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ALLIES 2010: From the Frontlines of Employer Engagement

May 7, 2010Kelly McGahey

kmcgahey@hireimmigrantsottawa.ca

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Introduction

– Overview of Hire Immigrants Ottawa– The Business Case and Demographics– Engaging Employers

• Challenges and Success• Tools and Resources• Promising Practices

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Hire Immigrants Ottawa

Hire Immigrants Ottawa is a local initiative that brings together employers, immigrant agencies and stakeholders to develop solutions to systemic barriers around the recruitment and retention of skilled immigrants into the Ottawa labour force using a three-pronged approach:– An Employer Council of Champions– The creation of four sector specific Working Groups in the health

care, information technology, finance and public sectors that aim to address systemic barriers.

– A local awareness campaign to promote greater understanding of the social and economic value that immigrants bring to Ottawa.

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Engaging Employers

– Make the case– Convene the right stakeholders at the right times – not

too little, not too much – and only when necessary– Facilitate, don’t dictate!– Support them with tools and resources that they request

– and use their expertise in the development or sharing process

– Repeat!

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Business Case

As the economic situation evolves, it is important that employers prepare themselves for the inevitable talent crunch

– To avoid succession and staffing crises, Canada's employers, nowmore than ever, have to tap into groups traditionally under-represented in the workplace.

– Immigrants, more than native-born Canadians, have credentials and new perspectives that can help overcome the lag of innovation recently noted by the Conference Board of Canada.

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Demographics

Immigration to Ottawa is increasing; immigrants are working ageOver the next 10 years, Ottawa can anticipate receiving between 6,000 and 8,000 immigrants per year By 2014, labour demand is predicted to outstrip labour supply*By 2017, population will be 27% immigrants

Recent immigrants are most likely to be between the ages of 25 and 44***Conference Board of Canada, 2007**CLBC, Tapping the Potential, a statistical profile of Ottawa’s immigrant workforce, p. 4

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Demographics

– Baby-boom ‘echo’ already in labour force – Each generation smaller than the previous – includes immigrants and their

children

Ottawa's Population Pyramid

40 35 30 25 20 15 10 5 0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40

0 to 4

10 to 14

20 to 24

30 to 34

40 to 44

50 to 54

60 to 64

70 to 74

80 to 84

Ag

e R

an

ge (

years

)

Population (000s)

MaleFemale

So urce: Derived from data by Statistics Canada: Ottawa, Ontario . Community Profiles. 2006 Census. Catalogueno.92-591-XWE.

Ottawa’s shrinking labourforce– Last of the baby-boom

generation are now age 43– More than 10,000 Ottawa

workers could be retiring annually (extrapolation of known retirement rates)

– By the peak of the wave in 2013, 5,600 federal public service employees will retire annually

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Education

Ottawa receives a disproportionately high number of very educated immigrants.

Highest share of immigrants with university degrees in Canada82% of those aged 25-44 (arrived 1996 – 2001) had a post-secondary diploma or degree, compared to 69% of Canadian-born**Each year more immigrants with PhDs immigrate to Ottawa than aregraduated by both major universities combined*They tend to be educated and experienced in the science and technology fields***

*CLBC, Tapping the Potential, a statistical profile of Ottawa’s immigrant workforce, p. 7** Faces of Ottawa, p. 18***Recent Immigrants in Metropolitan Areas: Comparative Profiles based on the 2001 Census

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Employer Barriers

Employers encounter barriers that prevent successful recruitment and hiring of skilled immigrants.

– Workplace Readiness– Cultural Issues– Language – Qualifications and Work Experience– Credential Recognition/Licensing– Security Clearance

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Employers in Action

– Networking– Recruiting– Coaching– Internship Programs– Bridging Programs– Mentoring– Tracking– Review Policies, Practices and/or Processes – Educating / Informing – Utilize Tools and Resources

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Action Plan Template

Performance Measurement

TimelineTargetResponsibleResourcesNeeded

OutcomesActivitiesAction Item

Objective:To Increase Organizational Capacity to Hire and Retain Skilled Immigrants at Skills Appropriate Levels

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Employer’s Guide

Provides information about and insight into the most common challenges faced by employers when recruiting and integrating immigrants into the WorkplaceOffers practical tips and suggestions to address these challengesPoints employers to local resources

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Cross Cultural Competency Training Workshops for Employers

– Introduction to Cultural Competency-Building

– Intercultural Problem-Solving Strategies and Understanding Verbal and Non-Verbal Messages

– Effective Cultural Adaptation Strategies

– Cultural Inclusiveness Practices

– Creating the Workplace that Accommodates Effectively

– Teaching and Learning with Immigrant Staff

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The Ottawa Job Match Network

The Ottawa Job Match Network (OJMN) is a partnership of immigrant serving agencies and programs that provides one-stop-shopping for employers The members of the network cooperate to provide employers with candidates who best match their requirementsThey also identify clients to participate in events that link employers with immigrants such as networking or coaching eventsHIO creates linkages between employers and the OJMN

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Promising Practices

Federal Government – HRSDC and CIC– Innovative internship pilot to provide mid-level federal government career

experience to skilled immigrants launched in late summer 2008, and YNIP program at CIC for refugee graduates of Cnd universities

– They used local agencies (the OJMN and SITO) to source qualifiedcandidates (WUSC for YNIP)

– Recruited senior departmental champions– Matched incumbents with mentors– Provided cultural competency training to both managers and incumbents– Repeating the pilot in 2009/2010, working to expand the pilot across both

departments and regions (has been publicly announced and highlighted by officials and Ministers Kenney and Finlay)

– Committed to sharing their learnings with other employers

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Promising Practices

Bank of America –– Co-chair of the Finance Sector Working Group– Host coaching events– HR department has made diversity a top priority – Participate in Cultural competency training– Use the OJMN to source candidates– Created affinity groups for employees from different backgrounds to

network and share experiences and plan events – Have formed an in-house diversity panel– Have shared their experiences and learning with other employers

and stakeholders as presenters and/or panelists

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Next Steps

We encourage employers to:

– Utilize the Action Plan template (available in the Employers in Actiondocument) and the HIO Employers Guide www.hireimmigrantsottawa.ca

– Work with managers to make action plans operational in their owndepartments/units and measure results

– Make use of the excellent tools and resources available –hireimmigrants.ca Roadmap and videos, TalentNet game, TASC Roadmap

– Develop strategies for, and participate in, large coordinated initiatives such as mentorship and internship programs

– Participate in one-off coaching, networking or cross-cultural training events– Make use of local immigrant-serving agencies and programs

Contact Hire Immigrants Ottawa for more information: Kelly McGahey 613-228-2502, kmcgahey@hireimmigrantsottawa.ca

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Thank you

www.hireimmigrantsottawa.ca