Employer Networking with the Office of Indigenous Relations: Build Confidence. Build Community. Build Your Career.

Date: Monday, March 16, 2026

Time: 5:00 – 8:30 PM

Location: Tatham Centre (TC Commons & 2218)

Join the Office of Indigenous Relations (OIR) and Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE) for an interactive evening designed to help you build confidence, strengthen your skills, and connect with employers and peers in a welcoming, low-pressure environment.

This is not a traditional career fair.

Instead of employer booths and drop-in conversations, this event is intentionally designed to:

• Build your confidence with professional networking
• Provide insight into current labour market trends
• Create meaningful, structured employer connections
• Foster peer relationships within the Indigenous student community

Whether you’re early in your degree or preparing for your next work term, this event will help you feel future-ready at any stage of your journey.

Event Agenda

Professional headshots will be available throughout the evening through registered timeslots.

5:00 – 5:45 p.m. (TC 2218) – Skill Development Session (Students Only)

This portion is intentionally designed without employers present so you can build confidence before networking begins. Session facilitated in partnership with the Centre for Career Development.

• Practicing professional self-introductions
• Strategies for navigating networking conversations

5:45 – 6:15 p.m. – Complimentary Dinner

Enjoy dinner and informal connection with peers before the panel begins.

6:15 – 7:00 p.m. – Employer Panel: The Future of Work Through Data: Trends, Talent, and Continuous Education

Hear directly from industry leaders about evolving labour market trends, emerging skills, and what it means to be future-ready in today’s job market.

Facilitator: Michael Low, President, Symbiotic Group Inc.

Panelists:

• Tao Qiu, President, Akkodis Canada Inc. (Technology Sector)
• Jade Psutka, Senior Manager, Indigenous Enablement & Recruitment, KPMG (Finance & Consulting Sector)
• Additional panelist to be announced

7:00 – 8:15 p.m. (TC Commons) – Structured Employer Networking

Participate in guided networking activities designed to reduce pressure and encourage authentic conversation. Employers will rotate through structured prompts to ensure every student has an opportunity to connect.

8:15 – 8:30 p.m. – Wrap-Up & Door Prizes

Closing reflections, gratitude, and prize draws.

Confirmed Participating Employers

We are pleased to welcome a range of Indigenous-owned and Indigenous-allied organizations representing multiple faculties and sectors.

• Symbiotech Group Inc. (Indigenous-owned)
• Akkodis
• Satya Organic (Indigenous-owned)
• Move Right (Indigenous-owned)
• Comfort Cuts by Connie (Indigenous-owned)
• FlintHub (Indigenous-owned)
• ARUP
• Cambrium Indigenous Professional Services (Indigenous-owned)
• Abbott
• First Nations Engineering (Indigenous-owned)
• Alithya
• KPMG

(Employer list will be updated as confirmations are received.)

For questions, please contact catherine.porter@uwaterloo.ca