WA

TER

LOO

| CO

-OP

ER

ATIV

E E

DU

CA

TION

P R I S MT H

E

Fall 2011

A Spectrum of Enlightening Co-operative Education News

“WHO YA GONNA CALL?”

MAPLE LEAF FOODS: IN-HOUSE INTEGRATION

Stephen Donaldson, Senior Director Product Development, Canada BreadAda Luong, Sensory Specialist, Maple Leaf Consumer Foods

At Maple Leaf, we are pursuing a new vision to become a globally admired meat, meals and bakery company. The newly opened ThinkFOOD! Centre is evidence of Maple Leaf’s commitment to this by in-vesting in a facility, the only one of its kind in Canada, that is devoted to product development, consumer insights acquisition and global trend tracking.

Maple Leaf handles everything from operations to marketing and distribution domestically, offering plenty of faculty-diverse opportunities

growing, dynamic business. We have seen how our students have and continue to contribute to changing the organization, and will enable us to compete in the future.

Working in a food business is fantastic because op-portunities are available in such a variety of roles. Students have the opportunity to help develop and market products that contribute to the health of Canadians.

To view past issues visit:

www.cecs.uwaterloo.ca/Prism

ISSUE EDITOR: Andrea Banerjee

The PRISM is a tri-annual e-publication released by Co-operative Education.

IN THIS ISSUE:

Maple Leaf Foods: In-House Integration >>pg.1

Post-Recession Reintegration at Toyota >>pg.3

Manulife: Overcoming Faculty Type-Casting >>pg.4

Story continued on pg. 2 >>

With such a wide range of objectives for develop-ment and production in our facilities, there is great potential for co-op students from all faculties in our

On one of the very rare rainy vacation days this past summer, I enjoyed some flashback laughs watching the 80’s hit movie Ghostbusters while I was reading through a draft of this term’s issue of PRISM. Normally the tendency is to see in-dividual co-op employers as interested in hiring students from specific disciplines or programs that reflect their core business: engineering firms hire engineers, financial firms hire accounting and financial management students, etc. In real-ity most businesses need expertise and talent across a wide range of professional areas and skills. It’s been said many times before, but Waterloo’s strengths derive from our size and the diversity of co-op program offerings. With over 100 accred-ited co-op programs under our roof, we have students from nearly every academic field of study. So, in the fashion of Ghostbuster lingo: “...got talent needs, in your neighbourhood? “Who ya gonna call”? We’re very fortunate in this issue of PRISM to hear directly from several of our employers about the diverse talent needs of their businesses and how uWaterloo co-op is who they call to fill those needs. Stephen Donaldson, Senior Director of Product Development, Canada Bread and Ada Luong, Sensory Specialist, Maple Leaf Consumer Foods lead off this issue describing the new global vision at Maple Leaf and how the widening range of developmental objectives has great potential for co-op students from different disciplines. Maureen Hossack, Human Resources Specialist in Recruitment at Toyota Motor Manufacturing Company, talks about the renewed focus on faculty-diverse hiring of co-op students in a time of economic recovery. Meghan Herman, Manager of Campus Programs, for Manulife Financial discusses the challenges of recruiting from different programs and overcoming single discipline typecasting. Please enjoy this issue of PRISM. We have focused on employers who hire Waterloo to address the wide range of talent needs in their companies, but even for those many employers who look to one particular program or faculty to fill their needs ... Waterloo is who they gotta call!

Rocco Fondacaro, PhD, Director, Student-Faculty Relations, CECS

The Spectrum >>pg.5

The P

RIS

MW

ATE

RLO

O | C

O-O

PE

RA

TIVE

ED

UC

ATIO

N

2

>>Story continued from pg. 1

FACU

LTY

EMPLOYER

hires Applied Health Sciences

hires Mathematics

FUN FACTS:Lesser-known hiring matches

Daniel Mackinnon, 3B KIN, was employed by the Peel Regional Police as a Physical Demands Project Associate. “My duties involved conduct-ing physical demands analysis, and ergonomic assessments for a wide variety of positions within the po-lice service. I [was able] to practically apply knowledge from the various biomechanics courses I have taken.”

hires Engineering

Working closely with Indigo's marketing de-partment, Eura Cho, 2B SYDE, developed pro-duction marketing emails and site pages using web developing languages and tools. She has also assisted in trigger email projects and the redevelopment of software tools for the com-pany's newly launched site.

