Thursday, April 14, 2022

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• Waterloo Innovation Summit takes place today
• GRADventure Professional Skills Conference next week
• The Staff Conference may be over, but there's plenty to access and celebrate
• Earth Month: reduce your energy and win
• Better coaching needed to prevent burnout among video gaming pros
• What's open and closed this long weekend and other notes

Waterloo Innovation Summit takes place today

The Waterloo Innovation Summit takes place today from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The theme of this year’s WIS is “The Talent Evolution: Thriving in a Dynamic Talent Economy.” Attendees will have the opportunity to explore the evolving talent landscape, and how organizations must respond and adapt in order to build a prosperous and sustainable future. From the rapid shift to remote work to challenges recruiting top talent, evolving workplace expectations to critical calls for diversity, equity and inclusion – employers and employees alike are rethinking the world of work.

A global list of thought leaders and innovators will explore how organizations can successfully build a sustainable talent pipeline. Speakers include:

• University of Waterloo Chancellor Dominic Barton;
• President and Vice-Chancellor Vivek Goel;
• John Stackhouse, Senior Vice-President at the Royal Bank of Canada;
• Fred Swaniker, Founder and CEO of the African Leadership Group;
• Sandra Banks, Vice-President, University Relations;
• Norah McRae, Associate Provost, Co-operative and Experiential Learning;
• Anne-Marie Fannon, director of the Work-Learn Institute;
• Sanjeev Gill, Associate Vice-President, Innovation and Executive Director of WatSPEED;
• and many more industry education and community leaders.

Follow the conversation on social media with the hashtag #UWaterlooSummit.

GRADventure Professional Skills Conference next week

A message from Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs (GSPA).

Next week, from April 19 to 21 Graduate Studies and Postdoctoral Affairs is hosting the 2022 GRADventure Professional Skills Conference. Grad students and Postdocs: Register now to attend engaging presentations and workshops on how to develop crucial personal and professional skills that will help you thrive in academia and your future career. UWaterloo staff and external speakers will discuss important aspects of finding employment and how to effectively navigate professional settings and challenges. The conference will also give you an opportunity to socialize with your peers and compete for the chance to win cash prizes.  

For more information, including details about the different sessions and conference schedule, visit the conference web page.

The Staff Conference may be over, but there's plenty to access and celebrate

A message from Organizational and Human Development.

"We have so much to celebrate from the Waterloo Staff Conference this year,” says Susan Willsie, Manager of Employee Development in Organizational and Human Development. ”It’s fantastic to see the appreciation for the diversity and quality of content – and that’s a big testament to our staff presenters who brought their A-game." 

When a conference is buzzing with many participants, we feel a sense of connection and community – and this year’s virtual event drew over 1,000 highly engaged staff. For those who weren’t able to join the live event, there are still plenty of ways to engage with this year’s content:

“We are pleased to share that the university community can access many of the workshop recordings and conference content on the OHD Resources website, including the infamous WSC Keynote sketches,” says Laura Maple, Learning & Development Specialist in OHD and lead coordinator of the WSC this year. “Just log in with your watIAM credentials and enjoy.”

"We want to express our sincere thanks to everyone who participated and supported this year’s conference,” says Melanie Will, Director of OHD. “It’s always a wonderful reminder of just how much we can learn from one another.”

Earth Month: reduce your energy and win

A message from the Sustainability Office.

The Sustainability Office challenges you to reduce your energy during Earth Month.

From April 4 to April 29, staff, students and faculty are welcome to the Unplug Challenge and enter to win one of 13 prizes worth up to $100.00 The goal of this challenge is to reduce your energy consumption.

The Unplug Challenge is closely tied with Waterloo's Climate and Energy Action plan, Shift: Neutral. Core pieces of the plan includes a 17.5 per cent reduction by 2025 and 35 per cent reduction by 2030.

Enter by registering on the website and complete 5 simple actions like Switch it out or Turn it off.

