Spotlight
TRIEC’s Mentoring Partnership 2010 Special Recognition Recipients
TRIEC’s Mentoring Partnership recognized five corporate partners for being leaders in mentor recruitment. Top row from L-R: Deloitte’s Yezdi Pavri, TRIEC executive director Elizabeth McIsaac, Ontario Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Dr. Eric Hoskins, Scotiabank’s Brian Toda and City of Toronto’s Joe Pennachetti. Bottom row from L-R: KPMG’s Michael Bach, TRIEC chair of the board Ratna Omidvar and TD Bank Financial Group’s Carrie Blair. Photo: MANSA Photography
The Mentoring Partnership is one of TRIEC’s proudest accomplishments because it has proven to be a successful strategy to get skilled immigrants closer to meaningful employment. The program brings together recent skilled immigrants and established professionals in occupation-specific mentoring relationships. Since 2004 over 5,300 skilled immigrants have been mentored by Toronto professionals; most by staff of corporate partners.
This December we specially thank 27 employers for their steadfast commitment in 2009-2010 and celebrate five that are leaders in mentor recruitment.
500 Matches
TD Bank Financial Group
City of Toronto
100 matches
2009-2010 Active Corporate Partners in The Mentoring Partnership:
- American Express
- Aon Hewitt
- BMO Financial Group
- CGI
- CIBC
- City of Toronto
- City of Vaughan
- Deloitte
- Fraser Milner Casgrain LLP
- Humber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning
- IBM Canada Ltd.
- KPMG
- Mackenzie Financial Corporation
- Miller Thomson LLP
- Mount Sinai Hospital
- Ontario Power Generation
- Ontario Public Service
- Pitney Bowes Canada
- St. Michael’s Hospital
- Stikeman Elliott LLP
- Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology
- Scotiabank
- State Farm
- TD Bank Financial Group
- Toronto Public Library
- Toronto Transit Commission
- Xerox Canada
TD Bank Financial Group
For staff of TD Bank Financial Group, participating in The Mentoring Partnership has become part of the corporate culture that began in 2005 when 20 top executives championed the idea and led by example. At the same time, TD decided to invest in the program and became the founding corporate partner.
Five years later, TD employees have mentored close to 700 skilled immigrants.
“My mentor and I worked extensively on my resume and interviewing skills,” says Karen Brown, former mentee and Senior Process Analyst at TD. “She gave me the support I needed to get back into my field. I’m thrilled to be working in a position that is in line with my experience.” Karen was hired by TD after being mentored by Jasmine Tehara, AVP, Business Process Solutions, Wealth Management.
Word of mouth has become the biggest recruitment tool for getting mentors. Staff come from all levels and departments including business lines, IT, HR and finance to name a few. TD encourages its employees to consider being a mentor as another way to assist in preparing them for future leadership roles.
“The Mentoring Partnership delivers that win-win-win factor,” says Susan Calahan, Manager, Talent Acquisition. “It connects newcomers to productive employment, develops our leaders, attracts talent, and builds our brand.”
In part, through its relationship with The Mentoring Partnership, TD is better connected to new talent and has established a solid reputation with newcomers to Toronto. But it doesn’t stop there. TD is again investing in a good idea, and solidifying itself as an employer of choice, by sponsoring the cross-country expansion of mentoring of skilled immigrants through the ALLIES National Mentoring Initiative.
City of Toronto
Talking to Torontonians about the importance of immigrants to the labour market isn’t enough for The City of Toronto – the organization is leading by example. “Taking a leadership position in furthering the employment of skilled immigrants is key to Toronto’s economic and social development,” says Cheryl Borland, Workforce Transition & Employment Equity.
One of the original corporate partners to come onboard, over 225 City of Toronto employees have now participated in the program. The Mentoring Partnership has proven its popularity: Many City staff are repeat mentors and in fact, seven current mentors have been involved in the program since it launched at The City in 2004. Recently The City of Toronto surpassed all expectations, reaching 500 matches.
Initially the program began with 29 mentors representing accounting, engineering and IT. Today the program has spread to include 16 professions across the organization, resulting in more mentoring opportunities for more skilled immigrants.
One of those immigrants was Maggie Chen, a PhD in economics, who was paired with Senior Policy Advisor, Susan Brown. By accompanying Susan to workplace meetings, Maggie recognized differences between the Chinese and Canadian workplaces. “Taking initiative is a common expectation here,” says Maggie. “Coming from a much more formal workplace culture, I learned that I had to adapt. I know I fully understand the different approach because my mentor gave me the opportunity to learn by doing.”
