Winner of an International Coach Federation Prism Award for Coaching Excellence for her work transforming culturally-diverse co-workers originally described by their manager as “all coming to work with their dukes up” into a collaborative and productive team.
Blending skills, expertise and creativity gained as a lawyer, manager, facilitator and coach, Joyce customizes each coaching program.
Experience, Skills and Creativity
With her Civil and Common Law Degrees, Joyce was a lawyer in the Toronto firm Harries Houser enjoying a diverse corporate commercial and insolvency practice. She honed her management and people skills by moving in-house as Solicitor in Suncor Energy’s corporate office, then Director Legal Affairs for its Sunoco Group, providing business-focused legal, environmental and risk management advice for all operations in Ontario and Quebec: refining, distribution, marketing and sale of petroleum products.
Drawn to diverse projects and new challenges, Joyce founded her own practice offering legal and project management services. Assignments have included complex business ventures; privacy compliance; and Consultant to the Law Society of Upper Canada Sole Practitioner and Small Firm Task Force (now Law Society of Ontario).
Intrigued by the effectiveness of coaching on performance, leadership, and team dynamics, Joyce earned her professional coaching certification. She has been coaching since 2000.
Joyce created and taught contract law and management skills for students from abroad at George Brown College, Continuing Education.
An active community volunteer over the years, Joyce has been on boards of numerous not-for-profit organizations, from the Ontario Association of Career Management to the Esprit Orchestra. She served on the Advisory Committee for the Internationally Educated Professionals Conference; coached with Up with Women; advised on the business plans of budding entrepreneurs in the former Ontario Self-Employment Benefit Program; and made pet therapy visits at a nursing home with her late great Humane Society hound dog.
Joyce’s Credentials & Publications
Coaching
- Professional Coaching Certification; Certificate of Completion, Advanced Team and Group Coaching; and past Adjunct Faculty-in-Training, Adler School of Professional Coaching Inc. Toronto, Ontario
- Certificate of Achievement: Self Mastery – Living Your Vision® Academy for Coach Training, Seattle Washington
- Accredited Certified Facet5™ Psychometric Tool
Management
- The Executive Program, Queen’s University, Faculty of Business, Kingston Ontario
Law
- Common and Civil Law Degrees (with honours), McGill University, Faculty of Law, Montreal, Quebec
- Licensed Lawyer, Retired, Law Society of Ontario
Sampling of Publications
- Coaching 101: A Primer for Lawyers, published in the Ontario Bar Association Law Practice Management eNews
- Defying Gravity: the poetry of personal growth ©, a recommended coach training resource and in the juried selection for the Official Bookstore at International Coach Federation International Conferences
- Articles in Canadian Lawyer Magazine
Sampling of Speaking Engagements
- Workshop Leader, Increase Your Influence: Leadership from the Ground Up – Canadian Bar Association Annual Legal Conference
- Facilitator, Healthcare Sector Hub and Finance & Accounting Sector Hub for IEP (Internationally Educated Professionals) Conferences
- Workshop Leader, What’s Your Calling Card ? –the Mosaic Institute, U of Mosaic
- Speaker, The Skill of Saying “No” – Women in Transition, Returning to Legal Practice or Considering an Alternative Career in Law Program, University of Toronto, Faculty of Law
Alliances
- Joyce receives career transition and job search coaching referrals from Toronto Recruiters