By Fathima Zikker
In today’s digital era, virtual recruiting plays a pivotal role in advancing company strategy. The COVID-19 pandemic changed the face of talent acquisition in many ways, enabling employers and job seekers to connect virtually at scale, while retaining core elements and features of physical networking. Although lockdown and travel restrictions have been lifted since, virtual career fairs are here to stay. And while the advantages of online career fairs are extensive, perhaps the greatest benefit of all is their increased accessibility.
Online career fairs break free from the constraints of traditional recruitment methods, allowing job-seekers from all over the country, continent and even world, to participate with the only key requirement being a stable internet connection. This is especially advantageous for job-seekers from minority communities including women, persons with disabilities, neurodiverse students, and members of racialized groups who are unable to participate or find it difficult to attend traditional job fairs and recruitment events.
Virtual career fairs promote equity and accessibility in a number of ways granting participants the opportunity to network, attend, and get hired at the event from the comfort of their homes.
- The physical barrier of attending a conventional job fair is eliminated for those struggling with health and mobility issues or disabilities.
- Transportations costs are reduced or cut down completely making it a sustainable and “emission-free” endeavour.
- Individuals with special needs like mothers of young children, single parents and those with family or work obligations can attend the career fair with more flexibility, saving time on scheduling interviews or commuting.
- Lastly, compared to in-person meetings with potential employers, virtual career fairs are perceived by individuals belonging to minority groups as less anxiety-provoking, more convenient to manage, and more accessible.
Regardless of their individual backgrounds, the removal of physical travel constraints encourages more candidates to sign up thereby leading to more registrations and higher reach. Moreover, with online fairs, companies are able to access a large and diverse pool of talent that can help advance their businesses goals and outcomes.
At the Generation1.ca Virtual Insights Career Fair alone, on April 28, between 10 am – 4 pm ET, more than 400 diverse jobseekers can be accessed in a single marketplace. Learn more about Generation1.ca‘s upcoming Virtual Insights Career Fair to participate as an employer in the private sector or government, educational organization or as a job-seeker. Generation1.ca is an active platform and community that strives to nurture the talent of Canada’s disparate first-generation newcomers or those who moved to Canada in their adulthood alone, placing immigrant newcomers (and legal cannabis and non-profit associations) at the forefront of data and insights innovation globally.
Fathima Zikker is a Humber College Research Analyst Program graduate and is pursuing her internship placement as part of the Generation1.ca Virtual Insights Career Fair Team.
