On Friday, May 14, the OLIP interns had the pleasure to meet with a few members of the Public Affairs Association of Canada (PAAC) board. PAAC is a national organization that tries to support public affairs professionals in their work. They provide professional development opportunities, networking events, forums for the exchange of ideas, and more.
It was our pleasure to have Robyn Gray, Claire Prashaw, Patrick Sackville, and Paul Yeung take time out of their busy schedules to discuss their careers and provide us with insights into their work. As young professionals looking to take the next step in our careers, we always enjoy hearing about the careers that others have built, especially as it relates to government. Hearing about the paths that these amazing professionals took to get to where they are and learning more about the sector was very interesting and beneficial.
We enjoyed hearing about the challenges of working in different jurisdictions and the importance of taking the time to build a strong network. It was also interesting to hear about the panelists’ experiences working in government as political staff, the benefits and challenges of being in those positions, as well as the many important skills that you can gain while working in government.
PAAC is an amazing advocate of the OLIP and we are very thankful for their support! Thank you to all of the panelists for an insightful discussion!