Bell Canada focuses on skill development

Beverly Wilks had 10 years’ experience working in the security industry, both physical and cybersecurity, before joining Bell Canada two and a half years ago. Although she moved from a mid-sized company to a very large enterprise, she’s found lots to like about Bell.

“It is large, but it’s dynamic,” says Wilks, senior product marketing manager, security and networking practices. “What’s really encouraging is that we have innovative cybersecurity solutions and strong leadership from a technical perspective, strong leadership from a business perspective.”

Bell is Canada’s largest communications company, serving consumers through home internet, TV and wireless services, as well as businesses of all sizes. In addition to a significant retail presence, the Bell portfolio also includes leading digital media offerings like Crave as well as TV and radio stations across the country.

The company is ever evolving to keep pace with advances in technology and changes in the various markets in which it operates. “Bell works in so many different domains, whether it’s media, enterprise or direct to consumers,” says Declan Brady, vice-president, data engineering and artificial intelligence. “There are opportunities to try new things.

“Across our business, there’s always been a strong focus on professional development and developing new skills,” he says.

Wilks has taken advantage of management training courses that lasted several weeks and involved virtual sessions with assigned homework. “You have to grow your management skills and your technical skills, especially in the fast-changing world of technology,” she says.

There was an additional benefit. “Last time, there were more than 20 of us in the session, so you’re meeting people from across the business and expanding your network,” she says. “We were all learning from each other – it’s not just someone up there lecturing.”

“Beyond the extensive options in formal training, we foster engagement with company-wide events such as the multiple hackathons we host annually,” adds Brady. “Our investment in these initiatives, along with our partnerships with leading AI institutions like Vector and Mila, reflects our commitment to staying innovative and exploring cutting-edge technologies.”

In addition, Bell covers the cost of keeping up with external certifications, and professional accreditations. “Everyone recognizes the importance of keeping up on certification credits,” Wilks says. “Many people in different technical areas need outside certifications and Bell covers all of that.”

Bell also runs a number of programs aimed at recruiting talent from colleges and universities. The graduate program can allow new hires to rotate through different roles or develop expertise in one role as they discover where their interests lie. They also receive leadership training to support their career growth.

The company also offers internships, ideal for students exploring a future in tech services and digital media. The program is structured to ensure that participants get real-world experience.

“We place a priority on ensuring that new grads are successful and ultimately land in a program that best fits their skills,” says Brady. “This includes support, mentoring and resources for career development. So, it’s a really nice path if you’re just coming out of university.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Canada's Top 100 Employers winners, published November 15, 2024 in The Globe and Mail. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.

Bell Canada’s breadth provides many career paths

Rita Benyahia joined Bell Canada through its graduate program after completing the electrical engineering program at École Polytechnique Montréal.

“My experience at Bell has been nothing but positive and rewarding,” says Benyahia, now director, strategic business transformation. “There’s a strong culture of continuous learning and collaboration. The company invests heavily in its people through training, mentorship and opportunities to grow.”

Liliane Giguère Samson concurs. “My different managers have always encouraged me to learn more and to align my career development with Bell objectives,” says Giguère Samson, a data science developer. “Bell is really great at helping you focus on your career growth.”

Giguère Samson served a three-month internship at Bell in the summer of 2022 while studying math at Queen’s University in Kingston, Ont. She joined fulltime after graduating the following September and was enrolled in the company’s grad program. It gives new grads an opportunity to rotate through various business units over a two- and sometimes three-year period.

“The program was a very big plus because, in about a year and a half, I joined three different teams,” she says. “I’ve been able to experience much more than I would have in a typical first job.”

Benyahia found a career path she wanted to follow while participating in Bell’s grad program. “I developed a strong interest in finance,” she says. “That’s what’s great about Bell. The company is committed to providing growth opportunities for those who are willing to learn and collaborate.”

She enrolled in an MBA program offered through the Université de Montréal’s Haute Études Commerciales. Bell provided financial assistance as well as study time. She also took several related university courses and the finance team supported her along the way.

Apart from supporting employees pursuing outside degrees or certifications, the company’s Bell U offers a wide-ranging suite of training and educational resources. “Bell is big on helping with technology upskilling,” says Benyahia. “My team and I are getting trained on new tools that we can use to automate, make things more efficient and drive value.”

She adds, “there’s not a day that goes by that I’m not learning, whether it’s upskilling or understanding a different business unit that I haven’t had exposure to.”

