People Leadership

Format: In-person workshop

As flexible and hybrid work takes shape in practice this year, meaningful dialogue – not guidelines alone – will determine how well teams adapt, collaborate, and thrive. Making Flexibility Work: Conversations that Matter is an interactive workshop designed to equip people leaders with the skills, tools, and shared language needed to navigate shifting expectations with clarity, trust, and connection. 

Intended Audience: Staff members who have direct supervisory reports. Please note: This offering has been designed to be audience specific. Participants WITHOUT direct supervisory responsibility are encouraged to register for the Leadership Lab: Personal Leadership offerings.    

Format: In-person and online workshop options

Flexibility in the workplace involves adapting routines, expectations, and ways of working to make the most of both on-campus presence and flexible arrangements. Employees contribute to a culture of flexibility by building trust, communicating openly, supporting colleagues, and taking accountability for their role in supporting team and organizational success. 

This session will help participants navigate shifting expectations while maintaining strong communication, connections, and collaboration. Employees will gain strategies for balancing personal well-being with productivity, and for contributing to a culture of trust, inclusion, and accountability within their teams. They will also explore engaging in effective conversations with managers about flexible work needs and arrangements.  

Format: In-person and online workshop options

Managers and leaders play a key role in building a culture of flexibility by guiding and supporting teams through shifting expectations, fostering trust and accountability, and ensuring service excellence while thoughtfully incorporating flexibility where it makes sense. 

This session will help managers explore their role in creating a culture of trust, inclusion, and connections while balancing operational needs. Participants will gain strategies for navigating challenges such as perceptions of equity, performance, development and complex work requests, using decision-making approaches grounded in our values, clear communication and practical tools.  

Format: In-person workshop

Change is constant, but how we lead through it can either fuel us or accelerate burnout. In this interactive Leadership Lab: Personal Leadership, we’ll explore the dual challenge leaders face: guiding teams through ongoing uncertainty while protecting their own energy and capacity. 

Together, we’ll reflect on the impact of change, identify the signs of burnout (in ourselves and our teams), and share practical strategies for creating stability, focus, and support while navigating shifting priorities. Through personal reflection and group discussion, participants will gain tools to help them lead with clarity, empathy, and purpose – without sacrificing wellbeing. 

Format: Online workshop

HR Foundations for Managers are a series of learning modules intended to build awareness and a deeper understanding of how to navigate Human Resources-related processes, procedures, and policies at the University of Waterloo.

These modules are designed to provide insight and guidance, showcasing the information and support available for the HR processes managers are accountable for in support of their teams.

Format: In-person workshop in February 2026

HR Foundations for Managers are a series of learning modules intended to build awareness and a deeper understanding of how to navigate Human Resources-related processes, procedures, and policies at the University of Waterloo.

These modules are designed to provide insight and guidance, showcasing the information and support available for the HR processes managers are accountable for in support of their teams.

Format: In-person workshop January 2026

HR Foundations for Managers are a series of learning modules intended to build awareness and a deeper understanding of how to navigate Human Resources-related processes, procedures, and policies at the University of Waterloo.

These modules are designed to provide insight and guidance, showcasing the information and support available for the HR processes managers are accountable for in support of their teams.

Format: In-person workshop

The theme for spring 2025 is: 
Leading Through Uncertainty: Navigating Invisible Forces

Leadership Lab: People Leadership offers comfortable and supportive space for managers, supervisors, and folks leading people at the University to co-create an informal peer community. Using the Circles of Influence Framework to guide the conversation, participants will reflect on their leadership style and practices, identify where their control and influence lie with respect to the session’s specified theme, and learn from each other how to approach various challenges.