SfC In The News
 
October 2006
Guiding the way for newcomers
UW agency's mentoring program steered him toward career
By Sandy Naiman
Sun Staff Reporter
 
Will Molson, left, was partnered with Kanchan Joshy in the United Way mentoring program, Skills for Change.

David Lucas/Sun
Kanchan Joshy arrived in Toronto three years ago determined not to become a newcomer statistic.

In his native Nepal, the 36 year old was at the top of his field of at the Nepal Tourism Board, but was hungry for the challenges of a “bigger economy.”

Here, he felt he would be become “a nobody from a somebody,” but he also knew he wanted to be a Canadian Chartered Accountant “and nothing else.”

Prepared to struggle and sacrifice, he and his journalist wife moved into a basement apartment near Pearson. She sold gifts for $6 an hour at the airport and he focused on finding an accountancy firm to hire him, expecting it to take one year.

Then he heard about Skills for Change, a United Way agency committed to helping newcomers find meaningful employment and featuring a mentor program that matches Canadian professionals with immigrants in the same field.

Joshy began meeting Will Molson, a 53-year old Deloitte and Touche Tax Specialist, every two weeks.

But there were endless pitfalls to overcome.

Most openings were filled, so they developed new strategies, targeting specific firms and people.

Joshy learned a direct, pro-active North American style of networking and cold calling, a totally new approach.

He knew the firms he wanted to join, but found he couldn’t get his foot in the door, even though he was willing to start at the bottom.

Over 5 months, Joshy sent out more than 1,000 emails and received at least 300 rejections; but “I learned every time someone said ‘No’ to a job application, I was one step closer to a ‘Yes’,” he said.

In April 2004, Deloitte and Touche hired Joshy and next month he hopes to receive his CA designation.

Ten months ago, his wife had a baby boy and they moved into a new home in North York 15 days later.

“We're very happy with our choice to come here,” Joshy said. “But I couldn’t have done it without Will and Skills for Change.”

Molson disagrees. “It was Kanchan who did it.”