Giguère Samson found Bell’s size a little overwhelming when she joined full-time, but the grad program helped her find her way. “Every year there’s a summit in Toronto for all the grads that started in your year,” she says. “A lot of executives attend; there’s presentations and also team activities that give you opportunities to talk to people you might never meet otherwise.”

She’s also gained insights through monthly lunch and learns, in which colleagues from different parts of the business share valuable insights. Through the process, she’s been able to discover the potential for a long, rewarding career at Bell.

“When I talk to team members in other business units, it’s almost like they work for a different company,” she says. “If I wanted to switch to something completely new, there’s an abundance of opportunities to do so at Bell.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Montreal’s Top Employers winners, published March 18, 2025 in the Montreal Gazette. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.

Bell Canada provides exciting options for new grads

After earning an engineering degree at McMaster University, Aaron Li joined Bell Canada in July 2023 and landed in the company’s new grad program, which provided him with a wealth of learning opportunities as well as a social network of other recent graduates.

“Bell provides its grads with many opportunities to grow and learn,” says Li, a data engineer with Bell TV. “You work with a lot of teams and a lot of people. I’ve been really grateful to be able to see different sides of the business.”

The new grad program supports young people coming out of university and college. It offers graduates the opportunity to rotate through a number of departments over a two-year period or, as in Li’s case, to land immediately in a permanent position.

Natalie Cattanach, vice-president of experience advisory and operations care, understands the value of these programs. She started her career at Bell as a grad in 2011 after completing her degree in business and political science at the University of Waterloo. During her time in the grad program, she completed rotations in the call centre, retail and other teams before landing in the marketing team.

The rotational component of Bell’s grad program offered her the chance to find a role and team that aligned with her interests, skills, and goals.

“There are robust learning opportunities across the organization,” says Cattanach. “I see in my day-to-day role, young people who are being afforded the opportunity to develop their skills and work in different roles.”

Bell supports career growth and professional development in a number of ways. The company has a rich array of learning resources accessible to all through Bell U.

“There’s a strong culture of leadership development and mentorship across the organization,” Cattanach adds. “There are formalized programs and ongoing coaching.”

Apart from that, Bell also supports the cost of tuition for approved external courses, certifications and accreditations.

“Another thing that really helps is that Bell supports us with online platforms like Coursera and Udemy,” says Li. “These resources include a whole range of technical and practical skills, such as cloud technology, public speaking and leading presentations.”

Bell is always evolving to keep pace with a rapidly changing technology landscape. To that end, the company is investing in talent with backgrounds in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math).

“You think of Bell as telephone, internet and TV, but there’s actually much more,” says Li. “We are continuing to transform and grow using new tools, information and skills for future success.”

The company also organizes social events for new grads throughout the year so they can meet fellow graduates in other divisions or based in other cities.

“There’s a community aspect to the new grad program, which I’ve really enjoyed,” he says. “We’ve had a bunch of social events. We’ve had directors and even vice presidents come in and talk to us about how to build your career.”

He also attended the annual new grad summit held in March 2024 in Toronto. The company brought in some 400 new grads from across the country. “There were a lot of speakers, including the CEO and my own vice president,” he says. “I learned a lot about the business hearing from them.”

Besides these special events, Li says he’s landed with a good team. “They’re amazing. My manager, my directors and my fellow team members always encourage growth and innovation.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Canada's Top Employers for Young People winners, published January 21, 2025 in The Globe and Mail. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.

Diversity at Bell brings people to their full potential

Yvonne To went straight from a university engineering program to a customer systems engineer with Bell Canada. That was some 20 years ago, and, at the time, she was the only woman on a team of 30.

“I’ve seen a big change in terms of the representation of women in such roles,” says To, a senior manager in network technology services. “Now when I look around, I see a lot more women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics [STEM] positions.”

That said, Bell is working to do even more. “We are trying to close the gender gap particularly in the network and technology domains,” To adds.

Ensuring Bell’s workforce at all levels reflects the diversity of society at large is crucial for delivering innovative solutions that meet the diverse needs of its customers.

Bell’s drive to employ more women in tech roles is just one component of its broader diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) strategy. The company is actively working to increase representation among visible minorities, Indigenous peoples and people with disabilities.

“Ensuring a diverse range of voices that reflect Canada’s population is a fundamental principle at Bell,” says Shalini Parakulangara, vice president business intelligence with Bell business markets. “One of our strategic areas of focus includes making our senior leadership team more representative of our workforce.”

To that end, Bell has set a target of at least 35 per cent gender-diverse leaders at the vice president level and above, and 25 per cent of senior management positions being filled by Black, Indigenous or people of colour (BIPOC) individuals, by 2025.

