Career Options

Financial professionals gain critical edge

When finance professor Selim Akkurt moved to Toronto from Turkey last December, he thought he would easily find work in his field. With both relevant work experience and substantial credentials -- a master's degree in economics from Eastern Michigan University -- under his belt, and a strong desire to succeed in his new home country, he assumed he'd have no problems penetrating this city's vast and thriving financial sector.

SHARON ASCHAIEK
[ 2007-05-23 ]

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SELIM AKKURT
Completed Financial Connections program

What he discovered was far from what he'd expected: with no Canadian education or work experience, and little understanding of the Canadian financial services market and workplace culture, he had trouble accessing job interviews, let alone actual work.

"I was replying to online job ads at banks and sending 15 or 20 resumes a day, but wasn't hearing back. I was feeling very frustrated," recalls Akkurt, 31.

Then, a fellow immigrant told him about his positive experience at Accessible Community Counselling and Employment Services (ACCES), and before Akkurt knew it, his job prospects improved dramatically.

Akkurt signed up for two weeks of specialized training to help to internationally trained finance professionals (ITFPs) find work within Toronto's financial sector -- training that's since been formalized by ACCES into a three-week program called Financial Connections.


During his training, Akkurt gained vital technical knowledge about the sector and its broad spectrum of financial services, and developed essential communication skills to help him integrate into Canadian workplace culture. Financial terminology, day-to-day business correspondence and report writing were among the subjects covered in his training. As well, a senior finance professional mentored Akkurt by sharing first-hand insights on the sector.

Akkurt also learned how to effectively job search to access employment opportunities, how to create a professional resume and tailored cover letter; and how to ace a job interview.

A key part of Akkurt's training involved preparing to pass Canadian Securities Course examinations -- often a requirement to work in the financial industry.

After Akkurt finished training, ACCES referred him to a private Royal Bank of Canada job fair, in which he was interviewed for an account manager position. Soon afterwards, RBC called him and offered him the job.

"I knew I did well at the interview, and when they called, I was so happy. After almost 45 days without an interview, it was a big relief," he says.

With a third of the sector's workforce in Toronto set to retire by 2020, immigrants such as Akkurt will play a key role in sustaining the sector's viability. Already, they account for 23% of its workforce nationally, and in Toronto, the percentage of visible minorities in the sector has doubled from 13.6% in 1980 to 36.8% in 2001.

With ITFPs continuing to emigrate to Canada -- Citizenship and Immigration Canada reported that from 2003 to 2005, a total of 168,016 applicants in the economic class came to Canada -- it appears this talent source will remain plentiful for some time.

For ACCES, the challenge is to continue to bridge the gap between these newcomers and employers. The agency will launch the longer, more comprehensive Financial Connections on May 28 with the involvement 15 participants. Three other three-week, 15-participant sessions will take place throughout the year.

"The whole purpose of this program is to bridge the international training, skills and experience these newcomers possess with a very short orientation to the labour market in Canada, Ontario and Toronto," says Irene Sihvonen, ACCES director of services. "We're focused on providing them with a few baseline skills and qualifications and connecting them with employers who are ready to hire. This way, there's a good chance of integration happening more quickly."

Backed by key sector players, including CSI Global Education Inc., TD Canada Trust, CIBC and Workplace Training Services, Financial Connections is primed to be a key support for Toronto's ITFPs.

Says Akkurt, who's currently completing four months of preliminary training before starting work in July at a permanent bank branch: "Without ACCES, I wouldn't have this job at RBC. It has been a really big help."



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