Webinars

Directors Source webinars are a free service for members and companies using Directors Source. Register on the Directors Source website to receive notification of upcoming webinars.

Topics center around board of director and governance-related issues. The format is a 40 minute presentation by a featured speaker, followed by 20 minutes of Q&A.

Click the link(s) below to register for future webinars.

The 2011 Directors Source Webinar Series is sponsored by Robert Half International.
Founded in 1948, Robert Half International, the world’s first and largest specialized staffing firm, is a recognized leader in professional staffing services. The company has seven divisions including Robert Half® Finance & Accounting and Robert Half® Management Resources, for full-time and senior-level project professionals, respectively, in the fields of accounting and finance. Robert Half International has staffing and consulting operations in more than 400 locations worldwide, including locations across Canada. Find more information at www.roberthalf.ca, and follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/RobertHalf_CAN.

May 11, 2011
What Directors Need to Know about Codes of Conduct
Speaker: Michael Gunns
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:

Directors' oversight role includes assuring themselves that the organization's culture and business behaviour is characterized by sound ethical practices. This webinar, based on the CICA document 20 Questions Directors Should Ask about Codes of Conduct (2nd Ed) will provide a practical methodology to help directors assess their present approach to formulating or revising Codes of Conduct and to overseeing the implementation of these Codes throughout organizations for which they are responsible.

Recently updated to reflect new best practices and regulatory developments, the webinar will provide practical examples along with suggested questions for directors to ask the CEO, senior management, professional advisors — and themselves.

Registration link:
What Directors Need to Know about Codes of Conduct

January 11, 2011
Producing Financial Information For Canadian Capital Markets
Speakers: Laurie Woodruff, FCA and David Stephen, CA
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:

This webinar will inform participants about the recent CICA publication Producing Financial Information For Canadian Capital Markets, available to be downloaded at www.cica.ca/pfi. In an increasingly complex business environment and ever-changing standards & regulations, a reliable financial information production process needs all the parties to work together in an atmosphere of respect and cooperation, while recognizing their separate and distinct roles. This publication summarizes the key elements of that process, including the roles and relationships of the parties.

Project leaders David Stephen, CA and Laurie Woodruff, FCA will present this session. In addition to highlighting some aspects of the process and the relationships between the parties, they will consider how the material can be used by various stakeholders, particularly educating those new to the financial reporting process. David and Laurie are also very interested in hearing how you might use the material.

Archive link:
Producing Financial Information For Canadian Capital Markets

December 7, 2010
Financial Literacy For Audit Committees - What Does This Really Mean In An IFRS World?
Speaker: John Hughes, CA
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:

The obligation to be "financially literate" is a core requirement for Audit Committee members of non-venture issuers. The basic obligation does not change for Canadian companies after they make the transition to IFRS, but the steps required to meet and maintain the financial literacy standard may change dramatically. The session discusses this requirement, sets out some of the challenges of IFRS, and provides practical suggestions for committee members in addressing these challenges and managing the related risks.

Archive link:
Financial Literacy For Audit Committees - What Does This Really Mean In An IFRS World?

August 18, 2010
Governance Committees: Performance Catalyst for the Board
Speaker: David Anderson, PhD
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:

The governance committee is unique among the board's committees. Rather than addressing only a single aspect of the board's mandate, the governance committee focuses holistically on the entire board. As such, it can serve as a centre for self-reflection to build and enhance the board's effectiveness.

David Anderson, PhD, President of The Anderson Governance Group, will address the changing role of the governance committee, including:

• Understanding the role and potential value of the governance committee
• Building an effective governance committee
• Composing the board and creating conditions for its success
• Enhancing the board's performance effectiveness
• Emerging roles to help boards create long term value
  
  

Archive link:
Governance Committees: Performance Catalyst for the Board

March 30, 2010
Board Recruitment, Development and Assessment for Not-for-Profit Organizations
Speaker: Richard Leblanc, CMC, JD, LLB, MBA, LLM, PhD
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:

To earn and maintain the trust of their communities and stakeholders, not-for-profit organizations must be governed by an effective board of directors.This involves:

• selecting the right people to sit on the board;
• providing orientation and ongoing director development; and
• assessing the performance of the board, board committees and individual directors.

The CICA's Risk Oversight and Governance Board, through its Not-for-Profit Task Force, has developed a resource to help directors of not-for-profit organizations meet this challenge.

