Brokering a Great Future in TheGreenestWorkforce!
July 7, 2015 2:34 pm Leave your thoughts
Working in the Greenest Workforce gives employees incredible opportunities to enjoy Canada’s great outdoors both during and after work. However, opportunities in Canada’s forest products industry extend far beyond careers in the forest.
Last week, I sat down with Tolko’s Brokerage Manager, Brian Crossley. His enthusiasm for brokerage is contagious – he definitely left me excited about Tolko’s brokerage business!
What is brokerage?
We’ve all heard of stock brokers (at least in the movies). Perhaps we imagine them busily running around Bay Street, shaking hands, moving stocks, and making big deals by bringing buyers and sellers together. While one might assume that brokers are confined to the skyscrapers of the world’s megacities, brokers fulfill a very similar role in Canada’s forest products industry.
“A brokerage is a place that buys and sells product for profit,” says Brian. “We find value in our business by servicing customers that need something from us such as extended financing or products that Tolko doesn’t produce.”
Tolko’s brokerage sales representatives can provide services to make sure that customers get the product that they need, when they need it – no matter who makes the product or where one can find it.
The brokerage department takes a global approach to business, sourcing materials from all over the world; this including big Canadian players such as Tolko, Canfor, and West Fraser, and other producers in Europe and South America. Tolko’s brokerage team then sells these products (including lumber, plywood, and other laminated panel products) to customers across North America.
Why would I want to do this?
Brokerage is an exciting field – much like a stock broker, Tolko’s brokerage team works on commission, so earnings are directly related to your performance. It’s much like running a business within Tolko.
“It’s commission based sales. The traders that work with me are earning their keep every single day. So it can be very stressful,” says Brian. “But the really cool part about it is that you really have the opportunity to develop your own business. We’re selling forest products, but you can use your creativity and imagination to create something that you can keep and run for years.”
With Tolko’s brokerage department, you get the chance to build your career and work with the best and brightest. “You get to work with incredible groups of people, you interact with customers and you become their friends. It’s a pretty fantastic atmosphere.”
This sounds awesome – how do I get in?
Brian understands the importance of recruiting the next generation of brokerage sale representatives. “We have to compete to attract young people,” says Brian. “We’re pretty flexible. We find people who are suitable for brokerage coming from lots of different backgrounds.”
Of the three most recent new brokers in the department, one has just graduated from the University of British Columbia’s Wood Products Processing program, while another came from the retail sales industry. Another new broker has a transportation background.
“Logistics is a common background because logistics is a big part of what we do, moving products around the world. We often find margin there.”
However, Brian says that “we’re really looking for people with some kind of education who can perform tasks that require critical thinking, who socialize well, who have strong emotional intelligence and can connect with people, build relationships, and then leverage that to find value in the transaction.”
“Diversity for us is very important,” emphasizes Brian, “It allows us to look at problems from a different point of view.”
I’m a new graduate – can I get in on this?
Brian says that forest products experience is a big benefit. Working in a mill in some type of capacity would be an advantage, and it helps to develop one’s network in the forest products industry.
Also, gathering experience in sales and customer service is important. Brian also emphasizes the importance of logistics, which is a significant part of the brokerage puzzle, especially as it relates to providing customer service.
However, Brian explains that it’s really about the right candidate: “It’s really a lot more to do with a person’s personality, adaptability, and emotional intelligence. That’s what makes them successful in what we do.”