Monica Sharma is Associate, HR Strategy and Solutions Analyst with RBC. She has over 6 years of strategic HR experience in varied roles with first-hand experience in building HR ecosystems and workplace cultures from scratch. Monica participated in TRIEC Mentoring Partnership through JobStart.
What kind of challenges did you face when you were looking for a job before joining TRIEC Mentoring Partnership?
Challenges I faced was having no guidance and direction in my job search. I was not aware of the strategies needed in looking for a job and networking. I also didn’t know much about the Canadian job market and how important references are here.
How did mentoring help you with finding your first job in Canada?
My mentor was a Recruiter and gave me a lot of information about the Canadian workplace and recruitment strategies. She helped me re-do my resume and cover letter. I got guidance on tailoring the resume as per the position I wished to apply for.
I had mock interviews with my mentor and her colleague. They shared detailed feedback which helped me work on my weaker areas. Through their guidance and support I was able to gain confidence and was better prepared for interviews.
Every mentoring session had a well drafted agenda. I was aware of what we were going to cover in our meetings which helped me prepare well in advance and reach out to her with my questions. She shared relevant job postings that she thought would be worthwhile for me to apply for. I also got introduced to people within her network.
Can you share any significant moments while participating in the TRIEC Mentoring Partnership?
I got to learn a lot of valuable insights about the Canadian workplace from my mentor’s experience. The networking strategies she shared with me were amazing. Networking was something that I was not highly familiar with and was not well practiced in it. I was not aware of the importance it played here.
My mentor shared networking stories from her experience and those of her colleagues of how networking helped them with their careers. Following her guidance, I am actively networking in my current company and trying to leverage my time here.
I truly appreciate all the efforts my mentor put into our mentoring sessions. Her guidance and support has helped me a lot in my job search in the Canadian market. She has helped me regain my confidence which was getting low after receiving so many negative responses from the jobs I applied to. I am thankful to her and TRIEC for building such an amazing program.