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Mar 10
Love4

Practical tips for employers working with immigrants

By Uncategorized

Contributed post by Md. Salah Uddin, Workplace Inclusion Specialist for Persons with Disabilities at Career Edge Organization, and Internationally Qualified Professional

salahInternationally qualified professionals need to quickly learn the ins and outs of the Canadian workplace culture within a short period of time if they want to survive and explore their career in Canada. Luckily there are many different resources available here to provide this kind of support.

But inclusion is always a two way process, and there are some important things employers can be aware of to make the process better.

I myself am a newcomer, having recently immigrated to Canada from Bangladesh. Internationally qualified professionals like myself can play an important role in educating employers on how to work with us, so here are a few practical tips:

  • Recognize individuals are complex and unique. Avoid comments (good or bad) rooted in overgeneralizations about race/gender/culture.
  • Learn to pronounce all of the names correctly. People love to hear their names correctly.
  • Do not “under or overprotect”. Like under protection, overprotection is not welcomed by most of the immigrants. Always verify your behaviour with the key question “Am I treating the person with dignity and respect?”
  • Avoid highly idiomatic English. e.g. “once in a blue moon,” “between a rock and a hard place” or “get out of here!” as they may be taken literally!
  • Make your speeches audible and visible together. When you talk, try to put together something in writing or visuals.
  • Use diverse examples rather than ones which assume a particular background or experience.
  • Don’t assume that people who don’t talk don’t know the facts. “Showing off” is taboo in many parts of the world.
  • Avoid any type of humour that denigrates anyone. A surprisingly large number of jokes involve putting down people who are different in some way and who may already feel marginal because of those differences.

That’s all from my side. Hope you’ll continue from where I stop. Let’s learn and teach together!

Mar 03
Love4

Career Edge Organization 2010/11 Achievement Awards

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Career Edge Organization Recognizes Innovative Public, Private and Non-Profit Sector Organizations for Embracing Untapped Canadian Knowledge Workers at the 2010/11 Achievement Awards

 

Days after the Oscars in Hollywood, Career Edge Organization (CEO) rolled out its red carpet to honour leading Canadian employers for their innovative approach to recruiting and hiring diverse and highly qualified but often untapped knowledge workers. Their partnerships with CEO have helped them uncover coveted talent to build diverse and inclusive workplaces that reflects Canada’s contemporary society.

Hundreds of senior executives, human resources professionals and former interns of CEO’s paid internship programs gathered at the Toronto Board of Trade last night (Tuesday, March 2) to celebrate the annual CEO Achievement Awards and the organization’s 15 years of success in connecting employers with diverse, qualified talent. At the core of the celebration were compelling human stories of struggle, opportunity and triumph.

At Issue

Canada’s workforce is changing – an aging population, the arrival of skilled immigrants, and a new generation of university and college graduates, commonly known as Gen Y, entering the workforce – pushing Canadian employers to seek new ways to engage appropriate knowledge workers to meet the burgeoning skills shortage.

Leading employers understand that many of their traditional hiring practices no longer enable them to take full advantage of the evolving talent pool. They also know that to ensure business success they need a workforce that represents the diverse markets they serve.

The Solution

Through CEO’s three highly innovative programs – Career Edge for recent college and university graduates, Ability Edge for graduates with disabilities and Career Bridge for internationally qualified professionals – employers can engage a diverse group of trained knowledge workers with different levels of skills and experience through paid internships to meet their short and long term hiring needs.

The results create an optimum situation. The paid internships provide opportunities for employers to engage career-minded candidates to bolster their existing workforces in exchange for the often demanded Canadian experience to help launch the careers of these individuals.

By 2011, more than 1,200 leading Canadian employers have partnered with CEO and provided meaningful work opportunities to over 10,000 paid interns. Many organizations continue to groom these interns after the completion of the program to become future managers of their organizations.

