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Career Connections: Young Talent, DEI, Measuring Success

An industry leader in the recruiting space, Career Connections knows the insurance marketplace inside and out. They serve as an external recruitment partner for companies. Career Connections assist in everything from discovering hidden talent to helping candidates prepare with resume reviews and mock interviews and learn more about the different career paths within the insurance industry.  

TalentEgg was granted a wonderful opportunity to speak with Carolyn Seward and Beverly Lewis-Hunte from Career Connections, who graciously disclosed in-depth details relating to all things Insurance, events and growth in the sector. They also touch on opportunities for young talent, DEI, work models and measuring success within an ever changing industry.

Experience with Career Connections

Career Connections

Carolyn Seward, Manager & Beverly Lewis-Hunte, Senior Program Officer

We asked Carolyn and Beverly to share their experience working at Career Connections with us. They mention it is an exciting and unique workplace for various reasons. “Career Connections is an interesting program because we are recruiting for the property and casualty insurance industry as a whole, not just for a single employer! This involves creating awareness of the different career pathways that can vary quite a bit,” they stated.

They both touched on how the insurance industry has a lot of variety to offer, so there is something for everyone. Carolyn and Beverly say they face a challenge to connect this sentiment with young talent. They express the limitless room to grow in the industry, “insurance isn’t as well known of a career path so we have unlimited opportunity for growth and the insurance industry is very supportive of our work.”

Initiatives for Young Talent in the Industry

We spoke about the initiatives that Career Connections is implementing for students and new grads. While they have lots on the go, Carolyn and Beverly shared that their “Industry Days” are the most popular. “These are online career fairs we host four times a year, students may submit their resumes in advance for employers to review and select for a coffee chat or mini-informational interview,” they explain. The students get the opportunity to meet with several industry professionals and learn more about their companies and the industry as a whole. Carolyn and Beverly add that many of these employers end up hiring students they meet at these fairs, which is something they both are happy to see. 

These are not the only events Career Connections run; Other events include a career building series that comprises of resume workshops, interview prep, job search techniques, coffee chats with industry professionals and “ask a recruiter” sessions. Not to mention a new “job shadowing program” where “students who have no insurance experience get a chance to see what a career path could look like and bust some of the myths about working in the industry,” they add.

Beverly states, “Our ultimate goal is to showcase the variety and opportunities of working in the insurance industry to those who haven’t considered it as a career path before.”

DEI at Career Connections

Diversity, equity and inclusion have gained paramount importance in the workplace. We asked Carolyn and Beverly what role DEI holds within the company. “Equity, Diversity and Inclusion are one of the strategic pillars of the Career Connections program. We look to foster an environment of inclusion and belonging across the property & casualty insurance industry and the industry strives to look like the communities it services across Canada.” 

They both add how important it is to highlight diversity within the industry. Career Connections does this with its “voices of inclusion” series, connecting with equity-seeking student groups and offering coffee chats with professionals from specific equity-seeking groups. Carolyn and Beverly share their delight relating to their partners taking strides for the better, “our recent demographic research saw an increase in BIPOC professionals by 9% over the past five years putting the industry in line with the Canadian average.”

Fostering Fruitful Opportunities for New Grads with Career Connections

Since Career Connections is partnered with many companies, we were curious as to how new grads and students can find opportunities with these partnering companies. “Career Connection’s role is to keep the curiosity burning in students in order to learn more about the insurance industry. To do this we continue to innovate new events and initiatives to connect students to employers,” Carolyn and Beverly proclaim.

They add, “for our partners we continue to source interested potential student talent so we help with recruitment and retention.” Additionally, both of them note that their partners have observed a lack of essential soft skills among the young talent entering the post-pandemic workforce. But Career Connections wants to help, “We look to assist students in developing their competencies and professionalism through workshops and events so they can make a great first impression with employers.”

