Our Networking Story
It all started with a quote.
It all started with a quote in a book written by one of Canada’s leading business writers.
“Darcy Rezac thinks he invented networking, he didn’t. He just perfected it.”
Peter C. Newman, The Titans, 2001
Darcy Rezac received this awesome quote when he was Managing Director of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade. With an international reputation as a business organization that focused on non-transactional networking, Darcy encouraged members to build relationships and become highly-engaged members of their communities.
Inspired by this quote, Judy Thomson and Gayle Hallgren attended a talk that Darcy gave to new members, and were impressed at what happened! Normally people are tentative when they have to meet new people, but after Darcy’s message of ‘give yourself permission to network’ they jumped right in.
Darcy’s Positive Networking® message got people talking to perfect strangers and resulted in the three of them creating the Shepa Learning Company.
Over the past two decades Darcy, Judy and Gayle have been empowering people to feel good about networking and see its value in both work and life through their engaging keynotes, workshops, conference presentations, and live webinars. During that time they wrote two best-selling books, the self-published The Frog and Prince: Secrets of Positive Networking® …to change your life and Work the Pond! Use the Power of Positive Networking to Leap Forward in Work and Life — published by Penguin Prentice Hall in New York.
Moving positively into the future of networking
Then in 2020, something new happened. Companies had to pivot almost exclusively to a remote working environment with platforms like Zoom, Slack, and Teams paving a new way to connect, communicate, and work.
That’s where Hybrid-Networking™ comes in. It’s Shepa Learning’s new way of looking at networking. Everyone has to become good at both virtual and in-person networking and connecting. Shepa Learning’s latest initiative is a comprehensive online course called the Power of Positive Networking® that teaches these Hybrid Networking™ skills.
Gayle Hallgren
Gayle Hallgren is a writer, speaker, and innovative marketer who co-founded one of Canada’s unique entrepreneurial ventures, Cookies by George. She is a recipient of the YWCA Women of Distinction award and has spent over two decades observing and writing on networking around the world and is an expert on the “art of conversation.” She has attended the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland over eleven times and is a member of the elite Davos Circle, where networking happens at the highest level. As a networking evangelist who loves teaching networking, she knows that the network you build can transform your life and career.
Judy Thomson, CPA, CA
Judy Thomson is a chartered professional accountant who has held executive positions in human resources and administration with global companies in Canada and Asia and was also part of the start-up management team of the world-famous Rocky Mountaineer Railtours. An advocate for women in business, she spent six years as the vice-chair of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade’s Women’s Leadership Circle® advisory council and eight years as a director of the BC Women’s Enterprise Centre. She also has ten years of corporate director experience in the public sector.
Darcy Rezac
Darcy Rezac is the managing director emeritus of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade, an internationally recognized business association that he led for over two decades. A science graduate of McGill University with an MBA from The John Molson School of Business, Darcy has held executive positions with the Canadian federal government, Alcan, and General Motors, and has been recognized by the World Economic Forum as a networking expert. Now retired, his articles and research papers on social capital, leadership, Positive Networking®, and corporate and employee engagement continue to resonate with businesses, governments, and universities worldwide.