“I was responsible for implementing newly re-quested features on the Globe and Mail website. I worked with front end web development tools and languages. The work term was a wonder-ful and interesting mix of both technology and media.”

Susan Feng, 3B CS, worked as a Solutions Devel-oper for the Globe and Mail for the spring term.

At Maple Leaf however, stu-dents do a variety of roles, from supporting existing operations to developing the new ideas and products of the future. Students also hold a significant portion of our scientific knowledge and often are responsible for research projects. Results from such research projects help to develop and understand the technology that will enable us to produce the products that consumers want.

The P

RIS

M

hires Environment

manage the registration of DND environmen-tal assessment reports on a government-wide registry. I provided research assistance for policy development and prepared departmen-tal guidance materials regarding environmen-tal protection and stewardship within DND.”

Ada Luong, Sensory Specialist: “I spent two separate co-op terms at Canada Bread on the sensory team. I was their first co-op student and appreciated the opportunity to take on initatives that spanned across many business units. Seeing that Maple Leaf is a large company holding different businesses, I knew I would have many opportunities to pursue a variety of career aspirations.” Crystal McLellan, Product Developer: “I spent two consecu-tive co-op terms at Maple Leaf. Spending eight months at one work placement allowed me the time to gain ownership and leadership on projects that affected the commercial business. I loved that my job was hands-on but touched upon many dif-ferent studies: science, mathematics, economics, psychology, and business.”

We are also proud that the work is done right here in Canada. Using our state of the art research and production facilities; we can develop the technology, design the product, and market it in a profitable way; these are all jobs done by Canadian employees. This builds a strong sustainable business for the future. For us this is the

point of difference – most of our competitors are international companies where the Canadian operations are mere sales, trade marketing, and distribution offices.

[W]e can develop the technology, design the product, and market it in a profitable way right here in Canada... [M]ost of our competi-tors are international companies where the Canadian operations are mere sales, trade, marketing and distribution offices.

“

”

Co-ops play an essential role in understanding the products consumers are asking for, the product attributes that are im-portant to them, the science and technology behind deliver-ing such products, and how they are made.

The co-op program at Maple Leaf foods has improved continu-ously to ensure the students’ work term provides various learn-ing opportunities. Our co-op program started over 10 years ago with only a handful of students and a small number of depart-ments. Now we have a large student program that has grown to over 25 students at any one time. We recruit across multiple functions such as marketing, finance, engineering, information technology, and product development, and across multiple businesses.

We strongly believe we need to invest now for the future, and our students are part of that investment.

Samantha DePoorter, 4A Env/Bus, was hired as an Environment Intern at the Department of National Defence. “I had the opportunity to

Diverse Hiring Today, Diverse Opportunities Tomorrow: former co-op students weigh in

the Globe and Mail

Peel Regional Police

Indigo

The Department of National Defence

3

WA

TER

LOO

| CO

-OP

ER

ATIV

E E

DU

CA

TION

“First,” Hossack states, “it just makes sense.” She explains, “It’s a very cost effective, efficient program. Once you get it in one section or one department, the value is visible. Then it spreads from there.” The sec-ond driving force behind any company’s larger-scale co-op hiring is its internal support for the program. “The secret is that we have very strong support at the senior management level,” Hossack confides. “If you have that, it filters down to all the departments and everyone recognizes the same value.” Lastly, for Toyota, the students are as much of an asset to the company as the company is to co-op students. “They are here to do valuable project work, support the teams, and solve problems,” says Hossack. “They’re not just an extra set of hands.”

