Intercultural Insiders

Part Two of a two part interview:  Anam Haleem is a storyteller, marketer, and a communicator. He has worked with colleagues from all over the world, including East Africa and the UK. He is also a newcomer to Canada and wants to share his experiences. In this second part, Anam talks about his experiences leveraging LinkedIn to connect with others, thinking long-term with your interactions in Canad...

Part One of a two part interview:  Anam Haleem is a storyteller, marketer, and a communicator. He has worked with colleagues from all over the world, including East Africa and the UK. He is also a newcomer to Canada and wants to share his experiences. In this first part, Anam talks about the impact of language and culture on marketing, assumptions about Canadian and American culture being the same...

Part Two of a two part interview:  Rose-marie Fernandez is a Certified Coach and lives out her life’s purpose through her company, Coaching Worx. She facilitates individuals to discover their inner resources so that they may fulfill their lives to create a legacy of their choice. In this second part, Rose-marie talks about using the Cultural Orientation Framework to help her clients, the value of...

Part One of a two part interview: Rose-marie Fernandez is a Certified Coach and lives out her life’s purpose through her company, Coaching Worx. She facilitates individuals to discover their inner resources so that they may fulfill their lives to create a legacy of their choice. In this first part, Rose-marie talks about her experiences growing up in a multicultural environment, her transition fro...

Part One of a two-part interview: Daisy is a highly regarded, award-winning executive career coach and Founder and Chief Encouragement Officer at The Wright Career Solution. Daisy collaborates with mid-career professionals, emerging leaders and executives to help them find satisfying careers and get hired faster. She specializes in career transition coaching, interview coaching, and executive resu...

Part One of a two-part interview: Daisy is a highly regarded, award-winning executive career coach and Founder and Chief Encouragement Officer at The Wright Career Solution. Daisy collaborates with mid-career professionals, emerging leaders and executives to help them find satisfying careers and get hired faster. She specializes in career transition coaching, interview coaching, and executive resu...

Part Two of a two-part interview:  Catherine Sachi Kikuchi is a bilingual, biracial, and bicultural person who was raised in Toronto, Canada. After completing a Master’s in Theoretical Linguistics, a TESL certificate, and achieving N1 level of the JLPT, she taught English in Japan for 4 years until she returned to Canada and began her own business providing Japanese and English language lessons an...

Part One of a two-part interview: Catherine Sachi Kikuchi is a bilingual, biracial, and bicultural person who was raised in Toronto, Canada. After completing a Master’s in Theoretical Linguistics, a TESL certificate, and achieving N1 level of the JLPT, she taught English in Japan for 4 years until she returned to Canada and began her own business providing Japanese and English language lessons and...

Part Two of a two-part interview:  Risa Hinokuma is a senior manager in customer service for Evernote. Originally from Japan, she moved to the United States decades ago and has worked for numerous companies. In this second part, Risa and host John McGraw talk about How native Japanese speakers react to learners of Japanese, Risa's experiences managing across cultures, and cultural adaptation a...

Part One of a two-part interview:  Risa Hinokuma is a senior manager in customer service for Evernote. Originally from Japan, she moved to the United States decades ago and has worked for numerous companies. In this first part, Risa talks about her early cross-cultural experiences in the US and Thailand, cultural differences in connecting and developing relationships, and customer service expectat...

Part Two of a two-part interview:  Hitender Sachdeva describes himself as a curious person in all parts of life. He hails from India and has been in Canada for 6 years now. As a banker, he has worked in India, the Middle East and North America. In this second part, Hitender talks about the question of identity as an immigrant, differences in work styles between India, the Middle East, and Canada,...

Part One of a two-part interview:  Hitender Sachdeva describes himself as a curious person in all parts of life. He hails from India and has been in Canada for 6 years now. As a banker, he has worked in India, the Middle East and North America. In this first part, Hitender talks about his exposure to different cultures in India and the Middle East, the importance of respecting local culture in a n...

Part Two of a two-part interview: Yauhan is a certified HR, Change Management Professional and Career Coach who currently works at Deloitte Canada and has previously worked for Walmart, Accenture, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and The University of Toronto. Yauhan is an Industrial/Organizational (I/O) Psychologist with expertise in strategic HR, Organizational Development, Talent Management Change Ma...