Lingering Impact of the Pandemic

On the topic of a post-pandemic workplace, we spoke about how the pandemic has affected the insurance industry. Firstly, they share how the industry as a whole has mainly moved into a hybrid work model in the wake of the pandemic. “This allows for the flexibility required to keep employees happy with recruitment and retention rates and still offers opportunities for in-person onboarding, training and collaboration.” 

They mention how interviews have finally returned to in-person, and new trends have emerged in insurance recruitment post-pandemic.  “We also saw that very competitive salaries caused many staff to shift between companies and referral bonuses for current employees who recruited another to their company became a popular tactic.”

As for the future, the Career Connections team shared with us a few hiring trends that they believe will become common. The first is an increase in quality onboarding and training due to remote work and a heavier reliance on analytics as automation becomes more common for mental tasks in the recruiting space.

Perks and Success in the Insurance Industry

We wanted to know what new grads and students can expect from a career in the insurance industry and what it offers. “Insurance really is a hidden gem of an industry, it offers variety, flexibility and advancement. Our employers hire based on transferable skills and offer extensive training and professional development,” Carolyn shares. 

They state that most people who enter the insurance industry stay there. Furthermore, they highlight that the younger generation’s attraction to the sector is strongly influenced by the growing significance of climate change issues. “The industry has an interest in climate change research and is really all about helping people get back on their feet in some of their worst times of tragedy. We can look to the past few years of natural catastrophes in Canada such as the fires this year or flooding last year in the West as examples.”

We spoke about how Career Connections measures its success within the industry.  The most significant indicators they gauge are event attendance, impressions on social media/website, and how many employers hire candidates from their initiatives. They have noticed year over year growth, noting that many post-secondary institutions have been reaching out more and more to share insurance and risk programs with students, raising awareness of the industry.

“Looking forward, we hope to increase our outreach to newcomers and internationally educated professionals.”

Conclusion

Carolyn and Beverly’s insights are a great display of what Career Connections is and what the institute is doing for the future of the insurance industry. We asked if they had anything else they wished to share, to which Carolyn and Beverly stated, “Working with the next generation of talent is always so inspiring and we can’t wait to see the impact they make!” It is clear how much value they place on the next generation of insurance.

 


Visit talenteggtrends.ca for more up-to-date employer, school and career centre news, tips and information!

Meet Our New Director of Partnerships and Operations: Rachel Evans

We are delighted to welcome Rachel Evans to the TalentEgg team. As the Director of Partnerships and Operations, she brings a wealth of experience in talent acquisition, recruitment marketing and employer branding. We interviewed Rachel to learn more about her experience and how it can support emRachel Evans At TalentEggployers and career educators.

Q: Why did you decide to join TalentEgg?

What attracted me most was the critical role TalentEgg plays in connecting tomorrow’s workforce with great employers and the support TalentEgg offers employers to extend brand awareness, reach, and connection with students and those early in their careers.

I was also a previous client of TalentEgg, working as a recruitment marketing advisor with Shell Canada, where I led talent attraction for students and new graduates nationwide. My experience with the TalentEgg team was exceptional, and the company’s growth has been impressive. While TalentEgg started many years ago as a job board with digital advertising, the company has grown to offer comprehensive employer branding and talent attraction services, enabling employees to use TalentEgg as an extension of their campus recruitment teams.

Q: Can you tell us more about your background in employer branding, recruitment marketing and talent acquisition?

As mentioned, I led recruitment marketing for Shell Canada, and I have had the opportunity to participate in employer branding and talent acquisition throughout my career as a marketing professional. I recently came from the talent acquisition industry, where I led marketing and communications for a technology company that enabled talent pools. In that role, I was a speaker on employer branding best practices. I consider recruitment marketing no different than traditional B2C marketing, with the product being the career within the organization and the consumer being the student/new graduate. Applying tried and tested marketing principles to talent attraction is quantifiably better than not adopting these best practices.

Q: Why is employer branding important now more than ever?