POST-RECESSION REVITALIZATION AT TOYOTA: Hiring for co-op in a time of economic recovery

Maureen Hossack, Human Resources Specialist, Recruitment, TMMCinterviewed by Andrea Banerjee, Media & Publications Associate, CECS

Prioritizing Phased Re-entry

Co-op Makes Good Business Sense

Understanding Value-Added

“I have a real passion for co-op,” says Maureen Hossack, Recruitment Specialist for Human Re-sources, TMMC. “This is our own internal hiring pool for the future.” This is why so many students are hired each term in a variety of roles for a variety of departments. Toyota began as an employer for Engineering students only, but has steadily grown to hire students from Arts, Environment, Mathemat-ics and Science to fill jobs in sectors such as human resources, finance, production control, information systems and purchasing. “The trend I was seeing,” Hossack recalls, “was that engineering was very strong, but once we started getting a few students in some areas like HR and finance, we could really see the [students’] project work and problem-solv-ing capabilities.” From that point on, the interest spread to all departments. Toyota wants the very best employees, and according to Hossack, “This is the right way for them to come in. They get a feel for our environment, the organization and the culture.”

The P

RIS

M

During the recent economic recession, which forced many employers to scale back hiring indefinitely, TMMC was reluctant to cut its faculty-diverse co-operative positions. After withdrawing for only two work terms before beginning a phased re-entry, Toy-ota has now made a full return to faculty-integrated hiring on a quick timeline. Why? Because Toyota understands the sound business sense that propels co-operative education.

Hossack recalls how Toyota’s faculty-diverse hiring took a hit with the economic recession. TMMC, like many companies, was forced to examine company-wide staffing levels. “There was a lot of attention put on the co-op pro-gram, because it is very much a part of our corporate objectives,” Hossack recalls.

In the fall of 2009 and winter 2010 Toyota was forced to withdraw from co-op hiring, but by spring 2010 the company began its phased re-entry. “We wanted to get back into it as quickly as we could, even if that meant scaling it up as necessary,” says Hossack. “The fact was we didn’t want to be away from it.” After re-entering the co-op process as an engineering employer only, Toyota soon re-introduced its administration positions again, regaining the diversity for which the company is credited. Now, only one year later, Toyota consistently hires a total of between 30 and 40 Waterloo co-op students from all faculties each term. This quick return to recruiting co-op students from all programs, faculties and sectors is a testament to how highly valued co-ops are. From corporate planning, to ergonomics to pro-duction control, there is no compromising the quality and scope of Toyota’s co-op projects. That’s because upholding the integrity of the program and execut-ing it with diversity are the secrets to smart hiring and sustainable recovery. “We’re not going anywhere,” says Hossack. “We’re here, we’ve been here for many years, and the future is bright.”

When asked what allows a company to accommo-date students across the faculties, particularly in the aftermath of a recession, the answer is simple for Toyota.

TMMC is a long-time partner of the University of Waterloo’s co-operative education program. Dedi-cated to hiring uWaterloo students for over twenty years, Toyota has always prioritized the need to recruit and train students for a variety of poten-tial full-time roles. This past spring term alone the company hired a total of 33 co-op students from a number of different programs. Toyota consistently hires for a diverse range of positions, hitting every single faculty in its targets for co-op job postings.

3Check out the new and improved Toyota Motor Manufacturing website at:

http://www.tmmc.ca

Peel Regional Police

The P

RIS

M

4

The P

RIS

MW

ATE

RLO

O | C

O-O

PE

RA

TIVE

ED

UC

ATIO

N

MANULIFE FINANCIAL: OVERCOMING DISCIPLINE TYPE-CASTING

Manulife Financial has been a strong supporter of our co-op program since its inception. Re-cently, Manulife expanded their co-op hiring be-yond actuarial science and information systems co-op students to finance, business, science, engineering and even pharmacy students. They also recruit from the accounting and financial management, actuarial science, math and en-gineering programs for their various new grad programs each year. INTEGRATED ACCOUNTS

Meghan Herman, Manager, Campus Programs, Corporate Human Resources, Manulife Financial interviewed by Andrea Banerjee, Media & Publications Associate, CECS

Donna Shin, Field Co-ordinator, CECS

Our Co-operative Relationship with Manulife

Manulife Financial, frequently identified for its busi-ness analyst jobs, is no stranger to faculty branding. While Manulife does hire for many positions targeted at the expected pool of business students, this major co-op employer and CECS Integrated Accounts com-pany seeks to make its hiring diversity known across the faculties. Meghan Herman, Manager of Campus Programs, Corporate Human Resources for Manulife, understands the challenges imposed on recruiting when students mistakenly associate a company with only a handful of programs. As Herman explains, there is a wide spectrum of jobs offered within the company.

