Neil Williams, Management Intern

MY JOB

Title: Aboriginal Management Intern
Key Tasks & Responsibilities:
- project management
- publish newsletter for fishers
- writing and revising reports
- analyzing information and processes
- researching on the Internet
- presenting at meetings
Started Job: 2003
Works with:
- Field Operations Managers
- Whitefish Implementation Team
- Another Aboriginal Management Intern
- All Freshwater Staff
- Fishers
- Customers
- Provincial Conservation Agencies
Reports to:
- Vice-President of Field Operations (will change with rotation)
- Human Resources Manager (oversees intern program)
- Vice-President, Marketing, CEO and CFO TOC

Business Skills

Business Skills

My work requires many business skills such as creating reports, analyzing information, examining process and making decisions about changes and improvements where I can.

I'm also required to present the results of my work and my ideas at regular meetings with other management and the vice presidents.

In the course of my work I use tools like the Internet and Microsoft Office to research material and generate reports.

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Aboriginal Management

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"Aboriginals are definitely under represented in the Corporation at the management level.

"They saw a need to train managers to take over in the future and it was decided I guess that they should probably focus on getting aboriginal people into a management position within the corporation."

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Internship Program

Internship Program

Freshwater started the Aboriginal Management Internship program to address the shortage of Aboriginal managers in the industry.

There are two of us enrolled in the program and during the two year internship, we'll rotate through all four of the functional areas of the corporation; Marketing and Sales, Finance, Production and the group I'm in now, Field Operations.

There will be great experiences gained at every level.

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Major Project

Major Project

While I'm in Field Operations I'm working with the Whitefish Implementation Team.

Our goal is to shift production of a lot of our12 million pounds of whitefish into value-added products; products that will bring more income to the fishers than if they were to sell the fish directly themselves.

To do this we have to improve quality, from the fisher all the way through the plant. This means making some big changes.

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Where I Work

Where I Work

The Federal Government established the Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation in 1969 to help fishers stabilize and increase their income.

A network of agents grade and purchase fish on their behalf and ship it to Freshwater where it's processed and shipped to market. They work with fishers all across western Canada, the Northwest Territories and a portion of northwestern Ontario.

Freshwater employs about 70 people in the off-season and over 300 during peak times.

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About Me

ABOUT ME

Background
- grew up in Bagot, Manitoba
- living in Winnipeg
- connected with Sandy Bay First Nation

Interests/Activities
- baseball
- curling
- fishing
- spend time with family and friends TOC

Great Place To Grow Up

Great Place To Grow Up

Bagot, Manitoba is a small community of less than 50 people between Portage la Prairie and McGregor.

It was a great place to grow up. I played outside a lot and was involved in sports like baseball and soccer when I was younger.

There are only two farms, so everybody works either in McGregor or Portage, which are only fifteen minutes away.

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Summer

Summer

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"Summers… Beautiful summers in Manitoba. Lots of wilderness; I love getting out camping, fishing.

"I enjoy my fishing, and there's definitely lots of places to do that in Manitoba."

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Winter

Winter

I curl two or three times a week all winter. The great thing about curling is it doesn't depend on the weather.

I also like spending time with my friends and family. I have a younger brother I'm quite close to.

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My Day

MY DAY

8:30 am: Arrive, check voice mail and email
9:00 am: Prioritize what needs to be done
9:30 am: Work on one of two major projects
11:00 am: Prepare progress report
12:00 pm: Lunch
1:00 pm: Check voice mail and email
1:30 pm: Meet with implementation team
2:30 pm: Resume working on project
3:00 pm: Present report at management meeting
4:30 pm: Go home!
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Travel

Travel

Occasionally I get to travel to different locations in the province to visit our agencies to do evaluations and to do newsletter research.

So far, I've only had one overnight trip and I haven't flown anywhere yet, because most of it's close enough to drive to.

There will be more travel further afield in the future when I get to go to fish agencies all over Manitoba, and possibly the Northwest Territories and Alberta.

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Pace and Pressure

Pace and Pressure

It can get hectic in the busier season but very, very rarely do I have to take work home.

Everybody here does their job well and nobody's gets really high strung or tense, which is nice and they're always willing to help you if you have a question or need information.

There's never any feeling of pressure. It's great that way.

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Special Technology

Special Technology

There's a lot of technology in the plant that I haven't had to deal with yet.

Our server system very large and it hosts both our Fish Purchase System and our Sales System. Both are industry specific programs and are a very big part of the way the Corporation operates.

