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Canada InfoNet can lead to jobs within a few days of arrival: A program graduate tells you how

Airplane, view from airport terminalToday, we are sharing an amazing story about Canada InfoNet participant, Ravikesh, who landed a job just four days after arriving in Canada.  Through our blog, we will share celebratory stories like Ravikesh’s success story and much more to keep you motivated through your pre-arrival job preparation process.

Canada InfoNet graduate, Ravikesh, an Automotive Design Engineer, joined the program in January 2016 diligently working through the program modules, guided by his Employment Counsellor, Farah. Ravikesh arrived in Mississauga, Ontario and within four days of arriving has secured a job as an Automotive Design Engineer as a result of his pre-arrival job search preparation!

Ravikesh shares his success story with us in a recent interview:

How has pre-arrival program helped ease your transition into Canada?

I got to know detailed information about Canadian job market from Pre-arrival programs like Canada InfoNet & Planning for Canada*. Canada InfoNet helped me to modify my resume to suit the Canadian job market. Also, I received many resources to build my strategy to search for jobs in my field.

*Note: Planning for Canada is the referral partner of Canada InfoNet

What aspects of the program did you find particularly helpful?

The entire program was very helpful! What I liked most are the resume building and employment counselling aspects.

What did you think would be your biggest challenges before arriving in Canada?

(Ravikesh laughed) Landing in an unknown country itself is the biggest challenge all immigrants face. To survive in a new country anyone needs to have a job, and especially in their own field. This was my biggest challenge to find a job in my field that matches my qualifications and experience.

 What do you feel about the challenges post-arrival?

Since I was prepared for the job market here – from information I had received from pre-arrival programs (including Canada InfoNet – it was not a big surprise for me! Everything was smooth since I was already aware about what to do and what not to do.

What are the various strategies you used that helped you find your job?

  1. Making a Canadian-style Resume
  2. Networking on LinkedIn
  3. Job search on (online) job boards like Indeed.ca and Workopolis.com

Any pre-arrival job search tips that you would like to share with other Canada InfoNet participants who are looking to immigrate soon to Canada?

Yes! (Employment) Counsellors in the pre-arrival programs are knowledgeable and experienced – so take advice or information shared in the program seriously. I would suggest that you also focus on resume (creation) and LinkedIn networking.

Would you recommend Canada InfoNet to others? Why?

Definitely! This is very helpful for any newcomer like me!

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JVS Toronto joins forces to break the cycle of poverty in the Jewish community

Poor elderly women sitting on a street as people walk by

Last week the Canadian Jewish News ran an article called Long-term solutions to poverty complex, agencies say. The article stated that $20,386 after taxes is the poverty line in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA). Thirteen percent of the GTA’s Jewish community is living around or below the poverty line — an increase of 5,000 people over a 10-year period.

“Certain life circumstances, which can really happen to anyone… can take your life in a different direction,” states York University sociologist Randal Schnoor in the article.

JVS Toronto (JVS) knows this statement to be true. As an agency dedicated to finding employment for all, JVS’ job seekers deal with challenging life circumstances that require extra support. We work with at-risk youth, individuals with disabilities, newcomers, Syrian refugees and anyone looking for work.

Last year, for example, JVS provided employment support to a Jewish Family and Child (JF&CS) client who found herself living in a women’s shelter. While JVS’ expertise is helping people find work, essential partnerships with other agencies like JF&CS, allow us to reduce the impact of these challenging life circumstances. We are very pleased that our joint client relocated to British Columbia and is working at her dream job in a daycare centre.

JVS is one of the Toronto-based agencies participating in UJA Federation of Greater Toronto’s Collective Impact Steering Committee to develop solutions to reduce poverty. We are proud to be a voice at this table to collectively give the power of stability to those in need in our community.

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Ask an Employment Specialist: job search tips for a person with disabilities

Three businesspersons in a meeting, all smilingDear Joanna,

I am a job seeker with learning and mental health disabilities who is looking for work in administration. I’m having a very hard time getting another job in my field. I am comfortable disclosing as well. Can you advise me on how to get a job?

Signed: Able and Willing (AW)

Dear AW

Disabilities advocate, Jennifer Laszlo Mizrahi, President of RespectabilityUSA offers some excellent advice in her Huffington Post article 10 Tips to Enable People with Disabilities to Get Jobs. To address your question, I have revised her piece in accordance with my own experiences as a job developer/job coach with people with disabilities and barriers over the past 11 years:

1. Do not look for work alone.

Connect with a supported employment program or service. There are lots around the city. JVS Toronto offers such programs. You can also start with meeting an employment counsellor at an Employment Ontario Centre who will know the best community resources for you to help you get and keep a job.

If you live in Ontario and are eligible to receive supports from the Ontario Disability Support Program (ODSP), consider asking about their Employment Supports which could link you up to a suitable program in your area.

2. If you don’t ask, you don’t get.

Be ready to ask your employment counsellor/job developer/job coach to help you prepare for paid employment in an integrated work environment. Your goal should be the opportunities for full time work in an integrated workplace where the pay is at least the minimum wage.

3. Be proud and loud in telling people you want to work.

Laszlo Mizrahi suggests that this is no time to be shy. She adds that most job seekers with disabilities “sit quietly on couches, with 10 million people [US stats] living in a cycle of dependency that undermines opportunity and hope.”

4. Volunteering.

While you look for work, and even when you are hired, I recommend that you volunteer in your field. It’s important to keep active and busy, and avoid being isolated. And it doesn’t hurt to get another reference. Sometimes, volunteering leads to paid employment!

Ask members of your faith or other communities to help you find opportunities to make a difference and to build skills and experiences that will help you build your resume as well as keep it current.