Employer branding is essential as businesses recover from the pandemic. Many employers stopped or scaled down their employer brand and talent attraction spend, which has resulted in reduced brand awareness among students and new graduates. With Boomers leaving the workforce in unprecedented numbers, organizations have a significant gap to fill. In a hyper-competitive talent attraction landscape, the only way to differentiate your organization is with a strong employer brand and presence in the market, intersecting young people with where they are physically and digitally.  

Q: What are your plans to support TalentEgg’s partners?

I am excited to support employers with their talent attraction strategies and employer brand to help connect them with great students and new graduates. I see a significant opportunity to partner collaboratively to extend existing services, including co-marketing and branding initiatives during campus events that show institutions are committed to connecting their students and new grads with employment opportunities.

TalentEgg also has a suite of e-learning courses that may be of interest to all of our partners. These professionally produced courses teach soft skills needed in the workplace that are often lacking in young people. These courses are incredibly cost-effective and could be an excellent addition to the services already offered by post-secondary institutions and employers struggling to close this gap within their workplace.

Q: How can TalentEgg’s partners (employers, career centers, career educators) get in touch with you?

Reach out anytime by email at: rachel@talentegg.ca connect with me on LinkedIn! I look forward to working together!

Unique Experiences to Develop Your Future Talent Pipeline

As we’ve already mentioned in this Guide, students are looking for more meaningful ways to connect with employers beyond the typical career fair. What better way to showcase your workplace culture than providing unique opportunities for students and grads to get involved? These experiences will help to develop your future talent pipeline in a rewarding and effective way.

“I think continuing to engage students and coming up with more creative campus engagement strategies will definitely help [organizations]. Try something new, show students what their lives at [your company] would be like. Bring employees, bring execs. Show students why they should choose you.”
– Mallory Thompson, Western University, 2019

TalentEgg has partnered with some amazing organizations that have created initiatives for students and grads to get involved – from challenges to volunteering and everything in between. In our survey, students and grads said that they are looking for opportunities for professional development and growth, with 71% saying the most important thing they’re looking for in a career is gaining job experience and building their future career path.

For example, we partnered with Data VizArt (DVA), powered by Deloitte, Tableau and CIBC, to raise awareness of their data visualization competition that gave students an opportunity to work in a team, present their solutions in front of executives and win a grand prize of $3000! TalentEgg’s Blitz Campaign that DVA used to promote their challenge included Leaderboard, Big Box and Wallpaper ads, as well as social media promotion, custom editorials and email blasts to best reach our audience.

This challenge gave students a chance to network with potential employers, develop essential analytical skills and be a part of something outside of the classroom that directly impacts their careers.

Big Box Ads: DVA

Big Box Ads: DVA

Another egg-citing way for students to not just develop their skills, but also meet top Canadian employers face-to-face is CEOx1Day. TalentEgg is a proud partner of this program, created by Odgers Berndtson, which provides students the opportunity to shadow an influential CEO of a leading organization for one day, experience what their workday involves, get advice and build long-lasting connections. CEOx1Day gives students an opportunity to apply in-class learning to a real world situation, equipping them with the tools and skills to start building their careers. TalentEgg supports the CEOx1Day program with promotion to our student and grad job seekers with our Blitz Campaign across our social media channels, online advertising on our website, editorial success stories on our blog and email blasts during the application period.

As a part of the application, eligible third or fourth year students have the opportunity to complete an online leadership assessment and receive a personalized report from Hogan Assessments. The report provides feedback on leadership skills, like relationship building, goal setting and strategic thinking, to help the students understand and identify their strengths and weaknesses to build their potential. In addition, all semi-finalists are considered for an interview with McKinsey & Company for a summer internship or full-time placement.

Creating a way for students and grads to participate in a fun, competitive challenge will attract young talent to your organization and give them an opportunity to “show their stuff’ in a demonstrative way. Not only will providing these opportunities create fun, engaging and memorable ways for students to learn more about your organization, it also enhances your employer brand and reputation. At TalentEgg we are here to help you produce and execute your student Challenges and promote it to top candidates across Canada.

