Employee Spotlight: Meet Herald

Tell us a bit about your professional background.

I started my working career eight years ago on Black Friday as a sales associate at an Italian footwear company. This is where I gained great experience working in a busy environment, managing my time, and honing my people skills. ?

After about a year in retail, I learned about an opportunity at IFDS through a Career Fair. I joined IFDS in 2016 as a part-time Account Coordinator and worked full-time in the summer while I was still in school. During this time, I would absorb as much information as I could through training and by shadowing colleagues. My initial retail and account coordinator experience helped me establish the skills and habits that supported me throughout my career at IFDS. ?

During my time at IFDS, I have gained a breadth of experience and knowledge having worked in various?roles within the overall Client Experience & Operations Group.??

How has this experience supported your career progression at IFDS??

Working as an Account Coordinator, you have to learn to pay attention to detail, and at times be prepared to work in a high-volume environment. You must be a great communicator and be able to work in a team setting to ensure that requests and fund setups are done accurately and efficiently, ultimately satisfying the client’s needs.?

This type of experience has been fundamental to my career progression. In 2019, an opening for a Management Company Support (MCS) role became available on the Full Service Domestic Team, which I held for about two years before branching out to do a similar role in International Operations. I later accepted a secondment role as a Registered Products Analyst on the Filing Team further extending my experience within IFDS. ?

With this role, I am learning as much as I can about RESPs and RDSPs, and how IFDS works with the government (Canada Revenue Agency and Employment and Social Development Canada) to assist clients. ?

I am now looking forward to my next opportunity as an Operations Analyst with our Business Readiness team, which is set to begin shortly.?

How does the Business Operations team add value to our clients??

Overall, the group gives clients piece of mind. For example, one of the key roles that I played during my six years at IFDS was as a Management Company Support representative. In this role, you act as a liaison between the fund companies and IFDS Business Operations. The key tasks of this role help to ensure that the investors are well-satisfied with the fund company, as much as the fund company is pleased with the services that IFDS provides.?

What is your favourite part of what you do at IFDS??

Simply put, I most enjoy the sense of purpose and fulfillment I get from the work we do. Completing internal or external queries and meeting organizational demands on a day-to-day basis encourages me to become better in my role every day. As much as I enjoy building relationships with our clients, I also love working with internal teams and developing those relationships and cultivating an overall cohesive team culture.?

What do you think makes the IFDS company culture unique??

I see employee empowerment as what makes IFDS’ company culture so special. This includes the ability for all staff to participate in annual employee feedback sessions that impact corporate action plans, or the celebration of employee contributions given through our ongoing Spot Awards, and our quarterly recognition and rewards program. Also, it could be something as simple as your Director (Tony Falcioni) bringing in his famous 11-layer lasagna once a year to show appreciation for everyone for all that they do. It is things like this that I feel improve job satisfaction, productivity, and accountability – and it helps builds trust and togetherness.

What is the proudest moment of your career at IFDS so far??

My proudest moment came a few months ago when the opportunity to take on my upcoming role was presented to me. This is a special moment for me because I felt recognized as a valuable resource with the right experience to support our Business Readiness team with projects that are coming down the pipeline. ?

This moment showed me that opportunities are out there within IFDS, even when you may not know it. It is a moment in my young career that I'll never forget and I just hope to surpass this achievement again in the near future.?

What advice do you have for prospective IFDS candidates or new employees??

Be a sponge. Absorb and retain as much information as you can because there is nothing wrong with being curious and inquisitive. ?

There is always something new to learn, responsibilities to assume, projects to engage in, and knowledge to share. That is how you keep adding tools to your toolbox. Ultimately, be willing to share these skills and concepts you've learned with others. One of the biggest assets you will form along the way is the relationships you make and build!?

If you weren't working in this industry what would you be doing??

I would possibly be fulfilling my passion as a barber and hairstylist! Over the course of the pandemic, I've discovered my passion for cutting and styling hair and actually managed to start a small business growing it to about 15-20 clients a month.