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The Oakville Beaver, W ed ne sd ay, N o v e m b e r 7, 2001 - C7 BUSINESS S'!'""1 "' C O M M U N ITY INVESTMENT: Artist Robert Boast-Cornish holds up his painting of down town Oakville, while Nancy McKen, bank manager of the CIBC at 197 Lakeshore Rd E. looks on. The bank recently decided to fill its walls and promote an Oakville artist as well by holding an art exhibit of Boast-Cornish's work. McKen said her branch has already purchased some of his work for permanent display, and she hopes to support other artists in the community with future art exhibits. Photo by Liesa Kortmann Financial executives claim to value professional development programs When it comes to education, most executives believe the process shouldn't end at graduation. In a recent survey, 94% of chief financial officers (CFOs) polled said it is valuable for businesses to invest in ongoing professional development for their employees. However, more than half (57%) of respondents indicated their company does not currently offer a formal training program. The survey was developed by Robert Half International Inc., the w orld's first and largest staffing service specializing in the accounting, finance and information technology fields. It was conducted by an independent research firm and includes responses from 295 CFOs from a strati fied random sample of Canadian companies with more than 20 employees. CFOs were asked, "How valuable is it for companies to invest in ongoing professional developm ent for their em ployees?" Their responses: Very valuable - 64% Somewhat valuable - 30% Not at all valuable - 6% "Providing a challenging, grow th-oriented work environment is one o f the keys to success for businesses today," said Kathryn Bolt, district president of Robert Half International's Canadian operations. "Professional development programs such as seminars, workshops and on-the-job training can result in a more efficient staff as well as contribute to improved employee morale and retention." Bolt added that companies can also support continuous learning by subsidizing course fees for advanced degrees, professional licences and other certifications. In the survey, CFOs said they consider com puter-based training (43%) the most effective form of continuing professional education, fol lowed closely by in-house classroom-style train ing (40%), professional development seminars (31%), tuition reimbursement (26%) and mentor ing programs (24%). (Note: Respondents were allowed more than one answer.) This article was provided by Robert H alf International Inc., which has more than 330 loca tions throughout North America, Europe and Australia, and offers online jo b search services at www.rhi.com. A personal lo o k ...... ... A view of The Queen's Avenue Retirement Residence B y B ill D o d g e ADVERTISING FEATURE A Barringtons 50 th Anniversary Raffle is this Friday, November 9th at 5:00 p.m. You could win a Black Sheared Mink Jacket (Value: $4,000.00) Tickets are $20 each or 3 for $50 All proceeds to benefit the Oak\ille Trafalgar Memorial Hospital Located in Beautiful Downtown Oakville 209 Lakeshore Road East (905) 845-2031 HOURS: Moikky-FriUjx ' 'arfropm l,.iai-5p;n CksscJ xincv. spontaneous visit to the Queens Avenue Retirem ent Residence was all it took to convince Betty Kidd and x h er husband A1 th at it was the place for them . For 20 years Betty and A1 lived the fairy tale retired life. Originally from Toronto, they spent six m onths of the year in Florida and the other six in Muskoka. D uring these 20 years Bette would also stay w ith her daughter Susan in Oakville for two weeks every spring and fall. Before she left for Florida last year she decided to take a new route on her daily walk and stopped into Queens Avenue Retirem ent Residence to visit the facility. Her first im pressions were m em orable, and she th o u g h t of the facility th ro u g h o u t the w inter m onths in Florida. Two days after Betty and A1 returned from Florida last spring A1 suf fered a heart attack. This accelerated the need for a decision on a retirem ent resi dence. The previous year they had also investigated several other retirem ent loca tions b u t Betty's visit to The Queens Avenue R etirem ent Residence still stuck out in h er mind. Her m em ories of a warm comfortable greeting, and the attentive staff made th eir decision easy. "The staff are terrific!" exclaims Betty. "You are catered to and they make you feel very im portant." Betty notes th at the staff go out of th eir way to ensure th at you are looked after and taken care of. Her husband A1 has to receive dialysis three tim es per week and the entire course of action is coordinated including his tra n s portation, a process th a t Betty pointed out would be very trying for her to carry o u t on her own. "The location is very convenient," and there is no shortage of activities and things to do. "Day to day life is w hat you make it. I am energetic and outgoing, and the options are th ere." There are daily activities, exercises, crafts, entertainm ent, and a beauty salon located on the m ain floor. Betty and A1 play bridge on Monday nights, and she has euchre on Tuesdays. Q ueen's Avenue R etirem ent Residence is in walking distance to Oakville Place and many o ther am enities including the Oakville Municipal Offices, the Trafalgar Professional Building and Argus Medical Center w ith doctors, therapists, dentists and a pharmacy. The GO Station, and Oakville Transit are m inutes away. The central location in Oakville is ideal and the close proxim ity to the highway makes for easy com m utes. There is m orning coffee and afternoon tea, which prove to be a wonderful tim e to socialize and visit. It is very convenient as residents only have to prepare breakfast and lunch, w ith dinner being served in the dining room. The suites have full kitchen facilities and Betty appreciates the freedom this gives her. She can prepare her break fast and lunch on her own schedule, and not have to worry about m issing meals. The interior of the facility is warm and com fortable. There is an elegant main lounge w ith a double-sided fireplace, activi ty and recreation facilities and a guest suite for visitors and short-term stays. The din ing area is very comfortable, accented by a large outdoor terrace w ith a southern view. The suites range in size from 370 to 775 sq. ft. (studio, one and two bedrooms). The suites have ample storage and closet space, fully equipped bathroom s w ith walk-in seat ed showers and spacious windows w ith ver tical blinds. "I face south, and have a w on derful view," notes Betty. The environm ent is safe, secure and elegant w ith autom atic keyless door entries, a twenty-four hour emergency response system and closed cir cuit m onitored entrances. "Everyone is very friendly, both the staff and residents. The people are very, very nice," said Betty. There are many services included w hen taking up residency at the Q ueen's Avenue R etirem ent Residence. For more inform ation regarding occupancy visit them at 1056 Q ueen's Avenue, or call 905-815-0862.