The 2010/11 Achievement Award winners

Career Edge Organization Leadership Award

Bell Canada: http://www.bell.ca/home/

Career Edge Organization Program Awards

Career Edge Program Awards: http://www.achievementawards.ca/video/

 

    • Large Enterprise: Bell
    • Medium Enterprise: First National Financial LP
    • Small Enterprise: Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters

 

 

Ability Edge Program Award: http://www.achievementawards.ca/video/

  • RBC

Career Bridge Program Awards: http://www.achievementawards.ca/video/

  • Private Sector: RBC
  • Public Sector, Large Enterprise: Government of Ontario
  • Public Sector, Small/Medium Enterprise: City of Toronto

Most Valued Internship Experience (MoVIE) Award: http://www.achievementawards.ca/video/

Winner: OPS Internship for Internationally Trained Individuals, Ministry of the Environment, Government of Ontario http://www.ontario.ca/en/your_government/009848.html

Intern and Mentor Awards (and videos!):

  • Mentor of the Year (sponsored by Manulife Financial): Denise Sarazin, Bell Canada

  • Intern of the Year – Career Edge Program (sponsored by TD Bank Financial Group): Ikram Ataullah, BMO Financial Group

  • Intern of the Year – Ability Edge Program (sponsored by Scotiabank): Fenella Chiu, Loblaw Companies Limited

    • Intern of the Year – Career Bridge Program (sponsored by RBC): Beatrice Reitano, Ministry of Community and Social Services, Government of Ontario

For a complete list of finalists, photos, videos and additional information about the Career Edge Organization Achievement Awards, visit www.achievementawards.ca.

Career Edge Organization would like to extend a HUGE thank you to our sponsors, vendors, host employers, alumni, interns, partner organizations, board members, staff and everyone who attended last night’s event. It was a spectacular event, all thanks to you.

Feb 18
Love4

Our resident Gen Y expert rocks NATCON

By Uncategorized

Yesterday, Janice Rudkowski of Career Edge Organization was at the Conference Board of Canada’s “National Consultation on Career Development and Workforce Learning” (better known as NATCON) educating over 50 employers and workplace education program developers on Millennials, the tech-savvy cohort of twenty-somethings that are entering and changing the Canadian workforce.

Working with hundreds employers on grad hiring strategies since 1996, Career Edge Organization has a comprehensive understanding of Gen Y and has been a driving force behind new Canadian Gen Y research in recent years. Like many of us, Janice is well aware of the stereotypes and myths about Gen Y in the workplace. Rather than rehash the same old rhetoric, Janice brought a fresh perspective using research-based stats and information to shed new light on a dynamic issue.

Drawing upon research from our recent Gen Y study, as well as real life case studies from over 10,000
successfully launched careers, this workshop aims to identify what workplace culture actually means,
the impact it has on grads‘ career planning, as well as the kinds of research they do and the opinions
they seek to select their employers of choice. Participants will leave this session with practical, up-todate tools and insights to immediately influence their organization‘s Gen Y and to improve diversity
recruitment strategies.

Drawing upon research from our recent Gen Y study, as well as real life case studies from over 10,000 successfully launched careers, our workshop helped to identify what workplace culture actually means, the impact it has on grads’ career planning, as well as the kinds of research they do and the opinions they seek to select their employers of choice. Participants were given practical, up-todate tools and insights to immediately influence their organization‘s Gen Y and to improve diversity recruitment strategies.

Hoping for an intimate and engaged audience of 25 people, we were delighted to see room fill, so much that 20 extra chairs were needed! Without a doubt, Janice’s session was the most popular and well-attended workshop at NATCON, a strong reflection of the appetite that exists for fresh information on this topic.

Many thanks to all who attended, as well as the Conference Board of Canada for planning and executing a great event. So you guys at NATCON next year!

Feb 11
Love3

HRPA 2011 Conference & Tradeshow explores the HR and business trends of our time

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Prolific filmmaker Frank Capra once said, “Don’t follow trends, start trends.” Capra was an innovation leader in his time and today his advice holds as true as ever.

At the same time, current and emerging trends are not to be ignored if you and your business want to keep up with the competition – whether you’re competing for customers or for top talent.

This was the focus of HRPA’s 2011 Annual Conference & Trade Show, “identifying and capitalizing on the trends – demographic, economic, and technological – that are revolutionizing the workplace…”

Of course, Career Edge Organization was right there at the centre of the action! Once again, as we did last year, we came, we saw and we conferenced. While our team took turns talking to HR professionals at our booth at the trade show, we also had the opportunity to attend the conference workshops and sessions, which boasted an impressive list of world-class speakers and experts including best-selling author and Emmy-nominated media visionary Leonard Brody and Dan Pink who is also a best-selling author as well as past chief speechwriter to former US Vice President Al Gore.

