Thank you for the opportunity to share a bit about my experience as the PSC's Youth Engagement Ambassador.
I am new to the role, having only been appointed to the position about three months ago. I am the PSC's third Youth Engagement Ambassador and the chair of our Young Professionals Network.
I came into the public service as an FSWEP student, and as is the case for many, I did not get a job that was related to my field of study. Once I graduated, I was appointed to a clerical position. I stayed in that position for five years, as there were few opportunities for development or advancement. It was only after joining a young professionals' network and getting involved in my organization that I acquired more experience and expanded my network. I was then able to move around and eventually get a promotion in another department.
Since that time, these networks have been a crucial part of my career development. Even though I am only now getting to work on projects that are related to my degree, I believe that the path I followed helped me define the kind of professional I am and want to be.
A major part of my job is to help young professionals within the PSC lead, share and learn. I represent the voice of young professionals at various committees and events.
I am also called on to review things like policies, presentations and communications to ensure they will resonate with younger audiences.
Another part of my role is to support students and to make them an important part of the network. I find that students engage well with the network members, in part because they themselves were students not too long ago, and they are able to relate to what the students are experiencing. I try to engage them as much as possible and utilize their interests. For example, this summer our students were called upon to develop a communications plan for active work stations. They successfully completed this job, and we're very proud to say that they contributed something meaningful to the PSC.
This job has opened many new doors for me—doing things I would never have had a chance to do in other jobs. For example, appearing before this committee, participating in last week's President's Leaders GC Twitter chat on renewal of the public service, and assisting in designing and implementing the PSC's student onboarding program.
It is also an honour to have the chance to help young Canadians at a time when the public service is placing such a strong emphasis on renewal and on attracting young Canadians into its workforce.
I would like to thank you once again for the experience of appearing before this committee.