Dream Jobs Do Come True: Students Take the Helm as CEOs of lululemon, Ubisoft, Purolator and 17 Other Prominent Companies for One Day

Twenty university students chosen to be mentored by Canada's top CEOs  

TORONTO, Feb. 9, 2015 /CNW/ - In the pursuit and development of Canada's next generation business leaders, global executive search firm Odgers Berndtson has selected 20 students to spend a day shadowing some of the country's top CEOs. Designed to help the students gain insight into what it takes to foster a culture of collaboration and innovation and steer companies to success, the CEO x 1 Day program gives them the opportunity to learn from some of Canada's best-performing executives.

"The CEO x 1 Day program is designed to uncover Canada's most promising talent, and this year's finalists are truly the cream of the crop," said Rob Quinn, Partner at Odgers Berndtson. "From starting up businesses to participating in global volunteer initiatives, these students have shown that they are on the fast track to becoming remarkable business leaders of tomorrow. By participating in this program, they receive advice and leadership coaching from Canada's top CEOs and gain a deeper understanding of their own strengths to help prepare them for future career opportunities."

Gen Y talent want challenging work, opportunities for advancement and collaboration; less interested in working for a well-respected brand name or a high salary
For participating CEOs, this program is a valuable opportunity to learn what the younger generation is looking for in a job and career – especially as companies globally race to attract and retain the best millennial talent. This year's CEO x 1 Day candidates ranked the top things they look for when choosing their first job, with stimulating work and opportunities for advancement coming out on top. Interestingly, companies offering incentive plans, autonomy, competitive salaries or even a recognizable brand were of less interest to students.

"Demand for talent is higher than ever and this is our chance to tap into what engages and drives the millennial generation in the workplace," said Patrick Nangle, President and CEO, Purolator Inc. "Our involvement in CEO x 1 Day last year was mutually beneficial – the student finalist learned what it takes to drive a major multi-national to success, and through conversations with her I garnered insights and ideas about talent acquisition that we were able to act on. In fact, we hired last year's CEO x 1 Day finalist and have since developed a new graduate job rotation program within Purolator to ensure a rewarding career path within our organization."

What it takes to be a CEO x 1 Day
To evaluate their leadership potential, students went through a rigorous selection process that began last October and included an online leadership assessment from Hogan Assessment Systems and Performance Programs Inc. The selection process culminated with a half-day evaluation conducted by Odgers Berndtson partners and consultants that revealed desirable leadership qualities exhibited by each candidate, including strong interpersonal and communication skills, and high levels of creativity, ambition, resilience and self-confidence.

Participating CEOs and student finalists include:

Vancouver	Calgary
AKAASH BALI, University of British Columbia Hometown: Richmond, British Columbia Matched with: Launi Skinner, Chief Executive Officer, First West Credit Union   KASHMIR KAUR, University of British Columbia Hometown: Vancouver, British Columbia Matched with: Laurent Potdevin, Chief Executive Officer, lululemon athletica Inc.   RYAN SMITH, Simon Fraser University Hometown: Sydney, Australia Matched with: Chuck Jeannes, President & CEO, Goldcorp Inc.	SHELBY MACLEOD, MacEwan University Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Matched with: Nancy Knowlton, Co-Founder, President and Chief Executive Officer, Nureva Inc.   BRITTANY PITRUNIAK, MacEwan University  Hometown: Edmonton, Alberta Matched with: Dave Mowat, President and CEO, ATB Financial
Toronto	Montreal
ANDREA BARTLETT, Ryerson University Hometown: Waterloo, Ontario Matched with: Tony Gaffney, Chief Executive Officer, Aon Hewitt Canada   BJORN DAWSON, University of Waterloo Hometown: Montreal, Quebec Matched with: M. Elyse Allan, President and CEO, GE Canada   ROBERT GOLDFARB, Western University Hometown: Toronto, Ontario Matched with: Aly Rahemtulla, President and Chief Executive Officer, BSM Wireless   DAVID LI, Western University Hometown: Waterloo, Ontario Matched with: Dr. Barry McLellan, President and Chief Executive Officer, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre   CARA OTT, Queen's University  Hometown: Vancouver, British Columbia Matched with: Saäd Rafi, Chief Executive Officer, TORONTO 2015   RAVI PERSAUD, Ryerson University Hometown: Scarborough, Ontario Matched with: Robert Courteau, Chief Executive Officer, Altus Group Limited   KOBISAN RASARATNAM, University of Waterloo Hometown: Markham, ON Matched with: Ellis Jacob, President & CEO, Cineplex Entertainment   KAREN YU, Western University Hometown: Richmond Hill, Ontario Matched with: Lanita Layton, Managing Director, HUGO BOSS Canada   DANIA ZARGARAN, Queen's University Hometown: Markham, Ontario Matched with: Patrick Nangle, President and Chief Executive Officer, Purolator	JESSE CARMICHAEL, Concordia University Hometown: Montréal, Québec Matched with: Yves Desjardins-Siciliano, President and Chief Executive Officer, VIA Rail Canada   ANTHONY ESPOSITO, Concordia University Hometown: Montréal, Québec Matched with: Alain Brunet, Chief Executive Officer, SAQ   ROBERT FORESTELL, McGill University Hometown: Fredericton, New Brunswick Matched with: Thierry Vandal, President and Chief Executive Officer, Hydro-Québec MAXIME PROULX, HEC Hometown: Sainte-Martine, Québec Matched with: Charles Guay, Executive Vice President, Institutional Markets and President and CEO, Manulife Quebec   MICHAEL VASILI RICHARDSON, Concordia University Hometown: Dollard-des-Ormeaux, Québec Matched with: Yannis Mallat, CEO, Ubisoft   GENEVIÈVE ROUSSEAU, HEC Hometown: Montréal, Québec Matched with: Manon Brouillette, President and Chief Executive Officer, Videotron

Additional information on the students and CEOs can be found at ceox1day.ca. To follow their experiences check out Twitter @CEOx1Day and #ceox1day.

About Odgers Berndtson
Odgers Berndtson is a global leader in executive search with more than 200 partners in 27 countries, committed to providing an integrated approach to talent management. With a focus on industry and functional specialization, the firm specializes in recruiting and assessing senior executives and board members in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors across Canada and internationally. Through executive search, interim management and leadership assessment services, Odgers Berndtson helps its clients build world-class leadership teams.

Exclusive to Odgers Berndtson, CEO x 1 Day has been running globally for eight years.

SOURCE Odgers Berndtson Canada

For further information: Jacqueline Foley, Chief Marketing Officer, Odgers Berndtson, 416-366-1990, [e-mail]