Message from Alison Crozier, CPHR Manitoba Chair

I am honoured to step into the position of Chair of CPHR Manitoba, especially at such an important time for business, our profession and CPHR Manitoba. As I enter this new position, I look forward to working with the board, committees and staff to pursue our Strategic Plan Goals that we have set for ourselves under three pillars: Promoting the CPHR Brand, Supporting CPHR Development and Fostering Public Confidence in the HR Profession.

CPHR Manitoba would not be what it is today without the hard-working former Board Chair, Dr. Lana Adeleye-Olusae. Lana was integral in helping us make significant advances in the pursuit of self-regulation and achieve Royal Assent. Lana is a selfless champion of our profession, a humble and inspiring professional, and I’m grateful to have the opportunity to work closely with him. Thank you to Lana for his dedication to the Board and for his continued work championing HR.

As you may recall, in June 2023, Bill 233, The Chartered Professionals in Human Resources Act achieved Royal Assent and will come into force on a day to be fixed by proclamation, self-regulating the Human Resources profession in Manitoba. This Act strengthens our ability to protect employers, employees and our economy. With this Act, also comes some changes to our organization and our Board.

Bill 233 establishes the Board composition, including that 1/3 of the members of the board must be made up of public representatives. A public representative is someone outside of the organization, often from a licensed profession.

Reshaping the 2024-2025 Board to meet this criteria was critical and required rebalancing the ratio of CPHRs and public representatives, by adding two new Board members who are public representatives. In order to make space for these new Board members, Keith Sinclair and Lisa Rowe have graciously stepped down from the Board and shifted their contribution to our Committees. I would like to thank them for their time on the Board and all their contributions over the years. Lisa joined as a member in 2000, has served on the Board since 2019 and has served on the Governance Committee and Membership committees. Keith joined as a member in 2004, has served on the Board since 2020 and has served on the Professional Standards and Nominating Committees. Thank you again to Lisa and Keith for enabling our Board to meet the Bill 233 criteria and continuing to support CPHR by lending your expertise and insights to our Committees.

In the future, I am sure you will read or hear me saying the words “self-regulation” often. This milestone is very important to me, and as I step into this new role, I plan on ensuring we continue to elevate HR, and that protecting the public remains a focus of CPHR Manitoba, as this remains one the main reasons we set out to achieve self-regulation.

Self-regulation will show employers that hiring a CPHR is the best way to ensure they are protecting their organizations, their employees and the public within their HR practice. For HR practitioners, becoming a CPHR will provide even more authority and opportunity to affect best practice than ever before.

Bill 233 helps us to formally align CPHR Manitoba members with other business advisory professionals and recognizing the strategic role that HR plays in protecting people at work, and employers.

Through the hard work of the Board members and staff, led by Ron Gauthier, we have made steps to interpret The Chartered Professionals in Human Resources Act, implement the changes that come with it and work with Government Ministers. 

Our pursuit of self-regulation has been years in the making, and we are hopeful about receiving proclamation later this year, and what this means for the future of the association.

Sincerely,

Alison Crozier

Chair, CPHR Manitoba Board of Directors