The conference was guided along by an energetic Master of Ceremony, Mike Lipkin who is president of Environics/Lipkin, a leading Canadian research and motivation company.

One of my favourite sessions of the event was Simon Sinek’s Thursday morning keynote, entitled “Start With Why.”

The focus of his presentation was on how organizations can advance not only as businesses/service-providers but also as employers by placing less emphasis on what they do or how they do it, and more on why they exist – reinforcing that if people believe in what you are trying to accomplish, they will follow you. My favourite line was Simon’s reference to Martin Luther King, Jr.’s famously inspirational speech, pointing out “It wasn’t called the ‘I have a plan’ speech.”

He used Apple as a prime example of this trend in action, both in the loyalty of their consumers as well as their ability to attract top talent. Simon believes the key to Apple’s success is not just innovative products, but what the “apple” symbol represents for many.

I think this speech really resonated with us because at Career Edge Organization, our vision and mandate is the very thing that drives what we do. As a self-funded not-for-profit organization, we have a small but mighty team of people here dedicated to our cause. This is why we’re so good at what we do, which is ultimately providing employers with diverse, qualified top talent.

As we recently launched our own brand’s new refreshed look, we hope that our kaleidoscope-inspired logo will be for us with the “apple” is for, well, Apple. That is, a symbol for what we stand for, believe in and represent.

Speaking of our new look, the folks behind our new, modern design, Tamm+Kit Communications, also had a booth at the HRPA trade show which they shared with TalentOyster. There, they debuted an inventive marketing piece shared three ways by TalentOyster, Tamm+Kit and Career Edge Organization promoting diversity hiring. Tamm specializes in employer branding and recruitment advertising, with a unique expertise in workplace diversity, while TalentOyster is an online multicultural employment portal and community connecting more than 5,000,000 households across Canada in 11 languages! Together, we brought a powerful and important message to the HRPA trade show.

It was a great fit with a conference whose recurring theme was built around innovation and more specifically, trends. With the recession shrinking in our rearview mirrors and a looming skills shortage on the horizon, innovative techniques for tapping the hidden, diverse talent market is the way of the future, and along with our valued host employers, Career Edge Organization is at the forefront of this trend.

We would like to thank the HRPA for having us year after year at this event, as well as all of the wonderful people who visited our booth at the trade show. We hope you enjoyed the experience as much as we did!

Feb 02
Love3

As viewed through the lens of a kaleidoscope: Career Edge Organization launches a brand new look!

By Uncategorized

By: Janice Rudkowski
Director, Marketing & Communications

CEO_Logo_CLRxx

Of all the trade shows and conferences that we attend throughout the year, it’s the Human Resources Professionals Association (HRPA) annual conference that is definitely the most anticipated amongst the Career Edge Organization team. It’s the perfect opportunity for us to showcase our organization for 3 full days, and we also participate as conference attendees allowing each member of our team to take advantage of professional development and continuous learning opportunities.

The HRPA Annual Conference and Trade Show is one of the largest HR events in North America and we have participated as exhibitors annually in order to raise our profile in the HR community as well as network with host or potential host employers, post-secondary institutions and partner organizations. The trade show is also an opportunity to learn about innovative new HR services and opportunities. Human Resources professionals, practitioners and students from across the country, spanning diverse ages, backgrounds, specialties and sectors participate in the Tradeshow, and attend the Conference.

This year, we leveraged the popularity of the show to unveil our newly re-freshed Career Edge Organization brand identity! Our new and modernized brand aesthetic is being introduced at an opportune time when we celebrate two very important milestones: not only has Career Edge Organization been in business for 15 years, but we also recently reached and surpassed 10,000 internships.

The exercise to develop and design a new brand identity is never easy – it takes time and patience but most importantly it takes a strong understanding of the current brand and vision of the organization. We enlisted the help of a very talented team at Tamm+Kit Communications, a creative design agency based in Toronto who specialize in employer branding and recruitment advertising, to collaborate with us on this re-branding journey.

The overall inspiration for our new brand identity was the concept of a kaleidoscope because it’s a word and image that is the embodiment of what our organization represents: diversity, vibrancy, authenticity, movement and change. We envisioned the concept of a kaleidoscope to visually represent the wide array of high quality talent within our paid internship programs, and we believe its characteristics are reflective of our value proposition and renewed approach to, and outlook on, our business moving forward.