Parakulangara is the executive sponsor of DEIB initiatives within Bell business markets and is part of Bell’s diversity leadership council. This council includes senior leaders from every business unit working together to promote and report on plans to increase representation, retention and advancement of team members from underrepresented groups.

“I was recently promoted to vice-president,” says Parakulangara. “Seeing someone like me in leadership goes a long way toward demonstrating that we’re not just talking about diversity. Bell is demonstrating it through action, providing an inclusive and equitable work environment where team members of all backgrounds can succeed.”

The company supports five employee resource groups (ERGs), including Diversability at Bell, Black Professionals at Bell, Pride at Bell, Women at Bell and Pan-Asians at Bell, with the newest ERG launched in May 2024 during Asian Heritage Month.

“Since launching, we’ve seen a 200 per cent increase in membership,” says To, who co-chairs Pan-Asians at Bell. “We have members from across the country. We’ve got people from different teams and all levels, all the way up to senior vice-president.” The Pan-Asians at Bell held a number of inaugural events, including lion dancers, South Indian dance performances, cultural quizzes and panel discussions. “We’ve had guest speakers from within Bell as well as Pan-Asian inclusion partners,” says To.

The company collects data from its diversity questionnaire to quantify the ways team members identify themselves. Reviewing responses annually is a way team members can support Bell’s commitment to an inclusive work environment. The data is used to deliver programs and resources that make Bell a better place for all team members. “I love that Bell is communicating our progress more transparently,” says Parakulangara. “We continue to make strides in supporting our DEIB strategy through various initiatives, policies, training and employee resource groups. We share targets and representation of diverse groups at all levels including senior management. The information is accessible to all team members on our intranet.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Canada’s Best Diversity Employers winners, published February 25, 2025 in The Globe and Mail. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.

Bell Canada has long been green at ground level

Joel Butler has long had a personal interest in environmental issues. So, when the local waste management commission in Saint John, N.B., announced a composting program, he and his fellow employees of Bell Canada started their own grassroots initiative aimed at recycling organic waste.

Such employee-led initiatives are an integral part of Bell’s long-standing commitment to environmental protection. “We have green teams that are organized around online collaboration,” says Butler, senior manager, corporate responsibility and environment. “We want people to share their ideas. When we can support them, we create programs that run across the country.”

Bell has been setting corporate environmental sustainability goals for three decades, says Butler, adding that the corporate responsibility team reports annually on the company’s progress. “We were the first communications company in North America to set up an ISO-certified environmental management system.”

The company’s business units work collaboratively to ensure that environmental objectives are met, says Sunny Saini, a project manager with Bell’s network technology services. “We look into our equipment and explore opportunities to reduce energy consumption and carbon dioxide emissions,” he says.

Last year, for example, network technology services replaced conventional heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) units used to protect sensitive equipment inside shelters at the foot of 50 cellphone towers in Nova Scotia.

The company installed what are known as free cooling units, which led to substantial savings in energy consumption. “HVAC systems were typically consuming over 2.3 kilowatt-hours of hydro per site,” says Saini. “We reduced hydro consumption to about 0.35 kilowatt-hours per site. We estimate that we reduced CO2 emissions from those sites by 500 tons annually.”

Bell also works with vendors and suppliers as part of its responsible procurement program. “Anytime we onboard a new supplier or sign a new contract with an existing supplier, we put them through a process where we analyze their organization and the products they’re supplying,” says Butler.

“When it comes to plastics,” he adds, “we want to make sure that they are locally recyclable, and we want to minimize packaging. It’s about reducing waste and ensuring that they do not contain hazardous materials.”

Bell is also making changes at some of its larger office locations to reduce energy costs. The company has more than a dozen reflective roofs on buildings in urban centres. “The roofs reflect sunlight, lowering the temperature inside the buildings and reducing the cost of keeping the building at the right temperature.” says Butler.

Bell has also eliminated bottled water in some buildings in favour of filtered tap water, which eliminated the need to refrigerate bottled water 24 hours a day, says Butler.

As well, the company has partnered with Tree Canada to support the organization’s National Tree Day, which is held every September. Bell donates money to help cover the cost of tree planting events and employee volunteers plant trees in a few cities across the country.

“Employees wanted to get involved in planting trees in their local communities,” says Butler. “We thought it was a great idea because trees absorb carbon dioxide from the atmosphere, and they help cool the environment.”

This article appeared in the magazine announcing this year's Canada's Greenest Employers winners, published April 22, 2025 in The Globe and Mail. This article was prepared with the financial support of the employer, which reviewed but did not write its contents.