Peer Consulting Accelerator: Get Unstuck on What Matters

Description

You're stuck on something that matters.

Perhaps expenditure reductions are reshaping your organization. A decision you cannot move forward. A strategy that won't land with the people you need to convince. A problem you've been thinking about alone for too long.

You need to get your story straight, and you need to do it now.

This workshop gives you a full day to work on it with peers who understand your world. No consultants. No billable hours. Just better advice from people who actually care about your success, delivered in real time.

Here's what you get: A solution to your problem, and an effective way to communicate that insight so people actually listen and act.

Here's how it works: You bring a real challenge. Through structured peer consulting, you get outside perspective from other federal public servants who have navigated similar terrain. You work as both client and advisor, gaining clarity on your problem while helping others with theirs.

You will learn:

• Structured Peer Consulting — How to leverage the collective wisdom of fellow public servants to gain breakthrough insights on challenges you've been wrestling with alone.
• Strategic Problem Framing — How to articulate your challenge clearly enough that others can help you solve it.
• Frameworks for Clarity — How to convey complex messages in simple, clear, and persuasive ways that decision-makers can grasp and act on immediately.
• Audience-Adaptive Communication — Once you've solved your problem, how to shape your message differently for colleagues, leaders and stakeholders—so each audience hears what they need to support your initiative.
• Executive Presence and Credibility — How to present your ideas with confidence and authority so you're seen as a strategic thinker, not just a subject matter expert.

Facilitated by a former federal executive and storytelling coach, as well as an expert in design thinking, this highly participatory working session is designed for people ready to think hard, receive candid feedback, and leave with actionable next steps.

Duration:

• Full day training (9-4 PM), including networking lunch and strategic breaks designed to maximize your learning and application potential. 

Space is limited to ensure personalized attention. Secure your place now by clicking the registration button!

Special Offers

Take advantage of these exclusive discounts available when registering for IOG courses:

1. Group Course Discount: Register 3 or more colleagues together for the same course and receive 10% off your total registration fee.  
   Learning together builds team capacity—and helps you save on training costs.
2. Individual Bundle Discount: Register as an individual for 3 or more courses at the same time and save 10% on your total registration fee.
   Advance your professional development while maximizing value.

Facilitators

John Stroud is a strategic adviser to leaders on linking people with technology. His vision opens people’s minds to new possibilities, and he challenges them to consider creative options. People turn to John for plainspoken, easy-to-understand explanations.

John is a certified OpenExO consultant in exponential technologies. Prior to launching AI Guides, John served as Vice President, Strategy at a federal crown corporation ($600M budget and 8000+ workforce) with responsibilities for Governance, Human Resources, Communications, Legal, Performance Measurement and Risk.

John obtained his Masters of Philosophy from Oxford, his law degree and Masters of Public Administration from the University of Victoria, and his BA from the University of Toronto. He also obtained his ICD.D for completing the Director’s Education Program at the Institute of Corporate Directors.

Meghan Hellstern is a human-centered designer, strategist and facilitator with more than 12 years of experience who draws on a broad toolkit to gather insights that drive impact and change in support of the public good. Meghan works as a Senior Specialist, Innovation at Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC), where she uses design and other innovation methods to ensure that every Canadian can afford a home that meets their needs by 2030.

Prior to joining CMHC, Meghan was a Senior Project Designer at the Brookfield Institute for Innovation + Entrepreneurship (BII+E) where she led high-profile projects exploring a variety of critical policy topics including women’s entrepreneurship and artificial intelligence (AI). Before joining BII+E, she worked as the lead design strategist at the City of Toronto’s Civic Innovation Office, a Bloomberg Philanthropies-funded innovation team (i-team) dedicated to using human-centered design and data-informed decision-making to improve residents’ lives. She has also worked with organizations like Code for Canada, Laurier University’s Social Innovation and Venture Creation (SIVC), Samara Canada, the Oakville Public Library, and MaRS Solutions Lab, not to mention spending years working with the Government of Canada on a wide range of files from electoral reform and veterans affairs to
digital government and indigenous affairs.

Meghan contributes to her community in many ways, including designing and delivering the Ontario Digital Inclusion Summit, one of Ontario’s first conferences on the topic, co-founding Canada’s biggest civic tech community Civic Tech Toronto and sitting on the advisory board of the Digital Justice Lab. She also maintains a vibrant facilitation, consulting and teaching practice at places like Ryerson University’s Chang School of Continuing Education and the Institute on Governance in Ottawa.