Karla Thorpe

Director, Leadership and Human Resources Research The Conference Board of Canada

  • Ottawa ON

It's not always about money: Learn what it takes to not only attract and retain employees but to increase employee commitment

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The Conference Board of Canada

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Biography

Karla Thorpe is a Director with the Leadership and Human Resources Research Division of The Conference Board of Canada. Since joining the Board almost five years ago, Karla has been actively involved in research in the area of compensation, benefits, health and wellness, workforce planning and labour relations.

Most recently, she co-authored a research report entitled Building Mentally Healthy Workplaces: Perspectives of Canadian Workers and Front-Line Managers which provides guidance to employers on how to support the mental health and wellbeing of employees in the workplace. Karla has research currently underway on managing the drivers of absenteeism and lost productivity and substance abuse and dependency in the workplace.

Prior to joining the Conference Board, Karla worked at several national research firms where she conducted qualitative and quantitative research engagements for clients in the public and private sectors.

Karla has earned a Master of Science in Statistics from Queen’s University as well as a Bachelor of Commerce from Carleton University. She is also an active member of WorldatWork and the Ottawa Region Rewards Association.

Industry Expertise

Health and Wellness
Public Policy
Information Services
Research
Human Resources
Think Tanks
Talent Management
Management Consulting

Areas of Expertise

Compensation and Benefits
Labour Relations
Workplace Health and Wellness

Accomplishments

Director, Leadership and Human Resources Research – The Conference Board of Canada

The Conference Board of Canada (CBoC) is the foremost independent, not-for-profit applied research organization in Canada. Since 1954, the Board has been committed to researching innovative practices, designing new strategies and providing our members with the most up-to-date information, analysis and expertise to help them excel in Canada and around the world. The CBoC builds leadership capacity by creating and sharing insights on economic trends, public policy and organizational performance.

Education

Queen's University

Masters of Science

Statistics

1996

Carleton University

Bachelor of Commerce

1995

Event Appearances

Survey of Employer-Sponsored Benefits

Benefits Summit 2010  Toronto, Ontario

2010-10-27

Recruiting, Engaging and Retaining Mature Workers

HEABC 16th Annual Conference “Finders, Keepers: New Directions in Recruitment & Retention  Vancouver, BC

2009-06-23

Building a healthy workplace

Focus on Mental Health  Toronto, Ontario

2012-05-17

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Sample Talks

Recruiting, Engaging and Retaining Mature Workers

Many Canadian employers are facing challenges in attracting, retaining and engaging key employees. These challenges will become increasingly prominent as the wave of highly skilled and experienced baby boomers start to retire. In this session, Karla Thorpe will share highlights from research studies on the aging workforce. Participants will learn the strategies that leading Canadian organizations have in place to recruit, retain and engage mature workers.

Wellness ROI—Are You Getting Your Money’s Worth?

The Conference Board of Canada is undertaking research that will provide employers with guidance on how to calculate the ROI of workplace health and wellness programs. The focus is on practical, research-supported approaches, and explores tools & metrics that can be used to demonstrate the overall effectiveness of health and wellness initiatives.

Karla will share the results of this research, providing a new evidence-based perspective to help you assess your health and wellness investment.

Building Mentally Healthy Workplaces: Perspectives of Canadian Workers and Front-Line Managers

Karla Thorpe will provide an overview of the key messages arising out of The Conference Board of Canada’s recent research with managers and employees across the country on mental health in the workplace. How widespread are mental health issues? What are the challenges facing workers with mental health issues? What can organizations do to create inclusive, healthy work environments for people with mental health issues? These are just some of the questions that our speaker will address.

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Style

Availability

  • Keynote
  • Moderator
  • Panelist
  • Workshop Leader
  • Host/MC
  • Corporate Training