So as I rotate through the departments during my internship, I'll be learning more about them and eventually working with them.

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No Typical Day

No Typical Day

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"I don't have a typical day. In the morning, I come in, check my e-mail, any messages I might have on the phone and just prioritize what needs to be done.

"I've usually got three or four things I need to work on heavily throughout the day: consult with operations managers, or somebody else in the plant for information I need. There's no real typical routine to my day."

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Work Environment

Work Environment

The Freshwater building is an interesting place. The temperature varies quite a bit; it's cool in the production area, very cold in the freezer, but pretty normal in the office areas.

You have to watch what you're doing when you're in the production areas. You've got to watch where you put your hands and look out for forklifts and skid operators moving around.

The floor is wet all the time too, but not really slippery.

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Me and My Job

ME AND MY JOB

Likes
- getting all this valuable experience
- working with knowledgeable people
- learning from astute managers and employees

Challenges
- learning the fish business
- challenging established ideas
- getting the newsletter out monthly TOC

Newsletter For Fishers

Newsletter For Fishers

The newsletter is another of my projects. It goes out to all of our 3000 fishers on a monthly basis.

It's our way of communicating to fishers that we aren't their final market place; the final consumer is, and that we are working hard with them to develop the market and new products for their fish.

Each edition features a different topic and identifies a fisher who's actively working with the corporation.

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Why Management?

Why Management?

I deal well with people. Every job I've ever had has either dealt with the public or lots of coworkers.

I'm very good at communicating effectively with a variety of people from a variety of environments, from the company president to the labourer, from customers in food service to corporate managers.

It's something I have always done well.

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More Responsibility

More Responsibility

When I first started the program, my workload was very light.

I started getting more responsibility as I learned more about the Corporation and the fishing industry.

I'm working on what needs to be done that might otherwise have been put on the back burner because other people don't have the time to really take it on full steam. With this rotation in the program, that's my role: take it over and run with it.

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Learning the Business

Learning the Business

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"One thing that is very challenging is learning the fish business. It is very different from many other production manufacturing facilities, mostly because of the way the corporation has been structured.

"So learning that end of the business has taken some doing. I feel I've got a pretty good understanding of it.

"This being my first corporate work experience, it's taken a bit of an adjustment just 'cause things operate very, very differently."

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Introducing New Ideas

Introducing New Ideas

A lot of the fishers have been doing the same thing for 20, 30 years plus.

Having them understand that a process needs to change is sometimes very difficult. It's hard for them to see that the new ways are better, because they've been doing it for so long the same way, with relatively good results.

We just want to take it one step further and strive to get excellent results.

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My Resume

MY RESUME

Education
2003: Project Management Training - through Freshwater
2000: Business Administration and Marketing - Red River College)
1998: High School Diploma, Portage Collegiate Institute

Experience
2003 - present: Aboriginal Management Trainee at Freshwater Fish Marketing Corporation
1994 - 2003: Various positions in the food, grocery and service industries TOC

Advice

Advice

My advice would be to get management experience at different levels.

A good education is an asset, so apply yourself and don't give up. Take business and technical writing courses in high school. Learn to prioritize and to communicate effectively.

You need good people skills to deal with different kinds of people. Remember there is a right way and a wrong way to deal with problems, and that the customer isn't always right.

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Selection Process

Selection Process

I found out about the Aboriginal Intern Program through and ad in the newspaper.

To qualify you needed a business education and management experience and I had both.

The interview process was very thorough and included two psychological evaluation tests to give an idea of my management abilities.

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Good Training

Good Training

Food service was definitely a good training ground. I dealt with a variety of people and learned how to manage my time.

It can be very fast paced. You're dealing with the public everyday and you deal with all of them, the good, the bad... everybody.

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Valuable Experience

Valuable Experience

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"I started in food service when I was about 14 years old, worked at various levels in the food service including, most recently, Assistant Manager's positions.

"I decided that Business Admin was the place for me to be, mostly because I either wanted to manage a small restaurant or own my own.

"And through experience, I landed here, realizing I needed much more corporate experience. And here I am."

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Hiring For My Job

Hiring For My Job

If I were hiring for my job, I would look for somebody who wants to learn and who's interested in gaining experience.

Past experience in appropriate positions would be beneficial. You can tell a lot from a person's demeanour and asking the right questions. Where do they want to go? What is their career goal?

Where they want to be in the future can tell a lot about what a person's goals are.

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My Future

MY FUTURE

Short and Long Term Goals

My short-term goals are to learn and develop into an effective manager. I could end up with a permanent position at Freshwater after the program, but regardless, I'll have gained valuable experience.

