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At Fidelity Canada, employees can connect with colleagues in different departments through mentorship programs.Provided

Nisa Bently first came across Fidelity Canada while doing a summer internship at youth charity BGC Canada. Seeing Fidelity’s long-term partnership with the charity up close, and speaking with volunteers from the financial services company about their positive experiences in its co-op program, Bently knew Fidelity was “the place to be.”

After Bently was hired in 2019, she quickly found the Toronto-headquartered company more than lived up to the hype. “Everyone was so friendly, and it’s so easy to interact with senior management. People at Fidelity are eager to give you advice, see you grow and set you up for success,” says Bently, now a team manager for client support at Fidelity Clearing Canada, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Fidelity.

Despite Fidelity’s significant work force of more than 1,700 Canadian employees, Bently has found it easy to connect with people outside of her direct team through supportive onboarding initiatives for new hires and mentorship programs, as well as huddles and recognition programs that highlight the work of employees across the company.

“The effort and hard work you put in is really recognized on a massive level, and there are opportunities for people from other departments to get to know who you are,” she says. “There’s a real sense of community.”

Diana Godfrey, senior vice-president of human resources and corporate affairs, says the company has worked hard over the years to build and maintain a corporate culture that is “highly collaborative, empathetic and friendly.”

As the company shifted to a hybrid working model post-pandemic – which evaluates the obligations of each role to set a minimum number of in-office days per month, giving the majority of employees plenty of opportunities to work from home – Godfrey says Fidelity has maintained its culture and the employee experience by intentionally using the office for collaboration and connection.

The Toronto office has a wellness centre, games room, barista and snack and drink centre, and its offices across the country have technology-enabled meeting rooms and collaborative workspaces. Over the past year, the company has held a summer barbecue, catered lunches, and ‘treat days’ in the office, among other events.

“When employees come in and gather with their colleagues, it’s like coming home,” Godfrey says. “People are genuinely excited to see each other, and they really make an effort to strengthen their connections.”

The company’s warm culture extends outward towards the broader community, Godfrey says. Fidelity gives employees two paid volunteer days per year, and recently reorganized the charitable giving committee, a group comprised entirely of employees that make decisions about corporate giving. When employees donate or give their time to a registered charity, Fidelity also donates to the same charity in recognition of their efforts.

Bently, a passionate volunteer, has volunteered through Fidelity’s women’s leadership employee resource group, including writing letters to people in long-term care homes during the holidays, and also contributes to the company’s yearly food bank and toy drives. “When you’re able to take days off to give back to the community, it goes a long way,” she says.

She also joined her department’s social committee to pay forward the sense of belonging she’s felt since joining the company, particularly to those who had been hired during the pandemic and haven’t had as much opportunity to get to know their colleagues. The committee hosts monthly events, including renting out an entire pub for a trivia night and booking a Cineplex theatre to watch the new Mission Impossible movie this summer.

“We had colleagues who were new to my team come out, and they had an amazing time,” she says. “To see the joy on people’s faces, this is what Fidelity is all about.”

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Advertising feature produced by Canada’s Top 100 Employers, a division of Mediacorp Canada Inc. The Globe and Mail’s editorial department was not involved.

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