EFC’s Young Professionals Network (YPN)
March 31 2016
Jim Taggart
At last year’s Banff conference we presented our market research report, Talent in the Electrical Industry. The major take-away from the report was that we needed to do a better job in attracting and retaining young people in our industry.
One of the key recommendations in the report was that we should “create an Emerging Talent Committee at EFC, allowing Millennials who are currently working in our industry to network with other young employees. Also, offer industry youth special programs/sessions at EFC events and discounted rates at these and other events — providing them with an opportunity to learn relevant industry strategies and network with business leaders.”
This is how our latest EFC committee was born; we got a bunch of young industry rising stars together and they developed the Young Professionals Network (YPN). YPN is an innovative program designed to support peer-to-peer interactions, industry knowledge and leadership skills for young professionals.
This new committee is off to a great start and has advanced more quickly than I ever anticipated:
• Over 200 individuals have joined this group
• In addition to the national committee, regional programs have taken off in Atlantic Canada, Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia
• Highly successful YPN events have occurred throughout the country
• YPN has secured over $22K in sponsorship for YPN events and programs (a special thanks to the smart sponsors)
• YPN has partnered with Dale Carnegie Training to offer YPN members a range of workforce development sessions on leadership, communications, presentation skills, sales strategies, and customer service skills
• YPN has developed a new “Conference 20/20 Vision” video contest, on what YPN members see for our industry in the coming years
I believe that this is only the beginning of what this fine group can offer; there is potential for them to lead our efforts in
• social media and more applicable communication methods
• developing an outreach strategy to educate students in schools across Canada on the virtues of a career in our industry
• guidance on how we can make our scholarship program more effective
• increasing the effective of our charity programs
• guidance on how we can improve enrolment/participation in our training programs
• provide recommendations to develop more successful industry mentoring programs
So my suggestion to those 40 years of age or under in our industry, please join YPN. You will not only help your career, help improve the industry — you certainly will end up having a great deal of fun.
My only regret with YPN: I wish I was younger, so that I could attend their great events.
Read more in CEW from Jim Taggart:
– We Need to Engage More Women in the Industry. Me included
– Not Your Typical Industry Association
– Breaking Through the Age Barrier
– Amazon: Friend, Foe or Frenemy?
– Electrical Industry – Mergers and Acquisition
– Understanding and Responding to Disparity
Profile: Jim Taggart: A Steady Hand, A Stellar Career
Jim Taggart is President, Electro-Federation Canada.
