Building Community Leaders

To Register for a workshop –  click here
For the Brochure – click here.
New Brochure with Testimonials – click here

Upcoming Workshops

  • Richmond Hill: February 19-20, 2025
  • Caledonia: April 12-13, 2025
  • Barrie: May 24-25, 2025
  • Kingston: June 21-22, 2025
  • Guelph: October 24-25, 2025
  • Richmond Hill: February 2026

Each two-day workshop will use an experiential approach to deliver leadership, governance, risk management practices, and community engagement skills to participants.

  • Start with the end in mind – Participants are welcomed, create an atmosphere for learning, define why the training is important, set the tone for the two days, and create a culture of open-mindedness and common purpose.
  • Understanding people—This session will promote a deeper understanding of each person’s communication and collaboration style. The DISC tool creates a better organizational culture, more engagement, and improved results. Stoneridge Consulting leads this session, which requires completing a brief pre-workshop questionnaire.
  • Panel role of the leader: “Becoming a leader, people will follow”. Participants will gain a variety of leadership strategies, concepts, and perspectives from seasoned leaders in the agricultural and rural community development sectors.
  • Best practices for organizational excellence
    • Part 1: Best Practices for Organizational Excellence – Participants understand the tools and rules of engagement that optimize the effective use of Board/Staff skills and time.
    • Part 2: Board Roles & Responsibilities—Participants learn how to conduct themselves on the Board, represent their Agriculture Society, respect the collective voice of OAAS, and stay engaged in providing foresight for their Agriculture Society. Helen Scutt will lead this session.
  • Problem-solving – using the Kirton Adaptation-Innovation Problem Solving Tool (KAI). During this session, participants will dig into how different individual styles can contribute to solving problems in a dynamic organization. The session will deliver leadership content using presentation, storytelling, and short group exercises. At the end of the session, participants will learn about their KAI and their placement on the adaptation-innovation continuum. This session is ROI-led. Requires completing a brief pre-workshop questionnaire.

Networking

A post-workshop community of practice will be offered to participants so that they can continue to share and collaborate. Webinars and an online forum will accelerate best practices and leverage resources.

Engagement & Sharing

Program participants are invited to take part in a culminating event where they will be inspired to mobilize action and celebrate successes.

About the program

Starting in 2024, OAAS will host several workshops across the province to offer the opportunity for two executive members from each agricultural society to participate in the following developmental activities: