You Can’t Spell Inclusion Without a D

Ep. 4: John Robinson on the Why‘s Whats and Wherefores of Jobs Ability

If you’re at any point on a disability-inclusion journey in your business, be sure to catch the new episode that’s out today. 

What a great conversation with John Robinson, the founder of Our Ability and Jobs Ability U.S. 

Thanks to John for sharing so many business and personal insights about his journey creating Our Ability and the Jobs Ability AI-based job search platform that makes it easy for companies in hiring mode to connect with job seekers, with disabilities.

Grab a big mug of coffee hand have a listen.

Ep. 3: VjobReady: Virtual Reality-Based Job Training in the Disability Sector Gets Real

Virtual reality (VR) is mostly known as the realm of gamers. But now — in Ontario, at least — it’s about to burst on the scene in the disability employment sector.

Initially, starting at the end of September (through to the middle of March 2022), VR technology called VjobReady is going to be used to help 160 Ontario job seekers who have a disability get a feel for what it’s like to work in the food and hospitality sector.

And it’s kind of neat that the employment service provider behind the development of this VR training application, is one of ODEN’s members.

Career Services of Brockville in Brockville, ON, spent the last three years building this first iteration of VjobReady. They knew they had something important, innovative and significant, right from the start.

On July 6, their efforts literally paid off big. The Ontario Ministry of Labour, Training and Skills Development awarded Career Services of Brockville a $380,000 grant.

In this episode, we talk with Career Services of Brockville Executive Director Cynthia Sparring, and Corporate Engagement Specialist Chad Noonan, about what this all means for job seekers, businesses, job training, and VjobReady future research and development.

Ep. 2: People Who Have a Disability — The "Secret Weapon" For Businesses

In this episode, we explore why people who have a disability are the “secret weapon,” or, “secret sauce,” for businesses — and just what that means.

Our guests are two C-Suite business leaders — Paul M. Clark and Derek Burleton of TD.

Paul is President of TD Direct Investing and Executive Vice-President of TD Bank Group. He’s also chair of TD’s People With Disabilities Committee, and is on TD’s Diversity Leadership Council.

Derek is TD Vice-President and Deputy Chief Economist. He’s also the co-author of an October 2019 TD Economics report titled, Canadians With Disabilities: Seizing the Opportunity.

Both Paul and Derek have been with TD for decades. In this episode, they also discuss the diversity and inclusion (D&I) evolution within the bank that they are still witnessing; where TD is right now on D&I; and the future direction of D&I at TD.  

Ep. 1: The Power of Inclusion: The Perspective From Both Business and Government

You Can't Spell Inclusion Without a D is a new monthly podcast produced in Toronto, Canada by the Ontario Disability Employment Network. The podcast explores The Power of Inclusion, and why disability is an important part of the workplace diversity and inclusion conversation. Join us for a new episode every month as we look at The Power of Inclusion, disability employment and the business benefits of D&I, from all the angles.

In episode one, a conversation about The Power of Inclusion with Canada's Federal Minister of Employment, Workforce Development and Disability Inclusion, Carla Qualtrough; and Zahra Jadavji, Accenture Managing Director and Accenture's Inclusion and Diversity Lead for Canada.