Thursday, October 7, 2021

Excelling in an unprecedented time

Waterloo recognizes outstanding employers for their positive impact on co-operative and experiential education

by Namish Modi , Office of Advancement

From facilitating affordable, accessible energy to encouraging students to think beyond their job descriptions, empowering students was a common theme for many employers in 2020.  Many employers continue to find new ways to prepare students for a future none of us would have pictured.

Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, work, and the future of work, has changed considerably. Companies saw their workforce, including some co-op students, working from different countries and some moved to fully remote work.

Through immense change, Co-operative and Experiential Education (CEE)’s Employer Impact Award recipients offered Waterloo students unique opportunities to develop their skills. Students are developing technical and human-centric skills that help better prepare them for the workforce. 

The second Employer Impact Awards were held virtually on October 7, 2021. Here are this year’s recipients:

  • Impact in Innovation – Geotab Inc.
  • Impact in International Excellence – ASSA ABLOY
  • Impact in Research – Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre (Odette Cancer Centre)
  • Impact in Sustainability – Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy
  • Impact on Student Experience – Polar

Despite a virtual setting, employers and students at the recipient organizations have continued to partner in producing exceptional work.

Polar prioritizes work-life balance for students and staff. Geotab encourages its co-op students to innovate and find solutions in the workplace. Sunnybrook’s Odette Cancer Centre (OCC) facilitates students running their own clinical trials. Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE) provides students with an understanding of the importance of sustainable energy. ASSA ABLOY, which typically offers students an experience working abroad, was able to keep students through the challenge of working remotely from different time zones. 

“Congratulations to all of this year’s Employer Impact Award recipients. It’s an honour to work with our global network of employers to create rich, quality learning experiences for students,” says Associate Provost of CEE, Norah McRae. “Collectively, we ensure a strong future economy by enabling our talented students to establish a lifelong learning mindset and develop the most in-demand skills for an increasingly complex future workforce.”

Mutually beneficial partnership for students, employers and the University

CEE employers provide work-integrated learning opportunities for more than 25,000 co-op students. More than 7,100 employers from 60+ countries come to Waterloo to access student talent from the world’s largest co-op talent pool. The program continues to help students develop skills that make them ready to tackle the workforce.

“Every co-op experience creates a space for our employers to harness the power of students’ enthusiasm, academic knowledge and interest in learning,” says Ross Johnston, executive director of Co-operative Education. “Through such supportive and inclusive co-op experiences, our students find meaning and are enabled to be future-ready.”

Learn more about our winners

Impact in Innovation: Geotab
  • Founded as a family company in Oakville, this commercial telematics company provides an open platform management solution that helps businesses of all sizes to better manage their vehicles.
  • The company tasks students with meaningful projects focused on key pillars of innovation: productivity, optimization, safety, expandability, compliance and sustainability.
  • Management enables students to lead mission critical projects where they can creatively apply their knowledge and ideas to enhance Geotab’s business needs and workplace culture.
  • They encourage innovation through the Geotab Student Challenge – a five-week internal challenge where co-op students work in teams to develop solutions to important problems like reducing waste and enhancing customer experience.

Impact in International Excellence: ASSA ABLOY
  • From reliable home security to cutting-edge biometric technology for businesses, governments, airports, hospitals, schools and more, ASSA ABLOY touches every part of every day.
  • The company invites students to join a cross-cultural environment where they can collaborate across business units and markets to build intercultural effectiveness and communication skills.
  • ASSA ABLOY enables students to work on meaningful projects that make a significant impact on the company’s global business initiatives.

The company offers students opportunities to solve important problems and deliver solutions for a diverse global organization.

Impact in Research: Odette Cancer Centre (OCC) Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre
  • Led by Dr. Chow, the OCC runs a highly specialized cancer program committed to optimal, evidence-based and tailored cancer treatment plans.
  • OCC provides opportunities for students to lead and support cancer research or clinical trials, working directly with cancer patients to improve their quality of life.
  • They adopt a hands-off approach where students can use their critical thinking and problem-solving skills to overcome challenges and reach their full potential.
  • OCC supports students to publish their research findings in academic journals and present at international conferences.

Impact in Sustainability: Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE)
  • WISE recognizes that the energy issues facing our society are complex and involve multiple stakeholders. They work closely with utilities, private-sector partners, government and the non-profit sector to ground their work in real-world issues.
  • They hire students to work with a global network of over 50 organizations in 34 countries to develop technology, projects, research and products to improve affordable energy access.
  • WISE enable students to collaborate with international partners to help establish clean energy access for developing communities – including rural villages, refugee settlements and remote mountainous regions.
  • WISE encourages students to use the knowledge and skills gained during their work term to make lasting international connections.

Impact on Student Experience: Polar
  • With over 200 clients in 30 countries, the organization provides creative advertising technology to media agencies and publishers.
  • Polar offers a small, tight-knit community with training, professional development and opportunities for students to collaborate meaningful, real-world projects.
  • Polar enables students to participate in job shadowing with mentors and peers, creating open channels for ongoing learning, feedback and career advice.
  • They empower students to focus on wellness, personal projects or skills development through no-meeting Tuesdays, Wellness Wednesdays and Fridays off work to attend to personal needs.

Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC) – Innovation Division

Impact in Innovation

NERv Technology
Impact in Interdisciplinary Recruitment

Waterloo Institute for Sustainable Energy (WISE)

Impact in International Excellence

Rhetoricon Database
Impact in Research

Canadian Wildlife Service

Impact in Sustainability

BlackBerry

Impact on Student Experience