What resulted was a fresh, dynamic and modern brand logo and identity and refined messaging to support our outreach and communications to our wide range of stakeholders while representing our leadership role in our industry.

Over the next few months, we will be rolling out our new brand identity – across all of our online and offline communication channels while gradually retiring our “old” brand system.

If you are planning to attend the HRPA 2011 annual conference please feel free to stop by our booth #643 to say hello and experience our new brand firsthand.

It’s an exciting time at Career Edge Organization! We will continue to look forward, and be inspired by diversity, innovation and authenticity as we embark on new opportunities and leverage our newly re-freshed Career Edge Organization brand!

Jan 28
Love3

Congratulations to our HR Q&A Winner, Nii Sackeyfio of MaRS!

By Uncategorized

Nii Sackeyfio’s question was selected by our resident expert, Donna Smith, as the most relevant and thought-provoking HR question. We received many submissions by email, twitter, LinkedIn and here via the CEO Blog, and we thank you all for your submissions! If you did not win the contest, please check back on the blog as we will be trying to answer all of the relevant questions that were submitted to us over the course of the next few months.

Nii is an Ability Edge intern currently employed at MaRS Discover District as Project Coordinator for the Government of Ontario’s EnAbling Change Partnership Program which is designed to promote compliance and awareness of the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act to the broader public.

For submitting the best question, Nii has won two tickets to attend the HR Summit Awards, held at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre on the evening of Tuesday, February 1st. Nii will be sitting at the Career Edge Organization table at this annual gala event. The HR Summit Awards are presented by the HRPA and Canadian HR Reporter, and kicks off the annual HRPA 2011 Annual Conference & Trade Show.

Speaking of which… Career Edge Organization will be at the HRPA Conference & Trade Show! Come see us at booth #643 and enter our draw for a prize!

Jan 19
Love3

We’re giving away 2 free tickets to the HR Summit Awards gala and dinner – TODAY ONLY

By Uncategorized

All you have to do to enter is submit an employment or HR-related question for our “HR Q&A” – examples of questions we’ve received so far include:

What will it take for us to move beyond People Profiling – usually done through average scale scores – towards People Competence as revealed by the dynamics between test scales?

What is the most important less obvious thing to look for in a candidates resume besides experience and education?

Submit your question by leaving a comment below!

About the event:

The annual HRPA Conference and Tradeshow at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre kicks of the HR Summit Awards gala dinner the night before. The event is presented by HRPA and Canadian HR Reporter. Tickets are $100 each – we’re giving the winner 2 tickets for free!

Submit your questions before the end of day – winner announced tomorrow!

*******For additional details, see the previous blog post (below).

Jan 13
Love4

Contest: HR Q&A Wednesdays Kick-off!

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Starting in February 2011, every other Wednesday Career Edge Organization will be lending our expertise to the business community by answering real questions from real employers. To kick things off, we’re putting out a challenge and calling upon our readers to submit relevant, thought-provoking HR or employment-related questions, and a prize is at stake!

Win 2 free tickets to the HR Summit Awards gala!

Send us your question along with your contact information (name, title, organization and email will do) to marketing@careeredge.ca. You can also tweet your question to @CareerEdgeOrg on Twitter! Or, you can leave a comment and submit your question here on the  blog!

The person who submits the most unique, relevant and though-provoking question, as determined by our resident experts, will win 2 free gala tickets, valued at $100 each – a total value of $200!

The winner and finalists will have their questions featured on our blog, along with answers from our resident expert!

Winners will be announced on Thursday, January 27th!

Contest rules

1. You must be a Canadian employer/manager/HR professional

2. You must be able to attend the HR Summit Awards gala the evening of Tuesday, February 1, 2011

3. Your question must be HR/employment related; Relevant topics may include:

  • recruitment for entry-level and/or professional-level roles
  • pre-screening for long-term retention
  • diversity and inclusion planning
  • workplace accessibility and accommodation
  • seasonal, short-term or project based work
  • contingency staffing
  • payroll, salary and compensation
  • unique issues pertaining to hiring in non-profit, private or public sectors

About the HR Summit Awards

Date: Tuesday February 1, 2011

Time: 6 pm Cocktails, 7 pm Dinner, 8 pm Awards Presentation

Location: Metro Toronto Convention Centre, South Building, 222 Bremner Blvd. Toronto

More info: http://www.hrsummitawards.com

Learn from the best

Our “resident expert” is Donna Smith, Vice President, Career Edge Organization. Donna brings more than 30 years of senior management level experience in Human Resources and Operations. She holds a BA from the University of Toronto and a diploma in Advanced Human Resources and Strategic Planning from the Rotman Executive School of Business.

