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Putting together a great career at IKEA
f you want to know what it’s like to work at IKEA, talk to Robbie Vize or Wanda Arnott. They work in different roles in different places and they’ve never met, but they’ll tell you very similar things.
For instance, Arnott, who is human resources manager for IKEA’s North York store in northern Toronto, will tell you about the opportunities for growth that the home furnishings retailer offers the many students it hires part-time. “We watch them,” she says. “We see the potential they have to grow, and we give them more projects. They grow with us.” Vize was a student when he started as a part-time “co-worker” (as all IKEA employees are known), helping customers in the Market Hall area of the Burlington, Ont. location. Soon he was able to explore jobs in various other departments. “People watch what you’re doing, even if you don’t feel it,” he says, “and if you keep doing your best, you get noticed.”
“We look at resumes, but it’s most important that people fit our values.” – Wanda Arnott, Human Resources Manager, North York
Wider opportunities often follow. When he finished university in 2009, Vize joined IKEA as a graphic communications co-worker in Burlington. Since then he has had the chance to travel all over Canada working on projects in Winnipeg, Montreal and Ottawa. Soon he will move permanently to the West Coast to begin work as a graphic communications leader for the Richmond, B.C. store. “A lot of our people have moved around, not only within Canada, but from country
to country,” says Arnott. “For example, four years ago, we hired a woman from IKEA in England to join us as customer relations manager. And nine months ago she moved to Edmonton as a human resources manager.” There are informal opportunities as well. Currently Arnott’s store has two young Australian co-workers who came on a working holiday visa with a recommendation from their IKEA manager back home. And then there is the IKEA culture. Not only are the company’s Swedish roots front and centre, including a Culture Day where employees learn about Swedish traditions and foods. According to Vize, “IKEA seems to attract a certain kind of person. They’re quite down to earth and honest. Everyone is just outstanding.” Arnott may have the lowdown on that. “We look at resumes, but it’s most important that people fit our values,” she says. Those values range from simplicity and humbleness to leading by example and daring to be different, capped by togetherness and enthusiasm. “We want people who are engaged and honest, with a passion for home furnishings,” says Arnott.
CO-WORKERS FROM IKEA NORTH YORK, VAUGHAN AND ETOBICOKE GATHER FOR ANNUAL TREE PLANTING
Offers tuition assistance for employees interested in further education
Leadership/Personalized Development plans which include mentoring
Over 1,600 jobs available in the past year
Offers paid internships for students and new grads
Some 40 per cent of IKEA’s 4,500 coworkers in Canada are under 30. There is a wide range of in-store roles, including sales, operations, logistics, food or interior design, as well as corporate functions such as IT and marketing. Stores offer plenty of upward mobility for a new grad. The 410 employees at Arnott’s North York location include 54 with management roles. New employees get training, mentorship, career development, tuition assistance and, in the first few days, a Buddy Program co-worker who works side by side with them. There are also some attractive perks. Co-workers get a 15 per cent discount on IKEA products and can eat a subsidized lunch for $4. On many of the year’s busiest days, meals are free. There is an annual bonus of one month’s pay if the store and
the Canadian company meet their goals. IKEA is committed to environmental sustainability – it recently bought a 20-turbine wind farm in Alberta – and offers employees opportunities to give back, both locally and internationally. Each year, two Canadian co-workers are selected for the iWitness Global Citizens Program, where they spend time overseas participating in development work funded by the global IKEA Foundation. It’s a friendly, positive culture. Vize has been with IKEA full-time for six years now, Arnott for 17. From their separate locales, they speak almost in one voice about IKEA. “It’s the only place I’d like to work,” says Vize. “I can’t imagine working anywhere else,” says Arnott.
We’re for careers filled with opportunity! www.IKEA.ca /careers © Inter IKEA System B.V. 2015.