Cody Gagne

- Lead People Practices & Compliance for Aritzia’s growing Food & Beverage business, shaping the people practices, programs, and infrastructure required to support sustainable growth.
- Partner with senior business and People & Culture leaders to develop practical, commercially grounded strategies across employee relations, labour relations, compliance, and workforce practices.
- Provide strategic

- Senior HR Business Partner for Central Canada (225 stores; ~4,500 employees), partnering with RVPs, Directors, and District Managers to drive talent strategy, performance, and engagement.
- Lead strategic workforce planning and talent development initiatives, including enterprise programs (e.g., PROPEL), contributing to global HR transformation and multiple promotions within the team.
- Advise s

- Led Employee Relations across North America (13,000+ employees; union and non-union), managing a team of 2 and supporting 12 HRBPs to standardize complaint and communication processes.
- Advised executive leadership (CEO, CLO, CHRO) on complex human rights and employee relations matters, delivering strategic insights and executive-level summaries.
- Mitigated risk for all human rights claims thr

- Promoted to Market People Manager, leading HR strategy across 36 stores (~7,500 employees) and managing a team of 6 HR Managers to drive engagement, talent development, and performance.
- Partnered with senior leadership (VP, Market Leaders, Store Managers) to implement workforce planning, succession planning, and change initiatives, achieving the highest engagement scores nationally (77%+).
- R

- Led Associate Relations across Western Canada (125–140 stores; 30,000+ employees), driving engagement strategy and mitigating union and legal risk across a large, multi-province territory.
- Designed and executed targeted engagement plans for 12 high-risk locations, achieving 100% transition to low-risk status and increasing engagement scores by 94%.
- Partnered with SVP Operations, VP HR, and r

- Promoted to Senior Employee & Labour Relations Consultant within two years, recognizing strong performance during Target’s rapid expansion from 0 to 133 stores in Canada.
- Served as the senior ER/LR leader supporting 65 stores (~12,000 employees), advising VPs and HR leadership on complex investigations, culture, and labour relations strategy.
- Led high-risk employee relations matters, includi

- Recruited to Target to help launch Canadian operations from 0 to 133 stores, supporting one of the largest retail expansions in Canada.
- Built HR and employee relations infrastructure from scratch, supporting hiring of ~20,000 employees through large-scale recruiting, job fairs, and candidate screening.
- Partnered with U.S. and Canadian leadership to adapt (“Canadianize”) HR and labour practic

- Transitioned into operations leadership, laying the foundation for managing $8–12M business units and driving ~50% revenue growth as Assistant Store Manager.
- Managed and developed teams of 100+ employees, fostering a high-performance culture focused on engagement, accountability, and customer experience.
- Oversaw daily store operations including staffing, scheduling, cash management, safety c

- Promoted to Human Resources Manager in recognition of strong performance and leadership during a period of rapid company expansion.
- Built and managed recruitment infrastructure, including hiring ~600 employees across multiple locations, with 185 hires for a flagship store.
- Played a key role in Lowe’s Western Canada expansion, leading HR for the Calgary (CrossIron Mills) store opening and sca

- Supported full-cycle recruitment, interviewing, scheduling, and onboarding for up to 200 employees in a high-volume retail environment.
- Played a key role in launching one of Lowe’s first Canadian locations (Scarborough/Markham North), supporting rapid market entry and workforce buildout.
- Managed HRIS (PeopleSoft), training completion tracking, and employee records to ensure data accuracy and

- Coordinated recruitment processes, scheduled interviews, and supported onboarding for new hires.
- Supported the administration and coordination of company-wide restructuring across Canada.
- Maintained employee records and ensured accurate tracking of HR documentation and files.
- Organized employee engagement events to support company culture and team connectivity.
- Managed attendance tracki

- Worked for Home Depot to fund education. Awarded Home Depot partial scholarship

- Ontario Secondary School Diploma
- President, School Council
- Student Trustee, Algonquin Lakeshore Catholic District School Board
- Executive Director, Ontario Student Trustee Association