Specializations: facilitation, training, coaching, change management, leadership development, experiential learning, and organizational development.
Aha moment in Rene’s Career:
As one of our senior consultants, Rene brings with him over 15 years of experience working with for-profit and non-profit organizations in different countries. A native of Chile, Rene relocated to Canada in 2008.
Rene started his career in psychology, but his passion for capacity building and sustainable change led him in a different direction. Through the years, he has been able to develop meaningful working relationships in organizational transformation projects and generated effective practices to secure buy-in and implementation.
“The moment that I connected with the HR world was when I attended a leadership program at Halifax in Canada several years ago. There was a connection between teaching, alternative leadership & social organizational issues. It was at that moment that I realized that I want to be a resource to people who have an objective, goal, and purpose, but maybe lack management skills and need to build capacity. That was my beginning, then I came back from Chile and studied at McGill.”
Rene’s passion & area of expertise:
Rene crossed paths with Boreala when he was finishing his master’s degree at Concordia University and was looking for the next chapter in his career.
“I was excited that Boreala had a powerful connection with Indigenous communities. I knew that working with them and understanding their culture will be a valuable experience for me.”
Rene is an enthusiastic team player and known for his ability to develop meaningful and trusted relationships with his clients.
“I am passionate about supporting teams and organizations from the point where they are at and through where they want to be. Supporting this process is very important for me and this is what I love to do. Even though sometimes it takes time, the journey is always meaningful. Another thing that I am passionate about is learning about different cultures and organizations. Luckily, after joining Boreala, I was able to work with several indigenous communities and indigenous organizations as well as different non-profit and cooperative organizations.”
As the lead facilitator for Boreala Management’s Leaders Toolkit, Rene strongly believes that this development program not only allows leaders to learn more about themselves, and enhance their management skills, it also provides an opportunity for collective development and networking.
As an experienced HR consultant Rene believes that in today’s world, there is always room to learn more about new ways to lead and become a better leader who inspires others and sets the right direction for their team.
Connectivity is the key:
Rene explains that one of the most powerful experiences he had was to witness the power of community connectivity to overcome challenges when working with First Nation clients and different stakeholders in the midst of the pandemic.
“We were able to participate in a great example of community connectivity in the midst of the pandemic, while supporting one of our First Nation clients in the education sector. To overcome this challenge, multiple stakeholders needed to work as a team to coordinate efforts in a context that they never experienced before. They had to find consensus on the best way to go about it while taking into consideration different perspectives and interests. Connectivity was key to make it happen.”
Who is Rene after work hours:
In his free time, Rene is a wonderful dad to his two children and an enthusiastic adventurer in different domains. He likes to spend his time with his family and be in the nature and discover new places around the world. He also enjoys hiking & camping. Finally, René is also a Buddhist meditation practitioner and PADI certified advanced scuba diver.
