Creative Cultures: iQmetrix lives up to its give-back values

Crystal Henrickson

In our Creative Cultures series, Contributor Crystal Henrickson spends a day inside companies to learn how hiring, onboarding, and company culture play a role in employee happiness. From startups to design firms and all in-between, we’re pulling back the curtain on what it’s like to work in inventive and productive environments.

iQmetrix is a leading provider of retail management solutions for the North American retail industry. Its vision of creating great experiences for its people, partners and clients is evident in the creative, collaborative and open culture across their five offices: Vancouver, Regina, Winnipeg, Charlotte, North Carolina and Sydney, Australia.

Every morning, employees participate in an open meeting invitation to “Link Share,” and today, I’ve been asked to join them at their downtown Vancouver headquarters. The kitchen and lounge provide an informal place for an open meeting such as this one; staff are encouraged to stay ahead of trends, and these daily syncs feed blog commentary and social media fodder. Continue reading →

How a great brand story can sell a lot of blank paper

Guest Author

Photo of Sketch image with business ideas diagrams and graphs from Shutterstock.

People have a hard time putting their finger on what “brand” is, exactly.

I do my best in my own way to communicate the importance of branding to both large companies and SMBs. I do the usual speech of how it is more than your logo, how it is more than your web presence and how there are way more elements involved to making the whole thing work.

I often read up on case studies to use as ammunition on the battlefield of talking brand. When I find a few good ones I often scribble them down in my notebook to review later along with other random ramblings of ideas, sketches, doodles and whatever else pops into my melon. Continue reading →

3 ways to keep your skills fresh and boost your employability

Guest Author

Photo of Two friends having coffee together from Shutterstock.

Do you feel unappreciated at work? Have you thought about starting your own business, but don’t know how to begin? Maybe you wonder if you could do better at a different company – or you’re happy where you are, but think you’d be better off in a different role.

Whether you want to move up or move out, you can’t deny it. In order for you to feel satisfied on the job, something’s gotta change. If only you knew where to start…Don’t feel overwhelmed. There are a few things you can do to stay relevant in today’s job market. Continue reading →

5 essential tools and web apps for freelancers

Liz Da Ponte

Photo of Brunette woman using laptop from Shutterstock.

Making the switch to full-time freelancing is exciting; you get to set your own hours, choose the clients you’d like to work with and you can work from home. It can also be a little daunting, too. There is a lot of security in working at an established company – you have regular hours, regular pay, and access to enterprise-level software.

As an employee of an established company, you have access to the tools and software that you may not have when you’re out on your own. Fortunately, there is an abundance of free (and almost free) tools to help you manage your time and your clients.

Here are a couple of tools you may want to look into as you start your freelancing business. Continue reading →

Ace your next interview with these HR-approved questions

Crystal Henrickson

Photo of Two women meeting in the office from Shutterstock.

When you’re job hunting, it’s only natural to want to appear eager to win over potential employers and land a new gig. But if you don’t invest the time to ensure that a company is the right fit for you, that new job can quickly become a nightmare.

You can learn a lot about an organization by researching online, asking the opinions of people who have worked there and through the interview process itself. However, a surefire way to get the information you need to decide whether a company is right for you, is to come to the interview prepared with purposeful questions. We canvassed five talent and recruitment professionals to share some of the best questions former candidates have asked. Continue reading →

The Clash: how to deal with conflict in the workplace

Joanne M. Brathwaite

Photo of Overtime from Shutterstock.

The workplace is a veritable hive of personalities that make an office hum and buzz with productivity. But when people work in close quarters every day, it’s inevitable that people will eventually clash. If not dealt with immediately (and effectively), a constant battle of wills can drain productivity and sap morale. Here are some of the ways you can navigate the minefield of emotions and keep everyone upbeat – and on track. Continue reading →

Stand Out at Vancouver Startup Week’s recruitment fair

Guest Author

Photo of Business People Corporate Meeting Board Room Concept from Shutterstock.

Every day I talk to job search candidates who are hoping to find their dream job – one where they can have a major influence on the creation of some potentially world-changing stuff.

But they’re never sure where to start.

Luckily, Vancouver Startup Week Recruitment Fair is happening on September 22, at TELUS World of Science. The fair will connect hundreds of job seekers with Vancouver’s top 20 tech companies and others who are sparking a movement here in the city.

The best part is that it’s easy to get involved. How easy? Well, let’s just say you don’t need a lottery ticket to get in. In preparation for attending (and you know you want to go), I have a few tips to help you stand out from the crowd, because a good first impression is the first step to success at a recruitment fair. Continue reading →

How to work the room at IMPACT – or any conference, really

Guest Author

Conferences can be stressful; whether you’re exhibiting, speaking or attending, there’s constant background pressure to be on the top of your networking game. For many, this means blindly collecting as many business cards as humanly possible. (This is an awful strategy, trust us.)

VanIMPACT 2015 is the cornerstone social innovation event during Vancouver Startup Week, and it takes place next Wednesday, September 23 at the VEC Startup Alley. The conference features a great mix of attendees and speakers, ranging from entrepreneurs, NPO leaders, and investors, orbiting both the social innovation and tech space.

A conference can be a great place to strike up a new business relationship…but even for the most seasoned pros, it’s tough walk into a room full of strangers and make meaningful connections. So while we can’t write your pitch or help you pack your suitcase, we can certainly give you advice on how to work the room.

Continue reading →

How to find work you love – in 4 easy steps

Jon Kane

Photo of businessman working by the beach from Shutterstock.

Given how much of our lives are spent in the workplace, you want to be sure that your work is going to improve your happiness levels. Everyone is looking for work that they find fulfilling; the all-too common advice being that job seekers should follow their passion, which is rather unhelpful to those who aren’t entirely sure how their passions can earn them a paycheque.

Cal Newport, Assistant Professor of computer science at Georgetown University, doesn’t just find this “follow your passion” advice unhelpful, he believes it is much more dangerous than that. In his book So Good They Can’t Ignore You, Newport suggests that there are four rules that must be followed to ensure that you find work that you find fulfilling and increases your chances of happiness. Continue reading →

The 9 to 5: Nolin LeChasseur, Partner & CMO of Brainrider

Lori Franze

Welcome to The 9 To 5, our new series where we highlight and interview creative professionals doing great things. Today we’re profiling Nolin LeChasseur, Partner & CMO of Brainrider, a B2B marketing agency in Toronto.

You do B2B marketing – How did you end up working in B2B? Had you always wanted to be on the B2B side?
I just wanted a job in marketing. I moved to Toronto after graduating from WLU with a BBA degree before I had a job. After spending the summer bartending back home, I was sick of trying and failing to get a job in Toronto when I wasn’t living in the city. I ended up working for a company that developed video casino games. It was 1998, and they had just come back from a trade show where they told everyone to visit them on the web, but didn’t actually have a website up yet. They needed an internet-savvy 20-something to get a site up on their domain before too many people noticed they didn’t have one.

I think a lot of people believe that B2B is dull and less sexy than its B2C cousin. What would you say to them?

It was for a long time. Before marketing automation and digital marketing were cost-effective, B2B marketing was pretty stagnant and old school. Trade shows, events, direct mail, telemarketing, and eventually some very simple, painful, unsophisticated outbound email. Continue reading →