Florent Francoeur, CHRP, President and CEO of the Ordre; Martine Drolet, CHRP, Chair of the Board of the Ordre; Gabrielle Descoteaux; Dave Nixon; Hannah Hafso; Philippe Lévesque-Groleau, CHRP, HR Business Partner, Aeroplan.

Following two days of competition involving 27 universities from across Canada, the UBC Okanagan team captured third place at Excalibur, the 25th Canadian University Tournament in Human Resources on March 19, 2011.

With UQAM School of Management capturing first prize and HEC Montreal second, the third ranking team from UBC – Okanagan was comprised of Hannah Hafso, Gabrielle Descoteaux, Dave Nixon and accompanied by coach Laurens Breugem.  In addition to the tremendous experience of Tournament competition, the team was presented with a $1,500 scholarship by the BC Human Resources Association.

“The Excalibur Tournament gives students a unique opportunity to test their knowledge in the real world of work. It is also the chance for the Ordre to promote the potential of future HR professionals among employers in Quebec and the rest of Canada. We are proud that among all the universities participating in the Tournament, two Quebec universities turned in such a brilliant performance,” commented Florent Francoeur, CHRP, Ordre President and CEO.

As the only tournament organized by HR practitioners for future professionals, Excalibur is an opportunity for all Canadian universities offering human resources or industrial relations programs to compete in a highly challenging environment. This prestigious event, organized by the Ordre des conseillers en ressources humaines agréés for the last 25 years, is a unique occasion to bring together students, professors and business people. The five events for which the participants prepared over a number of weeks were assessed by some 30 jury members from major Canadian organizations and the academic community.