Welcome to my first interview of Season 2! In this episode, I have an engaging conversation with an amazing emerging HR Professional, Ivana Borojevic.
Ivana is an HR Specialist with Insight, a global technology company that was just named one of Fortune's 2021 Most Admired Companies. She is also the co-founder of an exciting new non-profit organization called mentorWIT, which is an Edmonton based group designed to support women working in the technology sector.
Here is a little bit more about Ivana:
After earning a Bachelor’s Degree in Social Work from the University of Belgrade in December 2013, Ivana made a life-changing decision to leave her country in search of a better life. Three long flights and one lost suitcase later, she arrived in Canada, ready to embrace the challenges and begin a new journey.
While studying Human Resources Management at MacEwan University in Edmonton, she worked part-time in retail and sales. It was not easy finding a job without HR experience, but Ivana persisted.
In March 2019, she landed an HR role with an IT company called PCM Canada. Since then, Ivana had a chance to take part in a year-long acquisition of PCM by Insight, which proved to be very interesting, but was also accompanied by re-learning and adapting.
In her role as an HR Specialist, Ivana gets to work with so many great professionals in the technology field and provide HR support to 900+ employees across five provinces in Canada.
Her dream is to grow into a trusted advisor and business partner to build and nurture a culture of high performance, inclusivity, and engagement.
Here is a summary of what we talk about in this episode:
[03:33] - Ivana shares the story of how we met. If you listen to this podcast or follow me you know how much I encourage HR grads and professionals to engaging in networking and Ivana is living proof of how important building connections can be.
[06:05] - We talk about Ivana's career path and how she shifted from a degree in Social Work to a promising HR career as well as some of the continuing pressures COVID-19 is putting on organizations, employers and employees.
[11:56] - Networking comes up in our conversation many times, but Ivana shares a great example of how your connections can help you as an HR professional throughout your career.
[14:00] - I ask Ivana about her job search after she completed her HR degree. She shares her success tips and what ultimately landed her the job at Insight.
[28:26] - Mentoring and supporting others is a passion of Ivana's and she is an incredibly generous person. She talks about how that passion fueled the creation of mentorWIT and how the organization will support women in technology. She also talks about how you can get involved with mentorWIT.
[37:02] - Ivana has achieved what many of you are striving for and she offers you all some great advice.
[40:00] - I ask Ivana five speed round questions and we get the answer to a key question for any budding friendship or relationship; coffee or tea?
I sincerely hope you enjoy listening to this conversation as much as I enjoyed having it. Please reach out to Ivana to build your network and to learn more about her work and mentorWIT if you feel that would be a fit for you.
Here are some helpful links from this episode:
Love the HR Mentor? Become a super fan and get access to exclusive monthly content and help keep the podcast ad free.
Sign up today!
JOIN THE HR MENTOR FAN CLUB!
If you haven't yet, don't forget to subscribe to The HR Mentor so you never miss an episode on the following platforms:
If you love this episode (or any of the others) feel free to leave a like, comment or rating where you are listening. Chances are, I will read your comment on a future show!
