CSR XX Annual Weekend - Date to go here

Weekend Themes

  • Personal Inspiration: Through roundtable discussions and site visits to not-for profit organizations, participants will develop a personal appreciation for the complexities and importance of CSR for business.
  • Corporate Inspiration: Presentations and involvement by industry leading senior executives from Accenture Inc., Nexen Inc., Alcan, and Canadian Business for Social Responsibility will provide participants with the benchmark of what can be achieved in organizations.
  • Capstone Experience: By engaging in a live case study that presents a situation actually faced by our corporate members, participants will get a first-hand feel for what it takes to manage CSR dilemmas.

Program schedule

Download a PDF of the weekend's itinerary, or view program schedule online.

Weekend Speakers

Dean David Saunders

David Saunders

Welcome to the first annual CSR Weekend at Queen's School of Business. Congratulations to those students participating in this inaugural event. By taking on the additional commitment of the Commerce CSR Certificate, you are part of an important and powerful movement within the School and the broader business community to take a fresh look at management - one that sees beyond production and profit.

Today's business leaders struggle with complex decisions. Those struggles will come to life over this weekend, helping you to understand the issues and develop strategies to address them.

We are grateful to Accenture and Nexen for sponsoring this exciting weekend, and taking such an active role in its delivery. Best wishes for a rewarding weekend of discussion and learning.

Bill Shiremen

Bill Shiremen

Following remarks by Peter Kissick, Director, Commerce Program, the Keynote Speaker, Bill Shiremen, CEO of The Future 500, outlined how he has made progress promoting CSR. His examples ranged from the establishment of a benchmark bottle recycling bill in California to aligning the interests of major corporations and their stakeholders.

Prof. Jay Handleman

Jay Handleman

"Those of us here at Queen's – and at the School of Business – have responsibility to do more than just talk about ethical decision-making and social responsibility. We must also demonstrate it through leadership and actions," said Prof. Jay Handelman, Associate Professor of Marketing and Director of the Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility in the opening session of the CSR weekend.

John McWilliams

John McWilliams

Following dinner, the participants were treated to remarks by John McWilliams, Sr. Vice-President, General Counsel & Secretary for Nexen Inc. "Studies prove that, in the long term, companies that follow sustainable business practices outperform those with narrower priorities," said McWilliams. He went on to outline how Nexen sees their commitment to CSR. So, it was an intense immersion into CSR.