It’s not just Business and CA students who find their fit with Manulife according to Herman, although aware-ness of the other positions available is sometimes lim-ited. “Another little-known fact about Manulife is the diversity and opportunity within our IT functions,” she says. The company’s many operating systems demand a wide technical skill set for maintenance and improve-ment. Recruiting talent and scouting potential em-ployees however, can be a challenge. Herman explains, “[This is] due to the concentration of IT companies in the Kitchener-Waterloo area. There are only so many top students to go around!”

Manulife is always looking for bright IT and Actuarial Science students to hire for roles that will offer them challenge and mobility. The many other IT employ-ers in the area attracting students’ attention poses a challenge, as many applicants still think of Manulife as offering only business and accounting jobs.

The Challenges of Recruiting Across the Faculties

“Manulife is often viewed as strictly an insurance company,” she says, “while in reality we have a whole suite of financial services business lines from personal banking to wealth management to investments.” The company is home to many different co-op students in programs that range from Software Engineering to Actuarial Science to Pharmacy. Plus, as Meghan adds, “Manulife is also a designated Chartered Account Training Office, which means students can work with Manulife while collecting hours towards a CA designa-tion.” With so many roles available for co-operative education hiring, it is no surprise to learn that Manulife is a huge employer of co-op students, hiring “approxi-mately 100 domiciled co-op students for the fall 2011 term alone.”

Manulife Financial is one of four organizations taking part in the CECS Integrated Accounts pilot project, which aims to provide a focused, strategic partnership approach to co-op hir-ing organizations to meet their talent sourc-ing and management needs. In April 2011, the Integrated Accounts project team and the four participating organizations, (Manulife, Sunlife, RIM, and IBM), participated in a round table discussion with representatives from the faculty of mathematics and software engineering. This discussion facilitated an exchange of program information and hiring needs between the fac-ulties and organizations and participants found the exchange informative and helpful. These types of discussions enable Manulife to further understand unique programs and specializa-tions such as Computing & Financial Manage-ment and IT Management at Waterloo, so they may identify and recruit top talent from these programs.

Manulife Financial has demonstrated through its co-op-erative hiring and management practices that students of all faculties are a priority within the company. “We feel that this investment in co-op students will allow them to make an informed decision upon graduation when decid-ing which employer they want to start their career with,” says Herman. “We are quite confident that our co-op experience will put Manulife at the top of their list.”

Herman acknowledges, “these are very competitive fields,” but Manulife Financial has positions that are important, involved and appealing to offer students. “High performing students who join Manulife through these programs will move up quickly to leadership roles within the organization,” she says.

WA

TER

LOO

| CO

-OP

ER

ATIV

E E

DU

CA

TION

The P

RIS

M

5

mathematics

arts

environment

applied health sciences

science

engineering

Production Control Operator

Purchasing Assistant

Training Logistical Co-ordinator

Data Process and Documentation Analyst

Food Technologist

Junior Training Analyst

Intel Projects Specialist Process Specialist Technician

spectrumthe

A look at some of Waterloo’s most discipline-integrated employers.

Press Weld Engineer

Production Control Logistics

Health & Safety Analyst- Ergonomics

Corporate Planning Assistant

Bilingual Tele-Interviewer

Client Financial Reporting Analyst

Pharmacy Assistant

Individual Insurance Underwriter

Technology Analyst Business Systems Analyst

Actuarial Analyst

Master Data Process and Documentation Analyst

IS Java/J2EE Developer

Web Developer

Disaster Recovery Analyst

Human Resources Assistant

Administrative Assistant

Administrative Assistant

Production Control Packing Associate

Manufacturing Engineering Assistant

Product Engineering Assistant

Our Co-operative Relationship with Manulife Financial Analyst

Taxation Analyst

Programmer Analyst