The big move

7 juin 2016 16:52 Published by Olivia Watt 1 commentaire

After four years of writing essays during my time in university, I never would have believed I would be a summer blogger. What an exciting opportunity it is to share my summer experience of living in Vancouver and working as a Human Resource intern at Canfor with all of you readers.

My first week in Vancouver proved to be a bit stressful. It is a busy place here and I tend to get lost a lot! I am from a mid-size city in the Interior B.C. where the only public transit I used regularly was the school bus. When I first arrived, I was very nervous about taking the Sky Train. For some reason, I had it in my mind that there would be no notice about where to get on and off. So I decided the best thing would be to take a trial run to Canfor’s head office so I would know where to go on my first day.
I dragged my roommate along with me for moral support and in case I got lost. I didn’t want to be alone. As it happened, the Sky Train was easy to navigate and I also found my new workplace with no problem. I must say I was pretty proud of myself and I can now say I actually like taking the train to work every day because it makes me feel like a true Vancouverite.

Getting the role of an intern at Canfor was a huge thrill for me. This is my first experience in the business world and as a new university graduate I am extremely grateful to have this opportunity. I’ve been a server in the hospitality industry since I was 18 and this prospect for career training seemed almost like a dream. I couldn’t wait to see what the business world was like and how the forest product industry operated. That said, I admit I was a bit nervous that being an intern was going to be the way it is portrayed in the movies. I pictured running around frantically with 20 coffees in my hand to deliver to my bosses and colleagues.

Thankfully, that is not how internships work here at Canfor. My Supervisors really want their interns to get a true taste of the responsibilities of the role they are training in.

So far, I have had varied responsibilities such as helping format important documents, reviewing resumes, making posters, and replying to many emails requesting information about career opportunities at Canfor. These may seem like small and simple jobs to some people, but, to me, I am just so happy and eager to learn that I try to get as much out of every task I am assigned. As well, everyone here is always willing to help and answer any questions that I have. I have even been able to attend a few important meetings, which must mean I am truly a part of the team.

I can happily report that my experience living in Vancouver and working at Canfor has been wonderful so far. I am very excited to see what the rest of the summer has in store for me!

Thanks for reading!

-Olivia