What do we know about employment?

Over the course of 15 years, Career Edge Organization has perfected the internship model; since 1996 we have worked with hundreds of employers and launched over 10,000 careers, putting talented recent grads, graduates with disabilities and internationally qualified professionals to work. Our work sees us collaborating with employers in the private, public and non-profit sectors, as well as with Canada’s leading post-secondary institutions and community-based agencies. As a result of this incredible vantage point, we bring a unique, multi-faceted perspective to diverse audiences on a wide range of topics related to employability, cultural diversity, Gen Y and accessibility.

Best of all we work with some of Canada’s top employers including RBC, Bell, GE, the Ontario Government and countless others. So if we don’t know the answer to your question, we could find someone in our vast employer network that does!

Jan 06
Love3

Another year, another resolution: 3 goals for HR professionals in 2011

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Last year, we put together a great resolution list for career-minded individuals everywhere. Covering topics such as work-life balance, organization and learning, our Ten Resolutions for 2010 can be found here.

This year, we have but three simple but necessary tips for HR professionals. Consider these commandments for 2011:

1. Get Online and Get Social!

Social HR, Recruiting 3.0 – there are many names for it. The point is, job-seekers are increasingly turning to the online world of social networking to learn about an organization’s work culture and to find opportunities in hidden places. As attracting top talent becomes more competitive than ever, having the tools to build and maintain relationships with customers, employees and potential talent is going to be a key advantage in 2011.

Remember, using online tools will also help you develop your own personal and professional networks, meaning better access to new, up-to-date information, unique perspectives and exciting opportunities for you and your organization.

2. Swim in new talent pools!

Look for talent in new places by embracing diversity – this means focusing on the abilities of persons with disabilities, considering the potential of educated recent grads and acknowledging international skills and education. It not only makes good business sense to have a diverse workforce; as a hiring manager or HR professional, broadening your perspective and your understanding of what it means to be “qualified” will give you access to more and better talent.

3. Put fit first

In 2010 we told you about the importance of finding the right fit in our newsletter and on our blog. With the recession behind us and a skills shortage ahead, organizations need to recruit and retain strong talent to compete. It’s a fact that when hire for person-organization fit (and not just person-job fit) your employees will be more engaged, more productive and more likely stay!

Dec 24
Love3

Happy (politically correct) Holidays!

By Uncategorized

Here we are, Christmas Eve officially just hours away, and yet as our team at Career Edge Organization slowly trickle out one by one, “Merry Christmas” is seldom heard. Instead the message is, “happy holidays,” and “happy New Year.”

Like many urban, Canadian workplaces, our team is incredible diverse. For many of us, the “holidays” have passed.

Hanukkah for instance took place at the beginning of December this year. And Ramadan, the holiest month of the Islamic calendar, took place this last September! Eid-al-Fitr, which marks the end of Ramadan, took place September 10th.

For Orthodox Christians, Christmas doesn’t come until January 7th, so put your “Ho Ho Ho’s” on hold for your Greek and East European friends of this faith.

While many of us in Canada will be out hunting for deals on Boxing Day, others will be observing Kwanza, a week-long holiday honouring African culture.

But we can’t go wrong with “happy New Year,” right? Well actually, different cultures have different calendars. The Jewish New Year (Rosh Hashanah) took place back in February, and the Chinese New Year won’t come until February 3rd.

Whenever you celebrate your holidays, there is something undeniably special about this time of year in North America… Maybe it’s the cookies, the gifts, or the beautiful lights that illuminate our streets on these short, dark days; or perhaps it’s the multicultural potlucks that have allowed us to showcase our cooking skills and learn more about each other.

Despite our cultural differences, we all share one very important thing in common here at Career Edge Organization: The holidays mean more time with family and loved ones. So happy statutory holidays to you and your workplace as you lock your doors, shut down your computers, and enjoy some well-earned time off!

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