5. Know your own disability.

Know the issues that impact you and all people with disabilities. Know what accommodations you require, and be able to describe your your strengths and weaknesses. Be honest with yourself. Don’t dwell in that “pity pot.”

Use today’s technology to help you. For example, explains the blogger, a non-verbal person on the Autism spectrum can speak clearly through assisted technologies. The breakthroughs due to science, education, medicine and rehab are transformative. Individuals with developmental and intellectual disabilities have demonstrated unique and profitable ways to contribute to the workplace.

6. Never give up.

Stay Positive.

You have plenty of skills, experience and accomplishments your work history. You should feel proud. And you need to understand that the labour market is complex. Keep building your professional network using social media, attending events in your field and be busy as possible.

Joanna

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Ask the Employment Specialist: Sourcing the hiring manager’s name

Drawing of a typewriter with the words "Dear Employment Specialist"Dear Joanna,

I’m trying so hard to build my professional networking. My biggest challenge is how to find the contact details of the hiring managers that I have targeted to contact for an information interview. It’s the only way I can cold call and hopefully meet my next boss one day soon!

Please can you give me some suggestions on how I can locate this information.

Signed: Cold Caller (CC)

Dear CC

Dr. Katharine Hansen offers the best ideas on how to locate that hidden hiring manager who typically do not want to be bombarded with hundreds of applicants can be found on the Quint Careers blog:

Make a phone call. Call the company’s main switchboard number and ask the name of hiring manager for the job in question. If the receptionist won’t tell you or they pass you on to Human Resources staff, get their name just in case you need this for later. Phone after or before business hours, and try to get the name of the hiring manager or at least the exact title so you can listen for it through the employer’s automated directory and then punch it in.

Ask for help. Dr Hansen quotes Steve Levy, Principal of outside-the-box Consulting, who suggests calling the main number and saying, in a calm, soothing voice: ‘Hello, maybe you can help me out for a second?’ The person on the line will almost always respond by saying, ‘Sure. How can I help you?’ It is a normal human reaction when someone asks us for help is to offer it. Start the conversation but be cognizant that the receptionist is probably busy with the switchboard of calls. Ask for the email if you can’t get the telephone.

Tap into your network. Networking is one of the most important parts of your job-search efforts. If it is working, you may find it relatively easy to get names. Joining professional organizations is one of the fastest, easiest ways to learn names of hiring managers in your target companies. Use social media like Twitter and LinkedIn to find profiles of hiring managers that are relevant to your career or job goal.

Become a proficient researcher. Learn as much as you can about the companies that you have targeted. Follow them on Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. Explore their website and subscribe to their news feed. Find media coverage and published articles to find names of people being interviewed from the company. These are names you can begin to contact to search for that hiring manager. Get help from the reference librarian at your public or university library. You can also conduct research directly with the employer by calling the company’s public relations or investor relations department to ask questions that may lead you to the name of a hiring manager.

Try a “Top Down” approach. One trick that has worked for many job-seekers is to contact the president of the company directly, since that name can almost always be found out. Then, follow up.

Find the company Website. If the job posting gives only an e-mail address, use it to lead you to the company Website, which will probably have a phone number. For example, the job posting gives the e-mail address HR@CompanyX.com. Type www.CompanyX.com or simply CompanyX.com into your browser, and you will probably get to the company’s site.

Put on your detective hat, and set out to work!

Joanna

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Ask the Employment Specialist: How to “decrypt” a job posting

man conducting a job search onlineDear Joanna,

I found my dream job online. It is a job posting for a Sharepoint Developer. The job description is complicated, although I am positive that I meet at least 90 percent of the qualifications. How do I prepare a resume that will stand out and help me to get that interview?

Signed: Stand Out (SO)

Dear SO,

Before submitting your application, the first step in the process is to delve into a deep analysis of the job description. The best advice comes from Michelle Edmunds, founder/job search coach from Focus Industry Inc., and Employment/Outreach Coordinator at Ryerson University’s The Chang School, who recommends the following:

1. Understand the job posting.

Job seekers need to analyze the job description in detail, in order to grasp what the employer is looking for, and to prepare a resume and social media profile that could land them an interview. Read the posting like you would an assignment given to you by your boss. Remember, the more you understand something, the more confident you feel, the better you sound.

2. Break down the role.

Read and analyze the posting beyond just the qualifications and requirements. Highlight key words and responsibilities (especially the ones you are not sure about). Job postings usually tell the applicant what you will be doing in a specific role. If you send a general resume that does not directly address the posting, the employer will not be able to understand how you fit the role.

3. Fierce competition.

Applying for most jobs is like entering into a competition. Job seekers must create an outstanding resume that is customized to the job posting, so the employer who is reading the document feels confident that they could be a match.

You can do this by demonstrating your relevant skills, experience and education (if required) in a clear, articulate way in the “highlights” of the resume. It will be evident to the employer, after a two-second glance at the resume, if there is a potential fit for the position or not.

4. The Match Percentage.

Some counsellors suggest that you need to meet 70 percent of the qualifications; others argue 90 percent. Edmunds suggests that a 90% match isn’t necessarily good thing if you lack 10 percent of the requirements either, because this is impossible to learn quickly or at all.

It all depends on which skills you lack. For example, maybe you match 90% of the skills the posting asks for, but you don’t have the latest software knowledge, this might mean the employer will have to train you, which might not be feasible.

5. Research.

Before considering writing a resume, research the company. Read other job postings on the company’s web site and the “About Us” section, to get a better idea of the company’s work, accomplishments and projects. Research what you don’t know (acronyms, industry terminologies, software).

The bottom line is that you need to keep in mind that you simply cannot produce a customized resume without a full understanding of the job posting.

Joanna

JVS Toronto

For general inquiries, contact:
T: 416-787-1151
E: services@jvstoronto.org

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