Better coaching needed to prevent burnout among video gaming pros

This article was originally published on Waterloo News.

Early research into the growing electronic sports (esports) industry highlights a need for better coaching to prevent burnout among professional players.

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Waterloo, identified several areas, including player fatigue, mental stress and peak performance conditions, that require in-depth research to improve coaching and player performance.

“They burn out because they spend long hours sitting at desks playing and training,” said Bader Sabtan, a systems design engineering PhD student who led the study. “It results in all kinds of problems, from mental health issues to back and wrist injuries.”

In a survey of professional League of Legends teams, it was found there are virtually no standardized coaching approaches or techniques to guide young players.

Instead, players work to remain competitive in the constantly changing team battle video game, one of several with lucrative fan followings around the world, by practicing 12 to 14 hours a day, six days a week.

Professional esports fill stadiums with spectators as players, who average just 18 to 20 years of age, compete at computers while their games are shown on giant screens. One championship event in 2018 drew almost 100 million online viewers.

The researchers focused on League of Legends, which has 47 pro teams in North America, Europe, Korea and China. Players can earn more than $400,000 a year, but rarely have careers that last beyond three or four years.

Coaches who participated in the study unanimously agreed that methods must be developed to make practice more efficient and strategic to reduce the demands on players.

“I was surprised to learn even top professional coaches don’t have systematic training methods,” said Shi Cao, a systems design engineering professor and a member of the Games Institute at Waterloo. “Nothing is supported by scientific evidence or research.

“Just as physiology and kinesiology research supports traditional sports, cognitive psychology and human factors engineering can support mental work like esports,” said Cao, an esports fan and recreational player.

Sabtan can personally relate to the relentless demands on the best players. A few years ago, he was in the top one per cent of League of Legends players and spent up to 50 hours a week practicing to stay there.

“Right now, there is no other option,” Sabtan said. “The required sharpness, game knowledge and reaction speed are only achieved by practicing and repetition, so they just play the game. They don’t have social lives. They don’t have girlfriends or boyfriends. It’s unsustainable.”

The study, Current practice and challenges in coaching Esports players: An interview study with League of Legends professional team coaches, appears in the journal Entertainment Computing. Waterloo student Naomi Paul also contributed.

What's open and closed this long weekend and other notes

It is Easter weekend, with the Good Friday statutory holiday set for tomorrow. Additionally, Friday marks the Jewish holiday of Passover.

There will be a number of closings and service modifications to note for the long weekend, including:

• All W Store, W Store Essentials and W Print locations will be closed on Friday, April 15 for Good Friday. All locations will re-open for regular business hours starting Monday, April 18.
• The Dana Porter Library will be closed on Friday, April 15. The Davis Centre Library will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Online chat will be available from 12 noon to 4:00 p.m. and emails will be monitored from 12 noon to 6:00 p.m.
• Most Food Services locations will be closed on Friday, April 15 with the exception of The Market in UWP, which will be open from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m., REVelation in Ron Eydt Village, which will be open from 11:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., and Mudie's in Village 1, open from 8:30 a.m. to 10:30 p.m. Check the Food Services hours and locations page for more information.
• The Student Life Centre (SLC) and the Turnkey Desk will be open throughout the long weekend.

In other campus news:

Call for expressions of interest to participate in the White Paper on Bibliometrics Update project: "The Bibilometrics Working Group is seeking interested parties to participate on one or more task forces, investigating specific topics of interest related to bibilometrics and research impact on Waterloo’s campus," says a note from the Bibliometrics Working Group. "The project will begin in early May 2022, with the bulk of participation happening from May to December 2022. Expressions of interest should be submitted Laura Bredahl, Bibliometrics and Research Impact Librarian, by Monday April 18, 2022. More details on the project and task force topics can be found on the IAP website."

Finally, the Beyond the Bulletin Podcast will be on hiatus this week, returning on Friday, April 22. The Daily Bulletin will return on Monday, April 18. Enjoy the long weekend, everyone.