Senior management at The City champion the program and push for the organization to open the workplace to skilled immigrant mentees. Mentors are encouraged to invite their mentees to attend professional development sessions with them, adding value to the experience for the mentees. The City hosts an annual recognition event, as well as networking sessions to further enhance the mentor and mentee experiences.
Deloitte
Deloitte Vice Chairman, Yezdi Pavri, is a firm believer in leading by example. Back in 2005, Yezdi championed mentoring at Deloitte and has since infused the practice into the firm’s culture. As a former immigrant himself, Yezdi appreciated the social imperative, but as the former GTA Managing Partner, Yezdi also understood the business case.
“Deloitte’s clients are diverse, so we need to be diverse,” says Yezdi. “Mentoring provides our staff with opportunities to learn about the cultural nuances of doing business in a diverse community. It also gets them excited to work for an employer that is doing innovative things to benefit society.”
Deloitte measures the success of the program by the number of mentors who sign on to mentor, not just once, but again and again – and there are many. Over 200 Deloitte employees have provided coaching and networking opportunities to newcomers. To support mentors, the firm has developed a mentoring guide that offers tips and feedback from other mentors.
The firm also views skilled immigrants as a growing talent pool and is eager to leverage their potential. “You can tell that Deloitte staff appreciate your international experience and education, and that gave me a huge confidence boost,” says Anirudh Vij, a current Deloitte mentee.
As Deloitte grows it continues to focus on skills, competencies and relevant experience, no matter where they were gained. Considering the inevitable changes in staff, it’s critical that Deloitte managers be equipped to lead an increasingly diverse workforce. Mentoring skilled immigrants continues to serve Deloitte’s business and staff development needs, while giving back to the community.
KPMG
As a professional services firm, KPMG counts its people as its biggest asset. The company is driven to develop its people and mentoring skilled immigrants has proven to be a successful strategy to do this.
KPMG has formalized its involvement with The Mentoring Partnership to ensure that time spent mentoring is part of the work day, reflecting the importance the company places on the program. Mentoring has even become integrated into employee goal setting and is built into annual performance reviews – ensuring that the professional development gained from mentoring is reflected in the employee’s evaluation.
KPMG is committed. Some staff have mentored over 10 times. It’s this display of passion that really effects change and is the benchmark that has inspired KPMG to surpass its commitment to skilled immigrant employment by reaching over 100 mentor matches.
Participating in The Mentoring Partnership aligns with KPMG’s Community Leadership Strategy. “We believe in helping newcomers get connected to the Canadian workforce,” says Michael Bach, National Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion. He also jokes: “KPMG wants to be known as the diversity employer of choice, so we push ourselves to contribute as much as Deloitte – some friendly competition that works in everybody’s favour!”
Joking aside, KPMG is keen to collaborate. Together with Fraser Milner Casgrain, the two companies hosted the first-ever joint corporate partner event for mentors and mentees. “KPMG is forward thinking for recognizing that there is significant value in knowledgeable, tenured immigrants who can help companies stay competitive in the marketplace,” says mentee, Alana Mohan. “I really appreciate KPMG employees investing the time and resources to mentor immigrants, demonstrating the organization’s commitment to developing people as a treasured resource and its belief that the return on investment will be worthwhile.”
Scotiabank
There was no question that joining The Mentoring Partnership was a natural fit for Scotiabank. Operating in over 50 countries around the world, the bank had made the link between understanding local cultural nuances and being successful. With Toronto’s cultural make-up changing so quickly, it was clear that joining The Mentoring Partnership made good business sense.
In addition to the professional development potential, Scotiabank employees have embraced the idea of mentoring skilled immigrants for personal fulfillment – and it shows. Since coming onboard just over a year ago, Scotiabank employees have mentored over 175 skilled immigrants.
Mentors are able to develop leadership skills by coaching their mentees. In turn, mentees walk away with the confidence and understanding of how to successfully pursue Canadian work opportunities. Says Mohammed Chowdhury, a business analyst from Bangladesh who was paired with a Scotiabank mentor: “My mentor helped me prepare for job opportunities through mock interviews. Now I know how to ‘own’ an interview and this confidence has led me to a job in my field.”
Scotiabank has deliberately promoted The Mentoring Partnership to hiring managers to help them to gain a more global mindset and consider skilled immigrant candidates. “By encouraging Scotiabank employees to approach their work from varying perspectives, we are opening up the organization for increased innovation and creativity,” says Deanna Matzanke, Director, Global Employment Strategies.
The bank also conducts workshops for their employees’ mentees in areas such as cross cultural understanding and job search strategies in the Canadian context. It’s clear that Scotiabank is committed to helping newcomers succeed.
