Excellence in Mental Health Leadership

Explore the qualities and practices of effective leadership, strengthen self-awareness and identify approaches to navigating the transition into leadership.

Learning objectives:

• Define the differences between management and leadership  
• Discuss some of the challenges of transitioning to management and how to handle them  
• Identify the various stakeholders involved in a complex situation and how to manage them
• Clarify who they want to be as a leader (their personal “why” as a leader)  
• Discuss the strengths and challenges of different leadership styles
• Use a reflective practice to learn and grow as a manager   

When: January 18, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET
Facilitator: Dr. Lucas Dufour

Develop practical strategies to plan, communicate and lead organizational change while supporting staff through transitions.

Learning objectives:

• Clarify the roles and responsibilities of executives, managers, and employees in the change process
• Use a systematic approach to implementing change
• Define a compelling rationale and vision for change
• Develop an effective change management communication plan  
• Identify and appreciate the different impacts that a change may have on staff
• Recognize transition phases, and how to engage staff in each phase

When: January 25, 2026 | Time: 9 a.m. to noon ET
Facilitator: Dr. Susan Geary

Build confidence in understanding budgets, financial documents and forecasting to support informed organizational decisions.

Learning objectives:

• Read and interpret financial documents such as budgets and business proposals 
• Become more familiar and comfortable with spreadsheets as the key tool in building financial documents 
• Use day-to-day budget management to contribute to departmental success for their team and organization 
• Describe key financial documents and their uses in day-to-day budget management 
• Assess how various drivers can affect variable costs in the budget, and how to plan effectively for them 
• Project costs into the future for diverse purposes such as forecasting, preparing a multi-year budget, and creating project proposals

When: January 27, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to noon ET
Facilitator: Joel Clark, MBA

Effective leaders create a positive environment that encourages and cultivates great employee performance. This two-part module will focus on key tools and approaches for supporting, assessing, recognizing, and fostering high levels of performance.  

Part one
Learning objectives:

• Describe their role in cultivating employee performance  
• Apply criteria for setting clear expectations   
• Use appreciative listening to foster good communication  
• Assess and leverage different factors that contribute to individual performance   
• Create an agreement for giving/receiving feedback with employees   
• Use a framework to productively lead coaching conversations 

Part two
Learning objectives:

• Assess the implications of performance issues/behaviours on different parts of the organization and identify the most compelling reasons to request performance changes   
• Define and clarify performance expectations  
• Describe stages in the performance cycle and how to address employees at each stage
• Plan how to customize feedback to engage employees in implementing changes in their performance 
• Conduct performance conversations that lead to clear agreements and accountability 

When: February 1 and 3, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to noon ET
Facilitator: Susan Geary, PhD

Develop an understanding of key human resource responsibilities, legal obligations and effective recruitment and onboarding practices.

Learning objectives:

• Identify areas of Human Resources that require legal compliance (employment standards, occupational health and safety, workplace harassment, human rights, workplace injury and illness and privacy)  
• List key manager responsibilities in each of these areas  
• Search and locate information sources to support decision-making and actions  
• Use key steps to create effective recruitment and onboarding processes  
• Explain the unique characteristics of managing a unionized team 

When: February 8, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to noon ET
Facilitator: Nives Malara, BA

Explore approaches to identifying bias, addressing systemic barriers and strengthening equity and inclusion in organizational policies, practices and team environments.

Part 1
When: February 10, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to noon ET
Facilitator: Breanna Phillip, MSW, RSW
Learning objectives:

• Explore the history of race and anti-Black racism in Canada and understand its implications on social systems
• Understand the concept of implicit bias and learn how to challenge them
• Understand the intrapersonal work that must be done to effectively engage racialized clients
• Recognize the ways in which Eurocentrism has shaped the current mental health field
• Analyze their organization’s current programs and services, and find opportunities to increase cultural relevance

Part 2
When: February 22, 2027 | Time: 9:30 a.m. to 10:45 a.m. ET
Facilitator: Dr. Natalie Kalb, C.Psych.
Learning objectives:

• Define key terms related to sexual orientation and gender identity 
• Identify microaggressions as they relate to the 2SLGBTQIA+ community
• Explore, reflect on, and challenge perceptions and implicit biases   
• Learn how to support an employee who is undergoing a gender transition
• Understand key skills and strategies that can be easily applied to make organizations more equitable and inclusive for 2SLGBTQIA+ clients and employees

Build strategies for strengthening team collaboration, navigating conflict and fostering a positive, productive team culture.

