college grad`s soft skills pave way to construction career

62 CAREERS n
The Toronto Sun n Wednesday, August 17, 2016
College grad’s soft
skills pave way to
construction career
Richard Lyall
Special to Postmedia Network
If he hadn’t learned to build
relationships with T-shirt
seekers, who knows if Mandeep Sarna would have been
hired to help The Daniels Corporation build condominiums.
The 22-year-old was hired
by the prominent builder as
a junior estimator at their
Toronto head office last year
after graduating from George
Brown College’s residential
construction management
certificate program.
He attr ibutes his early
career success to working for
his parents from the age of
10, selling hip-hop T-shirts
by building relationships one
at a time as customers sorted
through the Sarna family’s
wares in their Toronto store.
The soft skills he developed
as a teenager and an insatiable
curiosity made him stand out,
says George Brown professor
Bill Hawryschuk. He taught
Sarna at the college’s Angelo
Del Zotto School of Construction Management during the
2015 program’s 14-week curriculum. Sarna and the other
students were then placed in
a 14-week job-site internship
with builder members of the
program’s sponsor, the Residential Construction Council
of Ontario (RESCON).
When the students graduate, they go on to junior
positions such as estimators,
residential project managers, project coordinators, site
coordinators and superintendents.
“Mandeep has really good
people skills,” Hawryschuk
said. “He’s very courteous and
aware of how he makes other
people feel. I’d rather have
someone like that than someone with 35 years of experience who is loud and confrontational. That approach
just doesn’t work.
“He’s a leader.”
While Sarna has been a
strong hire, Del Zotto School
program co-ordinator Bill
Nichols says at least 90% of
Supplied
Graduates of George Brown College’s residential construction program have gone on to work
for industry heavyweights such as Great Gulf, Greenpark, Arista, Menkes and Tridel.
the graduates in the four years
of the certificate program have
gone on to work for industry
heavyweights such as Tridel,
Great Gulf, Starlane, Greenpark, Lindvest Lakeview,
Remington and Arista.
“The certificate program
not only gives the students
fantastic experience on site,
but it puts them in direct
contact with the very people
who could give them a job at
the end of the program,” says
Nichols.
“It has been a huge benefit
for our students to get a leg up
to kick-start their careers.”
After meeting this year’s
class, Peter De Biasio, Lindvest vice-president of construction, said he was
impressed and emphasized
that he wasn’t worried about
their lack of experience.
“I always tell them, ‘don’t
worry about your skills. We’ll
get you there,’” says De Biaisio. “It’s your attitude that
matters.”
As for Sarna, he has a few
tips for this year’s class.
“Enjoy every single moment
of it. If you have any questions,
go and ask one of the managers. It doesn’t matter who you
are, hard work will always pay
off. Every day is a new challenge and a fun opportunity
to help my team.”
For more on the program,
visit http://bit.ly/25EPRtn.
— Richard Lyall, president of
the Residential Construction
Council of Ontario (RESCON),
has represented the residential
construction industry in
Ontario since 1991.
Visit www.rescon.com for more
information.
Preparing for a move to the country
Q: I’m 36, and I’ve decided
to leave my city job and
apartment living and move
to a farm one hour from
Toronto. This location is
ideal to stay close to family
and friends. My plan is to
farm and raise livestock,
and also to run a dog kennel
to help supplement my
income. I have a great young
hunting dog, Sheila, whom
I’ve trained since she was a
pup; she’ll be a wonderful
lead dog and companion.
To prepare for this lifestyle
change, I’m going to move
in with my parents for the
next three months, save
money, buy the property
and get things ready. People
think a woman doing this
alone is crazy, but I’m
unhappy and need to make
this change. The doctors
have told me that I have
some kind of auto-immune
disorder, but they haven’t
been able to narrow it down
yet. But it affects every part
of my life, including my
digestion. However, when
Vera N.
HELD
Make it Work
I go out to the country, and
eat off the land, I always
feel much better, physically
and emotionally. I also have
some livestock experience;
I’ve raised quail (and yes,
I ate them), and I regularly
shoot deer and bear. When
I hunt, every part of the
animal is either eaten or
used to make things. I have
a good network of people
up north that I regularly
work with. Do you have any
advice?
A: I appreciate that quality of
life and health are your top
priorities, and I commend
you on taking this big leap.
Ongoing support from
your parents and friends
is invaluable. Additional
factors are also critical
to your success. During
this preparatory stage, I
recommend you take a
short, intensive college
course on running a small
business. This will help you
develop a business plan,
and set realistic goals and
expectations on building the
dog kennel business and
developing different aspects
of the farm. Other startup
considerations are: applying
for a Business Number (BN)
through the Canada Revenue
Agency (CRA), finding a
small business accountant
and lawyer, reviewing
suitable property and liability
insurance and applying for a
small business loan.
As for the property,
you will need to build a
dog kennel from scratch.
Google search to connect
with appropriate experts
on this. Include livestock
and dog veterinarians and
a dog behaviourist in your
search. Expand your hunting
network to include your
livestock considerations,
whether it’s chickens, turkeys,
pigs or cows. Investigate
permaculture and how it could
apply to the perennial crops
you want to grow. Choose a
local real estate agent to find
the property, then carefully
review the potential purchase
with a lawyer you trust.
To create healthy
interdependence and
generate revenue, rent space
to an employee who could
also be a like-minded friend or
colleague. Working the farm
and kennel in tandem, and
sharing living space provides
an extra measure of security,
safety, comfort and fun. It’s
also much cheaper to buy
groceries for two than it is for
one.
— Vera Held (www.veraheld.com)
is a coach, speaker and author
of How Not to Take it Personally.
Send your workplace questions
to vera@veraheld.com.