31 August 2021

PRESS RELEASE – To tackle the increasing workforce shortage in the labour market, Sherbrooke Innopole is intensifying its outreach efforts with students from Sherbrooke’s educational institutions and increasing opportunities to meet with innovative Sherbrooke companies. The objective: Increase awareness among the next generation of promising students about Sherbrooke’s industrial and technological companies, as well as numerous career and internship opportunities, with the aim of retaining students and graduates.

This week, Sherbrooke Innopole is participating in the Journées de la rentrée on the Université de Sherbrooke’s Main Campus. It will also be involved in the UdeS’s online Engineering and Computer Science Career Fair on September 8 and 9. As well as a virtual kiosk, the organization will hold two pitch sessions that will allow ten Sherbrooke companies to showcase themselves to students and graduates. Additional activities will soon be announced.

This wave of initiatives focused on student and graduate retention comes with a new and dynamic image: My career in Sherbrooke, which incorporates a visual reference to Sherbrooke Innopole’s logo.

My career in Sherbrooke thus takes over from the Estrie, A New Home project launched in 2017 in the wake of an agreement with the Ministère de l’Immigration, de la Francisation et de l’Intégration (MIFI), which initially aimed at integrating international students into the job market in Estrie.

For Sylvain Durocher, Executive Director of Sherbrooke Innopole, “The workforce shortage is a problem that can only be solved by taking action on several fronts simultaneously. With the activities of My career in Sherbrooke, we are intensifying our efforts in student retention, whether at the professional, college, or university level, while focusing specifically on the needs of companies in our key sectors. More than ever, they must improve their visibility among tomorrow’s talents, and we acknowledge that this can be a challenge for many. Through our student and graduate liaison service, we will be there to provide motivation and support in their positioning with the next generation.”

In addition to organizing activities that help companies expand their reach and network with students, Sherbrooke Innopole will continue offering support in hiring interns—drafting an attractive internship offer or identifying mandates to be awarded, for example—and providing liaison with the Estrie Higher Education Hub and vocational training centres for the training and qualified personnel needs of companies in key sectors.

In parallel, Sherbrooke Innopole also intends to meet with high school students to promote vocational and technical training programs—whose graduates are in high demand from industrial companies.

To stay up to date on the news for My career in Sherbrooke:

• Follow @macarriereasherbrooke on Instagram to learn about upcoming activities, stories, Sherbrooke’s living environment and the dynamism of key sectors.
• Join the Ma carrière à Sherbrooke Facebook group to publish/consult job and internship opportunities in Sherbrooke industrial and technological companies, discover their success stories, and interact with them.

Anyone interested in learning more about My career in Sherbrooke initiatives and the services offered can contact Anne-Marie Côté at amcote@sherbrooke-innopole.com.

Other efforts to attract talent

Sherbrooke Innopole also invites companies in key sectors to consult its new Support for talent attraction and retention web page (in French), detailing all of its workforce-related services. Updated on a regular basis, the page is also designed to be an information hub on future recruitment initiatives and opportunities.

These include: An information session on international recruitment and the upcoming missions of Journées Québec on September 8; a brand new Distinction RH course for IT companies starting on September 23; human resources co-development groups starting on September 29, and more.

Source: Sherbrooke Innopole