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Agenda of the 2008 WorkLife Congress in New York City

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Looking for something to do October 28-30?  How about a trip to New York City and attend Working Mother's 2008 Work-Life Congress?  Event and registration information can be found here.

Here is the agenda for the Congress:

WorkLife Congress Welcome Reception & Exhibit Hall 

5:30 – 7:00        Join us as we kick off our 11th Annual 100 Best Companies WorkLife Congress- Sponsored by Accenture, Bon Secours/Richmond Health, Credit Suisse, Schering-Plough & Wal-Mart/Sams Club

Featuring Dell & Verizon Wireless' Technology Zone

100 Best Companies WorkLife Congress

Wednesday, October 29th

7:30 – 8:45         Registration – Sponsored by Blue Cross/Blue Shield of North Carolina

7:30 – 7:00          Silent Auction to benefit The Women's Alliance

7:30 – 8:45          Continental Breakfast – Sponsored by KPMG

8:45 – 9:30         Signature Opening – Sponsored by Grant Thornton, McGraw Hill & Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP, The Procter & Gamble Company & Sanofi-Aventis
Anita Renfroe has gone from "stay-at-home-mom" to "YouTube comedic Phe-mom-enon" – and it's been a wild ride. Anita will officially kick off this year's WorkLife Congress with her unique brand of estrogen-flavored musical comedy and blend of sass, edge and slightly offbeat takes on All Things Female. Anita says she just tells it like it is. Some would say she just tells what everyone else is thinking, but won't say out loud.

"I'd rather people laugh because they relate to something I say than because I wrote a clever punchline," Anita says. "All my stuff is about my life – it's real and it connects people – and that's a wonderful thing."

Anita Renfroe's brand new DVD, It's Probably Just My Thyroid, does just that – making people lauch with her off-the-wall insights and music, including her hilarious parody of Carrie Underwood's No. 1 smash hit Before He Cheats, cleverly retitled Before I Eat. Filmed in her hometown of Atlanta, GA before a sold out crowd, It's Probably Just My Thyroid was released in April 2008.

9:30 – 9:45         Welcome Remarks–Carol Evans, CEO & President, Working Mother Media

9:45 – 10:15       Opening Keynote – Dee Dee Myers, Political Analyst, Commentator, Author of "Why Women Should Rule the World"
 
10:15 -10:45       Networking Break – Sponsored by Pearson

10:45 -12:15      ThinkFest Solutions: Learning Teams – Sponsored by American Express & Johnson & Johnson
We're taking a NEW approach to our ThinkFest Solutions! Based on feedback from our attendees we're grouping people into Learning Teams to discuss "must learn" topics – those issues you need to know more about the minute you get back to the office. Keep an eye out for updated sessions. Several small learning teams will work on solutions and develop follow-up plans.

Changing WorkLife Strategies in an Evolving Economy
Marci Koblenz, President, Center for Companies That Care

The Roadmap for Implementing Child and Elder Care Solutions that Make an Impact
Lucy (McClellan) English, Ph.D., Consultant, Bright Horizons Family Solutions

Managing at a Distance
Peter Linkow, President, WFD Consulting

Flexibility – Siloed or Central? – What Makes Flex a Reality
Karol Rose, Chief Knowledge Officer, Center of Excellence, FlexPaths

The Multigenerational Workplace: How Different Generations are Redefining WorkLife
Jennifer Brown, Principal, Jennifer Brown Consulting LLC

Addressing Workload, Work Processes and Productivity
Sharon Melnick

Designing Creative Career Strategies for Women
Richard Westphal, Director, Retain Talent, Accenture

Global WorkLife Strategies and Local Implementation
Danielle Hartmann, Director of Corporate Partnerships, Boston College Center for Work & Family

WorkLife Awareness: Branding and Communicating Work/Life Programs Internally
Linda Christiansen, Global Diversity Inclusion – Work/Life, American Express

[Read more…]

What is happening with the ecomony?

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While the world of work-life and child care issues are the usual focus of this blog, I feel I would be remiss if I did not mention the huge struggles we are experiencing in the world economy right now. 

For months, my friend and colleague Robert Paterson has been doing excellent blog postings on this topic. If you are looking for a way to better understand what is happening do spend some time on Rob's blog.  You will find it to be both helpful and informative.  Rob has a great way of relaying what is very complicated information. 

Chris Corrigan also feels the same about Rob's postings.  Here is what he wrote recently:

My friend Rob Paterson has not only lived in the high levels of the world of high finance, but has alos been through a stock market crash before, in 1987.  As such the story he is telling on his blog is deep and informed, and it’s also accessible.  This is because Rob cares about storytelling, and he has spent a number of years now working with public radio and television in the United States helping stations in their effort to create news that is useful.  Nowhere has this been more important than now, when the meltdown in the mortgage and now the financing sectors of the American economy has devastated families and communities. 

Another great source of information on this is the story that ran last evening on the CBC show,Sunday Night.  The story was called The Great Wall Street Swindle.  It is a very helpful summary of what is happening in the United States ecomony and how it has already impacted us in Canada.  If you are looking for a quick lesson on what has happened with the sub-prime mortgage crisis and the related fallout make sure that you should watch this story.