Custom Editorial: CEOx1Day

Wallpaper, Big Box and Leaderboard Ads: HOEM on Jarvis

Wallpaper, Big Box and Leaderboard Ads: HOEM on Jarvis

Wallpaper, Big Box and Leaderboard Ads: HOEM on Jarvis

Doing Good Never Looked So Great: Why Your Employer Brand Needs CSR

In recent years the prominence of corporate social responsibility (CSR) has grown to become a core activity of most businesses, but why is it so important for you as an HR professional? CSR initiatives helps build your company image within your community, but it also improves your employer brand and helps to attract and retain top young talent. Showcasing your CSR initiatives as part of your employer brand is more important now than ever, as a growing number of students, new grads and early-career professionals actively seek out a caring culture in potential employers.

In our 2019 TalentEgg Survey, an astounding 90% of post-secondary students ranked social responsibility as important to very important, for a company to be involved in, and that’s 15% more than last year! You may be thinking: “Egg-cellent, my company has several CSR initiatives.” But it’s not just about participating in CSR initiatives. It’s critical that you effectively communicate your involvement to your target demographic and help them connect the dots between your commitment to community and your commitment to employees.

TalentEgg’s blog, “The Incubator”, provides various career-related articles to help students, new grads and early-career professionals navigate their way from school to work. Our range of topics cover everything from the importance of volunteering to different companies’ involvement in their communities.

We also work with employers to write custom editorials and produce videos to showcase their CSR initiatives to help them reach our audience of young and passionate job seekers. In 2018, we worked with Mercedes-Benz Financial Services to create a custom video about their changing corporate culture with a focus on collaboration and community work. The video follows employees spending the afternoon at their local food bank. Cindy Voskuil, an HR Business Partner at Mercedes-Benz says: “It gives you a sense of pride to see that your work actually wants you to go out and take you away from work to spend your time giving back to your community.”

Providing these volunteer opportunities for employees is also a vital part of engaging and retaining your talent. Our survey found that 81% of high school students, 75% of post-secondary students and 64% of early career professionals volunteer. An additional 65% of total survey respondents currently don’t volunteer but want to, they just don’t have the time or don’t know where to start. Providing your employees with these volunteer opportunities as a part of their work shows your commitment to not only your company values, but also your employees’ values and their development. 37% of survey respondents state that having an employer whose values match theirs is an important factor in choosing a potential employer.

“I think it’s awesome to give employees volunteering days (that are also paid). You sometimes forget to volunteer because it’s usually unpaid work and some people can’t afford to do this, but the fact that companies specifically want their employees to volunteer is awesome.”
Mallory Thompson, Western University, 2019

Are you searching for opportunities to get your employees involved but aren’t sure how or where to start? TalentEgg has various partnerships to specifically guide and encourage students, new grads and early-career professionals to volunteer. Our sister company CharityVillage is Canada’s most popular career resource for the nonprofit sector. We work with CharityVillage to curate our volunteer opportunities directly from their site and tailor them for our audience. We also work with our sister company Bmeaningful, that features purposeful jobs in the social good sector and provides helpful resources to help people connect purpose with their paycheque.

This year we partnered with World Wildlife Fund to encourage students to become Living Planet Leaders @ Campus. The certification provides students with an opportunity to make a difference on campus and in their communities while teaching them teamwork and leadership skills.

We have also partnered with Students Offering Support to help students make a real impact while gaining real-world experience. Through this program students are able to gain leadership skills and vital volunteer experience by leading campus workshops and helping their peers excel in their studies.

It’s eggs-treamly clear that CSR is a must for employers to attract, engage, and retain top young talent. With our customized content and partnerships, we’ve made it easier than ever to connect with students, new grads and early career professionals all through one platform. Reach out to us to find the best way to promote your giving back initiatives and amplify your employer brand!

Partner Landing Page: WWF

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