BUILD I.T. in York

Business Utilizing Immigrant Skills and Leveraging Diversity

TRIEC is working in York Region with a prominent group of local business and community leaders to roll out the BUILD I.T. York program. The goal is to ensure that employers recruiting for IT positions in York Region are able to fully utilize the skills, education and experience of internationally trained individuals through improved recruitment, hiring, integration, and employee retention strategies.

The campaign was launched at American Express Canada. Strategies include:

The Mentoring Partnership

The Goal: To engage 10 new corporate partners in The Mentoring Partnership in York Region by December 2010.

Progress to date: Two new corporate partners have signed on with the program - CGI, City of Vaughan and State Farm Insurance. TRIEC is also piloting the program at Compugen.

Career Bridge

The Goal: To engage 10 York Region employers on the benefits of Career Bridge internships by December 2010.

Progress to date: Career Bridge has connected with six potential hosts in York Region.

How-to HR Workshops for Employers

The Goal: To engage 10 York Region employers as participants in How-to HR Workshops and link them to recruiting opportunities through the Consortium of Agencies Serving Internationally Trained Persons (CASIP).

Progress to date: On February 25, TRIEC, together with the Human Resources Professionals Association of York Region, the Town of Richmond Hill and Seneca College, hosted a How-to HR Workshop. The workshop was geared to anyone in York Region with hiring responsibilities and focused on strategies and tools to help participants better source, assess, hire and integrate skilled immigrants.

The workshop attracted over 20 participants from multiple sectors including IT, finance, healthcare, retail, manufacturing and education. Due to overwhelming demand, a second workshop is being organised on April 21 at Seneca's Markham campus.

GOAL ACHIEVED!

BUILD York - IT Working Group

The BUILD I.T. in York Working Group, which includes several York Region employers, was established to provide advice and guidance on the development and delivery of the BUILD I.T. project.

Progress to date: After consulting wiht the working group, TRIEC is in the process of refining the program delivery model which will provide employers who hire for the I.T. profession with a suite of supports and tools.

Employers at the table include:

• IBM
• CGI
• American Express Canada
• Town of Markham
• Compugen

Other Stakeholders include:

• Seneca College of Applied Arts and Technology
  
• Information and Communications Technology Council (ICTC)
• Colleges Integrating Immigrants to Employment (CIITE)
• Chinese Professionals Association of Canada (CPAC)
• Human Resources Professionals of York Region (HRPYR)
• COSTI Immigrant Services
• Ontario Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities
• Ontario Ministry of Citizenship and Immigration

The BUILD I.T. York program is funded by the Government of Ontario.

To find out more or get your company on board with BUILD I.T. in York, contact the BUILD I.T. Manager, Diana Robertson at drobertson@triec.ca

TOP