Yesterday afternoon we welcomed a design engineer in training from Ontario Power Generation to the Egg Carton for about an hour to shoot a video series for our upcoming Focus on Engineering (Sept. 20-24).
However, before he arrived, I had to configure the “set” to get it ready for the interview. I asked Danielle (editorial assistant) and Daisy (marketing intern) to act as host and guest while I adjusted the camera and the lighting. And recorded them.
Hilarity ensued.
Anyone who knows me knows that the Career Incubator is my baby. Its creation and success has essentially launched my own entry-level career as an editor, and it has helped me learn and grow so much since it first hatched in February 2009.
This morning, I published the Incubator’s 600th article!!! It’s the first in a fantastic three-part series for international students who want to work in Canada (a small but important part of our audience), produced in partnership with the Canadian University Application Centre.
600 may seem like a strange milestone to some—why not 500, you ask? I’m not sure. 600 just seems like a lot of articles.
Back in November 2009, we reported that we had published 300 articles 
on the Incubator, which means we’ve doubled the number of articles since then!
More than 60 of those posts (a little more than 10%) also include video that we’ve produced in-house.
It probably goes without saying, but I’m so proud of our little online magazine. When Lauren and I first put it online and began recruiting contributors, I was still a fourth-year student at Ryerson University and I never imagined that, within 18 months, we would publish 600 articles and more than 60 videos, or that I would have worked 
with nearly 100 amazing student and new grad contributors.
I really hope the resources we’ve provided through it have been valuable for students and recent grads right across Canada (and beyond), and I’m so egg-cited about the content we’re currently producing to be published this fall!
If you have any feedback or suggestions for the Career Incubator, please leave them in the comments. I’d love to know what we’re doing horribly wrong and also what we’re doing that you love!
Now, just for fun, here are the Top 10 articles of all time (determined by number of pageviews):
Yesterday, the Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada announced a new partnership with TalentEgg for ourFocus on Petroleum online event in November.
Retiring workers will affect all sectors in the petroleum industry within the next decade—approximately 105,000 workers will need to be hired by 2020—and forward-thinking employers are encouraged to think about replenishing their workforce with young workers now. Cheryl Knight, CEO and Executive Director for the Council urges, “The findings of the Council’s Supply/Demand Analysis 2009-2020 not only indicate future opportunities for job seekers, but also the critical need to continue to attract new entrants – particularly young people to the industry to meet labour demand.”
The Council has partnered with TalentEgg to increase awareness of meaningful entry-level careers in the petroleum industry among students and recent graduates, as well as spotlight the employers that offer those careers within the industry, during the Focus on Petroleum event in November 2010 and beyond. Lauren Friese, Founder and CEO of TalentEgg says, “The oil and gas industry traditionally remains under the radar for the majority of young people today. Our partnership with the Council and cross-promotion of the Careersinoilandgas.com website during the event, is one way we can speak to youth in their medium of choice – online and through social media.”
The week-long online event will employ an innovative and pro-active approach by reaching out to 18-25 year olds through social media (i.e., Facebook and Twitter), video interviews, online articles and employer profiles. Through the featured content developed for the Focus on Petroleum event, Canadian youth will learn about the oil and gas industry and its different sectors, jobs and career paths within the industry, the benefits of working in the petroleum industry and more. The content will also address many of the myths and misconceptions about the industry that exist among youth.
We are egg-cited to be working with the Council on the Focus on Petroleum! In combination with tons of fantastic employers, the Focus on Petroleum is sure to be one amazing event for Canadian students and recent grads who are thinking about launching their careers in the oil and gas industry.
If you’re interested in getting involved with TalentEgg’s Focus on Petroleum in partnership with the Petroleum Human Resources Council of Canada, you can contact us or Rowena Sampang at the Council.
What resources and information do you want to see during the Focus on Petroleum in November? Leave a comment on this blog post and we’ll take your ideas into consideration!
Early last week I happened to be in Lauren’s office when she received a phone call—it was someone calling the references of a TalentEgg intern and writer for a very cool position on the web team of one of Canada’s largest telecommunications companies.
By Thursday, she had been offered the role and Lauren forwarded me an email exchange between them about the opportunity. This was at the bottom of the chain, written by the intern:
I had an interview last week with [CompanyX] for the role of marketing specialist working for the [web] team. My interview went really well and he really liked hearing about the projects you’ve given me at TalentEgg. My experience at TalentEgg related perfectly to the position at [CompanyX].
It made me smile and I realized that, although TalentEgg is only a little over two years old, many of our interns, writers and assistant editors have already gone on to some amazing roles, including a marketing internship with a major bank, an editorial internship at The Walrus (one of the most prestigious and competitive internships in Canada!), and web editor of Wine Access magazine.
We’ve always been a very small core team supported by a group of smart, hard-working interns—some full-time, others part-time; some paid, others unpaid.
As someone who started at the company as an intern during its first summer more than two years ago, I know how valuable an internship at TalentEgg can be.
As long as you do the work that needs to be done, you can also get any experience you want.
You can experiment on new projects. You can be exposed to the work of each department. You get to work with students as well as with some of Canada’s biggest brands.
And although we sometimes struggle as young, inexperienced managers, we try to provide the best experience possible by keeping communication lines open. Seeing success stories like this one, where an intern was able to transfer her skills and experience to the next step in her career, makes it even more rewarding to work here (and it makes it a bit easier to navigate the challenges of being a young manager).
Plus, when we say students and recent grads should take on internships to help them launch their careers, we can actually back up that statement with solid examples from our own team!!
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