The Cannexus National Career Development Conference brought more than 1,000 participants to Ottawa from Jan. 22-24, 2018 to learn about the career development skills and strategies required for success in the workforce.

Conference highlights included:

• Three thought-provoking keynote speakers: Chantal Hébert provided advice on engaging youth in politics; Dr Spencer Niles told us how we can nourish our souls at work; and Muslim comedy writer Zarqa Nawaz shared her career journey
• CERIC launched new publications: Bridging Two Worlds: Supporting Newcomer and Refugee Youth Guide, Computing Disciplines: A Quick Guide for Prospective Students and Career Advisors and The Early Years: Career Development for Young Children – Parents/Guardians Guide and Educators Guide
• Several special program features: the Workforce Development Spotlight, the Community Engagement mural on the “future of work” – and the immersive KAIROS Blanket Exercise exploring the relationship between Indigenous and non-Indigenous peoples

The conference featured the popular Spark! TED-style talks, informative Mega Sessions and more than 150 education sessions that examined topics ranging from understanding the gig economy to gamification of career development for millennials to the rise of “seniorpreneurs.”

The latest programs, products and services were also showcased by 43 exhibitors in addition to special zones focusing on Social Enterprise, Mental Health and Reconciliation.

In a post-conference survey, a total of 96.9% of respondents rated Cannexus as good to excellent. The majority of delegates indicated that they plan to either use what they learned at work right away or incorporate it over time with 92.9% stating they plan to share what they learned with their colleagues to impact change broadly. Comments included:

“The conference is full of ideas, strategies and possibilities to fuel planning and implementation of career development programs and practices anywhere.”

“Cannexus allowed me to enhance the resources in my own personal ‘toolkit’ to improve our community footprint and impact the lives of our program participants.”

“The breadth of knowledge and the opportunity to learn and share best practices ensures you leave more energized than when you arrive.”

The Cannexus launch of Bridging Two Worlds: Supporting Newcomer and Refugee Youth Guide was covered extensively in the media, including CBC News, Winnipeg Free Press, CTV News and Radio Canada.

To learn more about Cannexus18:

• Access the speaker presentations and handouts
• View a video recap of the highlights
• See photos from this year’s conference

Cannexus18 was presented by CERIC and supported by The Counselling Foundation of Canada with a broad network of 32 supporting organizations and sponsors.

The dates for the next Cannexus are January 28-30, 2019 in Ottawa. The Call for Presenters will open in March and the submission deadline is June 8, 2018.