Part One of a two-part interview: Yauhan is a certified HR, Change Management Professional and Career Coach who currently works at Deloitte Canada and has previously worked for Walmart, Accenture, Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) and The University of Toronto.  Yauhan is an Industrial/Organizational (I/O) Psychologist with expertise in strategic HR, Organizational Development, Talent Management Cha...

Part Two of a two-part interview: Kasia has felt like a “foreigner” in all the countries she has lived (US, Japan, Poland, and Italy) - but that has become her superpower in terms of empathy toward others and having a global mindset. Currently, she is working hard to connect Japanese/English-speaking job seekers and globally-minded companies in the US through her business, www.ikigaiconnections.co...

Part One of a two-part interview: Before Kasia's interview, there is a brief announcement of Hiyaku Coaching's new online course, Newcomers - Build your Thriving Career in Canada . There is a link to the course page, description, pricing, and enrolment in the list below. Kasia has felt like a “foreigner” in all the countries she has lived (US, Japan, Poland, and Italy) - but that has become her su...

Part Two of a two-part interview: Kennedy Kao and Tomo Nogi are Toronto-based filmmakers and collaborators. Kennedy is a director who focuses on stories depicting the Asian-Canadian community and North American Asian diaspora. Tomo is a producer, photographer, videographer, and editor who recently migrated from Japan. In this second part of a two-part interview, Kennedy and Tomo talk about their u...

Part One of a two-part interview: Kennedy Kao and Tomo Nogi are Toronto-based filmmakers and collaborators. Kennedy is a director who focuses on stories depicting the Asian-Canadian community and North American Asian diaspora. Tomo is a producer, photographer, videographer, and editor who recently migrated from Japan. In this first part of a two-part interview, Kennedy and Tomo talk about their up...

Part two of a two-part interview: Shahzad Gidwani is a highly dedicated and passionate sales and marketing leader with more than 25 years' expertise driving innovation through ethical marketing and effective public engagement. He is also a board member for BMG-Brilliant Minds Group, and a newcomer to Canada with decades of cross-cultural experience. Gidwani talks about handling conflict within tea...

Part one of a two-part interview: Shahzad Gidwani is a highly dedicated and passionate sales and marketing leader with more than 25 years' expertise driving innovation through ethical marketing and effective public engagement.  He is also a board member for BMG-Brilliant Minds Group, and a newcomer to Canada with decades of cross-cultural experience.   Gidwani talks about growing up as a...

Part two of a two part interview: Jesus Romero Palacio is a highly experienced project manager from Colombia. He moved to Toronto within the past year, and he is now working for a nonprofit organization. Before the interview, John reflects on the recent World Cup and our perceptions of cultures. In the interview, Palacio discusses the strengths of introverts when networking, the connection between...

Part one of a two part interview: Jesus Romero Palacio is a highly experienced project manager from Colombia. He moved to Toronto within the past year, and he is now working for a nonprofit organization. Before the interview, John reflects on a recent experience that reinforces the importance of showing up in the right frame of mind. Palacio discusses his passion for solving problems, the challeng...

Part two of a two part interview: Chie Schuller, originally from Japan, has lived for years in the midwestern United States. She is a Coach for Japanese expats and their families, helping them adapt to life in the U.S. Before the interview, John reflects on a meeting he had with a new connection and how it could have gone differently if he wasn't aware of his own cultural biases. After that, Schul...

Part one of a two part interview: Chie Schuller, originally from Japan, has lived for years in the midwestern United States. She is a Coach for Japanese expats and their families, helping them adapt to life in the U.S.   Schuller talks about her first experiences with the English language, her early ambitions of being a Japanese teacher in the U.S., and life with her American host family. She...

Part two of a two part interview: Doris Haddad, MEd Career Counsellor and Master Certified Career Coach (MCCC) has an extensive background as a Career Counsellor from both the public and private sectors. She has helped internationally trained professionals and others from various experiences strategize their career journey. Haddad shares a number of insights: what Canadian managers look for in a g...