Unfortunately, Canada is a country that as a whole makes hiring decisions like a horse with blinders on.
How some hiring decisions are made…
More often than not, the decision is based on designation rather than experience and personality fit to the culture of the company. Many people miss out on opportunity because they lack the designation or have experience abroad and therefor do not have Canadian Experience.
What’s ironic is there is NO such thing as what as Canadian Experience as this expression means can you understand English and Communicate with me and I am worried you might do this job better than me! Furthermore, even within the same industry there are significant differences in corporate culture and overall approach to doing business.
So for those who need a little help getting over the hurdle here are some professional designations to consider that could help the overall climatic experience of hearing Congratulations You Are Hired.
Please go to the websites provided to get more details on the designation, the duration and what doors will open. Keep in mind that college and University education is also important and count as part of your accreditation.
Engineering
PMP – www.pmi.org
Sigma Designations – (Black, Green, Yellow, Master Blackbelt, Lean Sigma) – sixsigmacanada.net/training/leanconcepts/ or e-zsigma.com or www.leansixsigmacanada.com There are several places you can get accredited.
P. Eng – engineerscanada.ca or www.peo.on.ca
Accounting
I am listing the main ones there are more specialized ones for bankruptcy and insolvency, valuations, fraud and more.
CGA – cga-canada.org
CMA – cma-canada.org
CA – cica.ca Also good for in Depth Tax designations.
CPA – aicpa.org
Sales
Closing the deal
CSP – cpsa.com/csp/
Finance & Banking
IFIC – ific.ca mutual fund licensing
CSC & CPH – csi.ca This allows for stock and other investment licensing and you can further specialize in derivatives, options, futures and more!
CFP – fpsc.ca Financial Planning
CFA – cfainstitute.org High level stock Analysis
Insurance License – www.fsco.gov.on.ca or insurance-canada.ca or advocis.ca and several others.
Mortgages – caamp.org
Buyers/Purchaser
PMAC – pmac.ca
Teaching/ESL/Training
Love to teach
To teach for the boards in terms of public or high school you HAVE to do Teacher College.
ESL – tesl.ca or eslincanada.com/tesl.html You can also go to various community and private colleges to do the level 1 and 2 certifications.
Adult Teaching Certification – Any community college
Training – cmctraining.org or corporatetrainingcanada.com or trainingworld.ca There are many avenues to get certified as a trainer.
For skilled labor positions such as mechanic, electrician, plumber, welder you must talk to the Red Seal Association related to the trade.