In our city’s history, immigrants have always played an important role. They build our economic prosperity, diversify our culture, contribute to our social vitality.

Jim Watson
Mayor of Ottawa
My nomination is an indication that our hard work in building Canada is recognized. All we do is to serve the community in return for embracing us when we needed it.  

Mehdi Mahdavi
Ottawa Immigrant Entrepreneurship Awards Nominee
OLIP helps to unite and share scarce resources for greater impact by working together in the field of student education.

Walter Piovesan
Associate Director of Education, Ottawa Carleton District School Board
The WOW seminar on immigrant women’s nutrition and health was a step in the right direction towards closing the gap between academic researchers and service providers.

Josephine Etowa
Associate Professor, School of Nursing, University of Ottawa
The City of Ottawa will continue to play a lead role in the implementation of the Ottawa Immigration Strategy, just as we did in the founding of OLIP.

Steve Desroches
City Councillor and Deputy Mayor of Ottawa
We are very pleased to have done the “Opportunity Cost of Not Investing in Interpretation” report – it is so important to have clarity on these challenges and…

Hindia Mohamoud, Director, OLIP
The OLIP Council is committed to leadership.  In only a few years, we have a common vision and priorities, and are up to the task of implementing the Ottawa Immigration Strategy.

Salimatou Diallo
OLIP Council Vice Chair, Assemblée de la francophonie de l'Ontario
Canada has been shaped by people who came from all over the world to build this country. WOW offers a platform for us to celebrate this history and the future it will help…

Alex Munter, Chair of the OLIP Council and President and CEO of the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario and Ottawa Children’s Treatment Centre
The work and expertise that OLIP brings to our community is so important as it helps us to build bridges and break down silos.  I look forward to our continued work together. 

Jim Watson, Mayor of Ottawa
I was happy to see integration to Algonquin territory and indigenous culture related programming in 2014 WOW. Please continue to involve local Aboriginal organisations and…

Linda Manning
WOW 2014 participant, Senior Fellow, University of Ottawa

New Talent Recruitment Innovation

June 2, 2021

By Caroline Gauthier

Are you experiencing labour shortages? The Centre for entrepreneurial and professional development at La Cité College has implemented a pathway to employment integration through training that is tailored to the needs of business. This model addresses the specific skillset required by candidates to fulfill various job opportunities.

At La Cité, we have access to a significant database of job seekers and newcomers looking to work, fostering diversity and the inclusion of an immigrant labour force. Companies can recruit future candidates who have upgraded their skills to respond precisely to targeted positions. Additionally, the values and mandate of the enterprise are incorporated into the training itself, which greatly improves the candidates’ job integration potential and therefore increases their engagement. This pathway becomes a future reference in terms of training activities tailored for the enterprise, in that current employees can also register to some training modules for upgrading and up-skilling.

This successful approach has resonated with such organizations as Desjardins and Montfort Hospital, where, over this past year, these collaborations led to the integration of more than 30 people into attractive jobs with a promising future. This type of innovative alliance is a win-win for all parties: on one hand, the participants have the confidence of a new job prospect, and on the other hand, enterprises such as Desjardins and Montfort have the opportunity of recruiting talent that is ready, competent, and motivated.

“In my opinion, it is a rich program that will certainly have a positive impact on my work and career at Desjardins” said Wissal Lahkimi, one of the participants in the training program. “The coaches are dynamic and they know different subjects well. They also give us concrete examples and food for thought. This allows us to better understand the processes”.

This tailored approach is also much appreciated by the employers. “This program is really focused on the changing needs of employers” added Simon Lacharité, talent manager at Monfort Hospital.

“Employers can select participants according to their own recruitment process and they can actively participate in implementing the program for their organization. In fact, we can even add specific aspects of our organization to the modules so the students already know our values, policies and codes of conduct. This is a very interesting, flexible and excellent program for employers”.

If you are an employer and would like to know more about our employment integration through tailored training program, please contact us by email at entreprise@collegelacite.ca or by phone at 613-742-2483, ext.2371.

Caroline Gauthier is assistant manager of the Centre for entrepreneurial and professional development at La Cité College.