Learning objectives:

• Support successful team formation and development   
• Establish team alignment by creating shared purpose, norms, and commitments with team members   
• Assess strengths and opportunities for an existing team through the lens of productivity and positivity (team culture)  
• Create a plan for supporting a team in enhancing work practices and/or team culture   
• Facilitate healthy and productive dialogue, conflict, and decision-making within inter-professional teams  
• Adapt team practices for remote and hybrid teams 

When: February 24, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET
Facilitator: Carolynne Wintrip, B.A.Sc., MBA, CTPC, PRC

Explore how to translate organizational strategic priorities into actionable plans, engage teams and support meaningful organizational outcomes.

Learning objectives:

• Understand the purpose and role of a strategic plan as a blueprint for organizational strategy and transformation
• Describe the role of middle management and people leaders in the successful implementation of strategic goals and objectives
• Identify the key skills required to support front line staff and middle management accountabilities to senior leadership
• Understand the required elements of successful implementation which include:
  • well-defined annual initiatives and deliverables
  • a plan for staff and team engagement
  • indicators, measurement and dashboards
  • intentional communication strategies
  • an integrative approach that links all activities

When: March 1, 2027 | Time: 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. ET
Facilitator: Chris Bartha, MSW, RSW

An important aspect of the program has always been the opportunity to translate learning into practice through an optional independent project. Participants are encouraged to apply concepts and strategies from across the modules to a meaningful workplace leadership challenge or opportunity, connecting their learning directly to their professional roles.

The self-directed project provides guided opportunities for reflection, analysis and action planning, with a focus on organizational strategy, people and relationships, or the transition to management.

Learning objectives:

• Applying learning from multiple program modules to a real leadership issue or opportunity
• Strengthening critical thinking and reflective practice
• Exploring individual, team or organizational challenges from different perspectives
• Developing practical actions and next steps that can be applied in the workplace
• Considering how progress, outcomes and impact can be measured
• Building greater self-awareness and confidence in their leadership practice
• Identifying areas for continued leadership growth and development beyond the program

While the project is not submitted, graded or formally assessed, it remains a valuable opportunity for participants to deepen their understanding, strengthen their leadership skills and develop practical strategies they can bring back to their organizations.

At the end of this module, participants will be able to:  

• Confidently leverage data to accelerate impact by identifying trends, issues, technologies and standards that may impact delivery of health care and management of health  
• Implement data and analytics strategies to support continuous improvement in a complex, health care environment  
• Recognize opportunities to enhance decision-making, performance and client outcomes  
• Gain fluency in health-care data and analytics, to be better equipped to ask the right questions   
• Describe how various performance indicators, standards and benchmarks are used 
• Explain the relationship between outcome measurement and quality management initiatives to support data analysis and data presentation for decision-making purposes  

Dates and Facilitator: TBD

At the end of this module, participants will be able to:  

• Gain insight into the client experience and how to co-design (with the client and other stakeholders) improvements to service offerings  
• Use co-design tools and a facilitated approach to produce empathy maps and client journey maps    
• Leverage the experience and underlying needs and emotions of clients when designing improvements and innovations in programs and services 
• Assess the client experience through empathy mapping, a process that involves developing awareness of what clients think, feel, hear, say, and do during the service experience 

Dates and Facilitator: TBD

By the end of this module, participants will be able to:  

• List guiding principles for effective stakeholder and client engagement  
• Describe key elements of a partnership agreement  
• Identify priority target populations for stakeholder engagement   
• Identify opportunities for forming strategic partnerships with other community organizations   
• Use practical tools and strategies for defining key stakeholders, engaging clients, and others with lived experience, capturing client needs and experiences, and enhancing stakeholder engagement 
• Describe the benefits of various models of partnership (cooperative, collaborative, integrated) and how to structure and evaluate formal partnerships

Dates and Facilitator: TBD

By the end of this module, participants will be able to:  

• Use a comprehensive process to identify, refine and enhance key areas in their presentation skills, leadership presence and communication thereby enriching their interactions with team members, leadership, and clients 
• Apply the elements of effective presentation skills to engage/re-engage virtual, in-person and hybrid audiences  
• Define their personal value statement  
• Use specific tactics and techniques to identify and understand their audience  
• Exude charisma as an agent of influence  
• Apply a change model to facilitate adoption of change in their audience  
• Persuasively communicate change vision to motivate support and commitment from stakeholders  

Date and Facilitator: TBD

It is encouraged for all participants to select and complete a project to apply and extend their learning to an individual, team, or organizational leadership issue.