Organizational Planning and Development for the Canada Post Corporation. He has been with Canada Post for 32 years, with 21 years in Human Resources. In his current role, David is part of a leadership team that is working to transform HR at Canada Post. His responsibilities include organizational design and development, job evaluation, organizational maintenance, workforce planning, business planning, HR technology and HR Strategy. David works frequently with many of the Corporation's senior executives to design solutions to complex organizational issues. In addition, David is often called upon to provide insight into the workforce planning challenges facing Canada Post.

As Vice President, National Operations and Business Support, Ruth Clark is responsible for the development and execution of HR programs for Hill & Knowlton's Canadian operation, including recruiting and selection, employee relations, training and development, benefits and compensation. Hill & Knowlton has been recognized as a Top 100 Employer in Canada. She also provides counsel and develops programs around organizational development initiatives. She has a leadership role in the company's implementation of the National Quality Institute Progressive Excellence Program resulting, to-date, in Level II Certification.