The document, 20 Questions Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations Should Ask about Board Recruitment, Development and Assessment, presents questions that directors should ask of management or themselves. The "answers" or comments that accompany the questions summarize current thinking on the issues and practices of not-for-profit governance.

The document, along with some best practices for building an effective not-for-profit board, will be presented by Richard Leblanc, Associate Professor of Law, Governance & Ethics at York University.

Archive link:
Board Recruitment, Development and Assessment for Not-for-Profit Organizations

December 8, 2009
IFRS and the Board/Audit Committee
Speakers: Marion Kirsh, FCA and Alex Guertin, CA, MBA
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:
This webinar will provide insight into the scope and nature of Board and Audit Committee members' involvement in the IFRS transition. Directors and Audit Committee members have a critical oversight role in ensuring organizations are effectively managing their changeover to IFRS, including the related risks and controls. Participants will gain an understanding of what the Audit Committee should expect from management during the IFRS transition. This webinar will cover the IFRS disclosures and preparations that companies should be making, including those disclosures outlined in CSA Staff Notice 52-320, Disclosure of Expected Changes in Accounting Policies related to Changeover to International Financial Reporting Standards.

Archive link:
IFRS and the Board/Audit Committee

June 15, 2009
Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Indemnification and Insurance
Speakers: Richard J. Berrow, B.A., LL.B. and Brian Rosenbaum, LL.B.
Sponsor: Robert Half Finance & Accounting

Session Description:
Directors face a range of legal exposures in respect of their association with and fiduciary duty to a corporation. They increasingly look to the state of their indemnities and insurance and to their professional advisors for assurances that they have an appropriate level of protection in place. Boards are well advised to take an active interest in their corporation’s provisions for indemnification and insurance for directors' and officers' liability.

The Risk Management and Governance Board of the CICA has prepared a document to help directors understand the protection available to them under corporate indemnification and directors’ and officers’ insurance. The document, 20 Questions Directors Should Ask About Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Indemnification and Insurance, discusses indemnification, insurance coverage, and insurance claims, and provides questions that directors may ask the CEO and their professional advisors to ensure that they fully understand the protection available to them.

While the document is primarily directed towards corporate boards, there will also be a discussion of some particular issues faced of directors of not-for-profit organizations.

Archive link:
Directors’ and Officers’ Liability Indemnification and Insurance

Session Description:
Now, more than ever, the issue of risk is top of mind for directors of not-for-profit organizations. Risk is anything that affects an organization’s ability to meet its objectives and preserve its reputation, and it is a reality for every organization.

The CICA’s Risk Management and Governance Board, through its Not-for-Profit Task Force, has developed a resource to help directors of not-for-profit organizations understand their responsibility for the oversight of risk. The document, 20 Questions Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations Should Ask about Risk, presents questions that directors should ask of management or themselves. The “answers" or comments that accompany the questions summarize current thinking on the issues and practices of not-for-profit governance.

The document, along with some best practices for the oversight of risk in the not-for-profit context, will be presented by Robin Cardozo, Chief Executive Officer of The Ontario Trillium Foundation and a member of the CICA’s Not-for-Profit Organizations Task Force.

Archive link:
What NPO Directors Should be Asking about Risk in their Organizations

Session Description:
The CICA, under the guidance of the Risk Management and Governance Board, has set itself the task of improving corporate governance. Since 2001 we have been producing guidance for boards of directors in the form of short, easy to use documents, posed as series of questions for directors to ask themselves or management. For each question, there is a brief explanatory background and some recommended practices to assist directors in performing their roles.

The 20 Questions documents for not-for-profit organizations have been developed in conjunction with established leaders in the NPO sector.

In this webinar, Lyn McDonell and Gigi Dawe will provide an overview of the 20 Questions Directors of Not-for-Profit Organizations Should Ask about Strategy and Planning. They will guide you through the fundamentals of a strong strategic planning process and answer questions you may have about strategy.

Archive link:
20 Questions Directors of NPOs Should Ask about Strategy and Planning

Session Description:
Understanding the impact of IFRS on your business is the first step towards a conversion project that works. Those who start planning early are more likely to have a smoother conversion process. This webinar will outline the steps you need to take now to avoid unpleasant surprises down the road.

Archive link:
IFRS: What you need to do now