Speakers
These influential leaders, visionaries and passionate retail professionals discuss the most critical topics in the retail HR landscape.
Rochele Padiachy
Manager, Learning and Knowledge Solutions
Canadian Centre for Diversity and Inclusion
Rochele Padiachy
Manager, Learning and Knowledge Solutions
Rochele Padiachy and her family left Johannesburg, South Africa during the apartheid regime to Canada as refugees. Rochele’s formative years were supported by the wisdom teaching of Ubuntu which anchors a deep connection between self and community. Nurtured by both formal and ancestral teachers, Rochele’s lived experiences have greatly inspired her a lifelong commitment to transformative social justice and human rights education. Rochele has a BA in Multicultural and Indigenous studies with a focus on race, ethnicity, and indigeneity from York University, a master’s degree in Human Security and Peacebuilding from Royal Roads University and an executive certificate in public policy analysis from the London School of Economics and Political Science. Rochele is currently a manager of learning and knowledge solutions at the Canadian Center for Diversity and Inclusion. She is also the director of programming and events with the Council of African Professionals and serves on the City of Markham’s Race Relations Advisory Committee.
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Deb Craven
President
Longo Brothers Fruit Markets Inc.
Deb Craven
President
Deb Craven is a seasoned executive with decades of progressive experience. She has built an incredible career grounded in hard work, supportive managers, curiosity, and having the confidence to speak her mind with strong humility.
Deb is the President at Longo’s. She joined the organization in 2019 as the Chief Financial Officer and later became the Chief Operating Officer. During her tenure at Longo’s, she has successfully delivered exceptional growth while architecting the extraordinary expansion of the company, including supporting the partnership with Empire. Previous to Longo’s, she has held progressive financial management positions at Purolator, Nike, and Canadian Tire (Mark’s and Sportchek).
She achieved her Chartered Accountant designation (ICAO) and an Honours BBA (Co-Op) from Wilfrid Laurier University. She also received the Star Women in Grocery award.
Deb is married with 2 adult children and enjoys the gym, cycling and is learning to play tennis (and trying to love golf).
She gives back to the community with her support of charitable organizations. Over the years she has proudly served on the Board of Directors for The Learning Partnership, Sagesse, and Kids Help Phone.
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David Lloyd
Chief Data and AI Officer
Ceridian
John Mortimer
President
Canadian LabourWatch Association
John Mortimer
President
John Mortimer is the leading expert in Canada on the rights and responsibilities of employees who may not want to become or remain unionized. He works with Counsel and their Client’s in taking an employee centered approach to union drives and when employees are exercising their statutory rights to decertify a union.
John ran Human Resources departments for companies with employees in Canada and the U.S. for 15 years such as Future Shop, Wendy’s and Colorization (high-tech industry).
John has been a self-employed management consultant since 1999, specializing in transitions and turn-arounds. John has worked with many organizations who had union drives or employees who wanted to decertify a union.
Since 2000, John has served part-time as President of the non-profit Canadian LabourWatch Association. Its mandate is to help employees make informed choices about unionization and access Labour Board process and forms when they do not wish to become or remain unionized.
He has advised Governments, elected officials and Ministry staff on both labour law and the Income Tax Act of Canada regarding union financial disclosure. He has appeared before Canada’s House of Commons and Senate Committees as an expert witness many times.
John is currently a member of an Advisory Committee of the Board of a US based positive employee relations training organization (CUE – previously known as the Council for Union-Free Environments).
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Shelly M. Patel
Vice President
Canadian LabourWatch Association
Shelly M. Patel
Vice President
Shelly M. Patel graduated from the University of British Columbia’s law school in 2000 and worked as a management side Labour and Employment lawyer until 2006, eventually leaving practice to start a family. She then returned to the workforce acting as a Senior Labour Relations Advisor for a public broadcaster before beginning an independent consulting practice, helping companies improve their employee relations through focus group work. Shelly is also an avid CrossFitter, and in 2015, opened a 7200 sq ft gym in Toronto.
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Diane J. Brisebois
President and CEO
Retail Council of Canada
Diane J. Brisebois, CAE, is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Retail Council of Canada (RCC). She oversees the largest retail association in Canada serving over 45,000 retail establishments including independent merchants, chain stores, mass merchants, big box and online retailers. RCC’s membership covers all segments of the retail market including general merchandise, grocery and pharmacy.
Diane joined RCC as its President and CEO in January 1995. Diane has held CEO positions in the not-for-profit sector representing various industries for the past 35 years.
Diane has and continues to serve on a variety of Boards across North America.
Ms. Brisebois is Immediate Past Chair of the Fair Factory Clearinghouse (FFC), an organization established to enable collaboration between vendors and retailers in assessing and improving workplace conditions globally.
Ms. Brisebois is also the Immediate Past Chair and a member of the Executive Committee of the Forum of International Retail Association Executives (FIRAE) which represents retail associations from more than 30 countries brought together to collaborate on issues affecting the retail sector globally.
Ms. Brisebois also served for many years on the Board of Covenant House Toronto, on the Board and as Chairman of the Traffic Injury Research Foundation and on the Board and as Chairman of the Canadian Society of Association Executives.
She currently serves on:
- The Ted Rogers School of Retail Management Advisory Council
- The Advisory Board of the University of Alberta’s School of Retailing
- The Board of the Toronto Region Board of Trade, and
- The Board of Stewardship Ontario (Ontario Blue Box Program)
Ms. Brisebois is a native of Montreal, Quebec and now resides in Toronto, Ontario.
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Kevin Graff
President
Graff Retail
Kevin Graff is the President of Graff Retail, based in Toronto, Ontario. Since 1988, Graff Retail has specialized in working with retailers around the globe to increase their revenue through improved staff performance.
Kevin is widely respected as one of North America’s best retail speakers and trainers and was recently chosen as one of the Top 50 Retail Influencers. His principle belief is that retailers are losing too many sales each day in their stores that they should be capturing. Kevin’s approach to store operations and his intense focus on real, bottom-line issues continually produce outstanding results.
Kevin is also the creator of Graff Retail TV, the retail community’s leading source of online sales and management training. Since being launched in 2008, Graff Retail TV has provided thousands of sales associates and store management teams with the skills they need to succeed.
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Interested in speaking at RCC Human Resources Conference?
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