Finding talent at home
Each spring, close to 5,000 people graduate from Concordia University with degrees in hand to pursue their dreams and advance society.
Some Concordia grads, however, don’t stray far from home; they return to their academic nest as employees.
That was Perry Calce’s experience. He had just graduated with a history degree from Concordia’s School of Community and Public Affairs (SCPA) when his professor, Hubert Guindon, asked him to become an internship coordinator.
“I never thought I would work at Concordia upon graduating,” recalls Calce. “In fact, he almost had to twist my arm -- but I’m glad he did!”
That was 29 years and three job titles ago. Today, Calce is coordinator of academic programs and curriculum development for the SCPA. There he heads up recruitment, academic advising and internships. He’s also in regular contact with alumni.
If he were graduating today, Calce’s hire may have been aided by the Choose Concordians initiative, which encourages graduates to hire fellow graduates. Launched through Advancement and Alumni Relations in collaboration with the university’s three career centres, Choose Concordians leverages the three career centres to offer job-posting services, on-campus recruitment, career fairs and a pool of talented students and alumni from the university’s four faculties.
The university itself makes use of Choose Concordians services when looking to fill vacancies. According to Anna Michetti, Concordia’s executive director of employment, who heads recruitment for all non-academic staff -- i.e. some 6,000 employees -- Calce’s transition from student to employee is not uncommon.
While Michetti points out that all jobs are posted -- and applicants assessed -- according to the principles of equity and skills qualification and experience, many Concordia grads “do naturally tend to have some kind of affinity.”
Graduates may have worked part-time at the university while studying, filling in for support staff, for example. Then, when a vacancy is posted, “people know who they are and already know they can work with them. Their learning curve is less steep.”
“Many Concordia students are local, so they tend to be bilingual, which, for someone staffing the front desk of a department, is great,” she says.
This translates into strong retention figures. Among the university’s administrative staff, more than 21 per cent are Concordia alumni. That figure is even higher -- more than 24 per cent -- among professional staff, a category that includes programmers, writers, advisors and counselors, like Calce.
Associate Vice-President of Human Resources Carolina Willsher says that when hiring, beyond the obvious qualities -- strong work-related skills, work ethic and integrity -- Concordia is generally “looking for people who have ease and flexibility in working in a diverse environment, who can both adapt to change and bring innovation.”
A common thread among alumni hires, adds Michetti, is their “accessible personalities. I don’t know if it’s because they already feel at home here, but I think that’s a hallmark.”
On the flipside, the reasons Concordians themselves choose to stay at Concordia are many, says Willsher. “There’s so much going on at Concordia all the time, it’s really dynamic. If you just pause and look beyond the immediate demands of one’s job, what an incredible place to work!”
Public lectures on campus, a bilingual setting, international students, staff and faculty with diverse backgrounds, work-life balance all contribute to a rich and desirable work environment. Plus, professional and personal development programs for employees and their families provide plenty of opportunity.
Adds Calce, “At Concordia, you work in a world of ideas and information. You see young people entering university, maturing, graduating and moving on to do extraordinary things. Working closely with young people keeps you young.”
“Not a week goes by without a graduate of the program contacting me or just dropping in to see how the school is doing,” says Calce. “How could you not love working in an environment where people stay in touch years and decades after they’ve graduated?”
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