Scott Tracze, Q.ARB
Ontario HR Consultant and Workplace Investigator
I hold the Q.ARB designation from the ADR Institute of Ontario. My background spans 15 years of Ontario and federal labour relations across private sector employers, public sector institutions, unions, and law firms. I operate from Belleville, Ontario and serve employers province-wide. Professionally insured.
Scott Tracze, Q.ARB
Free 20-minute consultation. No obligation, no sales pitch.
Our Team
Every file at Aegis 360 HR is conducted by a designated, insured practitioner. Scott Tracze holds the Q.ARB designation; Sandy McInnes holds the Q.Med; Nadia Rajah brings an investigative background from the healthcare regulatory sector and formal training in dispute resolution from the University of Windsor Faculty of Law and Harvard Business School.
Scott Tracze, Q.ARB
Founder | HR Consultant and Workplace Investigator
Q.ARB designation from the ADR Institute of Ontario. 15 years of Ontario and federal labour relations experience across private sector employers, public sector institutions, unions, and law firms. Based in Belleville, Ontario, serving employers province-wide.
Sandy McInnes, Q.Med
Associate | Mediator
Q.Med designation from the Alternative Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario. 37 years of leadership experience in education and manufacturing across Eastern Ontario. Conducts mediation and workplace investigation proceedings with impartiality and process integrity.
Nadia Rajah, RN MN
Associate | Investigator and Dispute Resolution Specialist
Executive Certificate in Dispute Resolution from the University of Windsor Faculty of Law. Negotiation Mastery from Harvard Business School. Former investigator at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario. Brings a trauma-informed, EDI-grounded approach to workplace investigations and dispute resolution across healthcare and multi-sector employers.
The Q.ARB Designation
The Q.ARB designation is issued by the ADR Institute of Ontario to practitioners who have demonstrated the knowledge and competency required to conduct arbitration proceedings, the quasi-judicial process used in labour relations, commercial disputes, and increasingly in workplace investigations.
In the context of workplace investigations, Q.ARB means that I conduct and report investigations to the procedural and evidentiary standards that an arbitrator or HRTO adjudicator reviewing the file would expect to see. Balance of probabilities analysis, credibility assessment methodology, procedural fairness at each stage, and a written report that can withstand scrutiny in subsequent proceedings.
Most independent workplace investigators do not hold an arbitral designation. The Q.ARB designation is rare enough in HR practice that it represents a specific and meaningful differentiator for employers who need an investigation report that can withstand tribunal review.
The Q.Med Designation
The Q.Med (Qualified Mediator) designation is issued by the ADR Institute of Ontario to practitioners who have demonstrated the competency required to conduct formal mediation proceedings: structured dispute resolution processes in which a neutral third party facilitates negotiated resolution between parties.
In the workplace context, a Q.Med designation signals that the practitioner can conduct interest-based mediation of workplace disputes, including harassment complaints, interpersonal conflicts, and accommodation disputes, to a recognized professional standard. The designation requires demonstrated knowledge of mediation theory, process design, and the ethical obligations of a neutral.
Sandy McInnes holds the Q.Med designation from the ADR Institute of Ontario. His mediation practice covers workplace disputes in the education and manufacturing sectors, where he brings 37 years of operational leadership experience to understanding the context in which disputes arise and what resolution requires.
Nadia Rajah's Background
Nadia Rajah brings a combination of credentials that is unusual in workplace investigation practice: a clinical background as a registered nurse with a Master of Nursing degree, regulatory investigation experience from the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario, and formal dispute resolution training from two of the most rigorous programs available in Canada and the United States.
Her Executive Certificate in Dispute Resolution from the University of Windsor Faculty of Law and Negotiation Mastery from Harvard Business School ground her practice in both the theory and the applied technique of structured resolution processes. Her tenure as an investigator at the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario means she has conducted formal investigations in a heavily regulated, high-stakes professional environment where procedural rigour and documentation standards are non-negotiable.
Nadia approaches every investigation through a trauma-informed lens with deliberate attention to equity, diversity, and inclusion, skills that are increasingly essential when investigations involve harassment, discrimination, or accommodation disputes in healthcare, post-secondary, and multi-sector employer environments. She is also the Principal of Parity Consulting and a nursing professor at the University of Toronto.
Career
My 15 years of Ontario and federal labour relations and HR experience span private sector employers, public institutions, a national law firm, and a union. That range of perspective, employer side, union side, law firm, regulator, is not typical in HR consulting, and it produces different advice.
Caley Wray Labour and Employment Lawyers
HR and Labour RelationsFirsthand exposure to how arbitrators and HRTO adjudicators evaluate investigation reports, what holds up and what gets torn apart. Every investigation I conduct is built to survive that same scrutiny.
WSP Canada
Senior Labour Relations AdvisorSenior Labour Relations Advisor at a national engineering firm with thousands of employees across multiple provinces. Complex workforce, high-stakes employee relations, and the pressure of a publicly accountable organization.
Upper Canada District School Board
Labour Relations SpecialistCollective bargaining, grievance management, and arbitration in one of the largest public sector union environments in Eastern Ontario. Negotiating at the table, not advising from the sidelines.
SEIU Healthcare
Labour RelationsLabour relations from the union side. Understanding how union counsel, grievance chairs, and arbitrators think is not something learned from textbooks, and it is unusual on the employer side of HR consulting. That perspective informs every piece of employer-side advice I give: I know what the other side will argue before they argue it.
Practice Focus
Workplace Investigations
Independent investigations into harassment, discrimination, and misconduct allegations. Procedurally sound, defensible reports built to Q.ARB arbitral standards.
Workplace Mediation
Structured, confidential mediation conducted by Sandy McInnes, Q.Med for general workplace disputes and Nadia Rajah, RN MN for healthcare and clinical environments. Interest-based process for interpersonal disputes, post-investigation relationship restoration, and grievance resolution before arbitration.
Labour Relations
Collective bargaining, grievance management, arbitration preparation, and collective agreement interpretation. Ontario and federal jurisdiction.
Accommodation
Duty to accommodate under the Ontario Human Rights Code. Medical, disability, family status, and religious accommodation, from initial request through documentation and undue hardship analysis.
Compliance
ESA, OHSA, OHRC, and AODA compliance audits. Policy drafting anchored to current legislative requirements. Ministry of Labour inspection preparation.
What HR and Legal Professionals Say
Scott’s knowledge of labour law and expertise in arbitration is outstanding. His ability to navigate complex workplace disputes with professionalism and fairness is exceptional. I have worked with Scott on a number of HR and labour relations matters and have always been impressed by his very thorough knowledge and his ability to understand and resolve complex situations.
Scott demonstrates remarkable integrity and a calm demeanour when handling sensitive workplace matters. His mediation and arbitration skills have been invaluable. Scott’s highest integrity and ethics make him uniquely qualified to handle workplace disputes and HR matters at the highest level.
Get in touch.
Initial consultations are free and confidential. I will assess your situation and tell you directly what is needed and what it will cost.