Making Connections
The Employment PavilionEmployers are looking for you!Norampac is the largest corrugated container maker in the country. But that doesn't mean by exhibiting at The National Job Fair & Training Expo Norampac is just looking for manufacturing help, says Christine Ali, Norampac's human resources manager. DAVID CHILTON |
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 [ 2007-03-28 ] |
Norampac is the largest corrugated container maker in the country. But that doesn't mean by exhibiting at The National Job Fair & Training Expo Norampac is just looking for manufacturing help, says Christine Ali, Norampac's human resources manager.
"We are interested in letting people know that we have a variety of different jobs. We have graphic arts. We have a lot of talent that we engage that is industry specific (such as) sales and marketing. There are some IT opportunities. People think of us as just manufacturing but (Norampac) is a full-service type of organization." As an example, Ali recalls that last year the company was looking for engineers to work in its paper mills.
Norampac will be exhibiting in the Employment Pavilion at this spring's job fair, one of four pavilions at the event. The other three are the Training and Education Pavilion, the Career Services Pavilion and the BizLaunch Entrepreneurship Pavilion.
LOOKING FOR TALENT
Joining Ali in the Employment Pavilion will be Ted Pierni, manager of talent acquisition for American Express Canada. Like Ali, who wants to promote the advantages of working for her company, Pierni is keen to let prospective employees know American Express is a great place to work.
American Express is concerned with work-life balance, Pierni says. On-site at its Markham, Ont., location it has a gym, a restaurant and so on, he says, along with employee retention programs, employee awards and the like. This year, as well as its continuing interest in any prospective employee, Pierni says American Express will be looking for recent graduates with qualifications in marketing, sales and business-related disciplines.
For anyone interested in working for Norampac, American Express, or any of the many other firms exhibiting at The National Job Fair & Training Expo, Ali and Pierni have some advice.
They both say they are looking for upbeat and optimistic people. "We're looking for the motivated go-getter," Pierni says. "We want people who present themselves well and bring a positive attitude."
Remember, Ali advises, first impressions count. "Quite a number of the people that we have there to support our organization at the job fair are HR managers, so they're the hiring managers," she says. "Sometimes, (job seekers) don't realize who they're speaking to. You might be a sales person looking for a sales job and you're talking with the sales manager." Ali also cautions against using the job fair as a resume drop. Don't throw resumes around, she says, and certainly not at the Norampac booth, because her firm (and many others at the event) aren't recruitment agencies.
Neither Pierni nor Ali should have any trouble finding the sort of people they want as employees given the quality of the attendees at The National Job Fair & Training Expo. Both say they have been impressed with the people they have spoken to at previous events.
The evidence, after all, is pretty conclusive. Last year Pierni says American Express hired 15 employees it first met at The National Job Fair & Training Expo. They now work in finance, customer service and bilingual credit, he says.
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