In the long-term, having my own business would be a big accomplishment for me. It's not an immediate option, but it's definitely an option. TOC

Outlook For Management

Outlook For Management

(TEXT FROM SOUND BITE)

"Managers are always going to be required at some level. There's always going to be a need for management to direct, to point companies in their proper direction to make sure that they don't ultimately collapse.

"Sound financial decisions, business decisions; always going to require good managers to do that."

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Ongoing Learning

Ongoing Learning

The Human Resources Manager is thinking of sending me on a 2-day newsletter-writing course.

I definitely plan on going back to University, probably part-time, to work toward a degree in business. I might look at courses in natural resources or environmental education that would be beneficial to this corporation.

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Impact of Technology

Impact of Technology

Technology has changed this job in the last several years.

Email is the biggest tool in communication because it's easy to use, easier to respond to and you have a record of communication, which can be good and bad I suppose.

I believe the job will continue to change with the creation of software programs and new technologies.

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Sustainable Harvest

Sustainable Harvest

Since there's only a certain level of harvest that can be achieved, sustainable development and management of the fishery is absolutely critical

If we over-fish, nobody has a job, and that's a very important concern for the corporation and the fishers.

So we work with several Provincial Conservation offices who monitor sustainable development in the lakes and rivers.With checks and balances in place, Freshwater will continue to thrive.

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Useful Links

MORE INFO

While Neil studied Business Administration at Red River, most of his management training has been on-the-job. With his work experience in the food service and hospitality industries and by participating in the Internship Program at Freshwater, he's learning management principles and creating new employment possibilities for himself.

Managers for the government and large corporations typically have formal education and experience.

Most managers have:
- a post secondary education (Business Courses and/or a Business Diploma)
- strong time management, communication, organizational, analytical and decision-marking skills
- several years of progressive managerial experience
- appropriate education for the sector (i.e. natural resources)

Effective managers will also seek continual professional development opportunities. TOC

Job Market Info

Job Market Info

The links below take you to federal and regional government information on employment, education, salary ranges and long-range prospects for this career.

The official name for Subject's occupation is "Primary Production Manager" and its *NOC code is 0811.

Job Futures

Manitoba Labour Market Information
(Select Manitoba, the Area in Manitoba, NOC code 0811, then click Search)

Human Resources Development Canada

*Each occupation has an official name and unique number called the 'National Occupational Classification' code or 'NOC'.

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Education

Education

Useful High School Subjects*

- Mechanics
- Math
- Sciences
- English

*Source: Job Futures.ca

Below are links to various programs and courses that will help put you on the path to a career in Management.

University of Manitoba
Asper School of Business
Cont. Ed Management Development Programs
Access Programs
Faculty of Environment
Natural Resources Institute

University of Winnipeg
Administrative Studies
Environmental Studies
Continuing Education
(See 'd' - Management & Professional Studies or 'k' Management Studies Certificate Program)

Red River College
Full Time Programs
From this link, access more information on:
- Business Administration
- Business Administration Integrated
- English for Business Purposes
- Environmental Protection Technology
- Technology Management

Winnipeg Technical College
New Media and Electronic Publishing

Collège Saint Boniface
Administration des Affaires

Brandon University
Business Administration
Economics

Assiniboine Community College - Brandon
Business Administration
(see page 99 of the pdf)

University College of the North - The Pas/Thompson
All Programs
Choose any of the following:
- for Business Administration see pages 22 & 23
- for Management see page 61

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Industry Association

Industry Association

From french fry factories to fish markets; from fresh herbs to food-based pharmaceuticals, the Manitoba Food Processors Association - MFPA exists to support and promote Manitoba's food industry to the world.

The MFPA gives Manitoba's food producers a powerful voice in the global marketplace and ensures continuous health for our province's food industry, through ongoing training initiatives, networking, industry publications and sales promotions under the "Manitoba Made logo".

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Related Careers

Related Careers

Other careers from the Human Resources Development Canada web site:

Supervisors in Agriculture, Horticulture and Aquaculture

Administrative Services Managers

Manufacturing Managers

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Professional Associations

Professional Associations

Youth Business Institute
Offers Manitoba Youth the opportunity to learn how to use technology to their advantage.

Aboriginal Employment Initiative
Working to link the Aboriginal employee pool and service providers with businesses within Manitoba. The initiative also works with Aboriginal entrepreneurs in the development of their businesses.

Human Resources Management Association of Manitoba
Offers a Student Internship Program

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