Greater Toronto's Top Employers (2025) Magazine - Flipbook - Page 36
36
( 2025 )
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A caring culture empowers people at CAAT Pension Plan
E
ven before he was
hired as a pension
analyst at CAAT
Pension Plan in 2020,
Zain Khan concluded
that the Toronto-based financial
institution was an excellent place
to work.
As part of his economics
program at Western University,
Khan was accepted to do two
co-op terms at CAAT, the first in
2019, the second a year later. He
was quickly struck by the organization’s friendly and inclusive
culture where all employees were
open to answer his questions and
offer assistance.
“I found that everyone was so
eager to help across different departments and teams,” says Zain,
now a senior pension analyst.
“That’s just the culture that thrives
at CAAT.”
Established in 1967 to support
the Ontario college system, CAAT
now serves employers in 20
different industries across Canada,
including the for-profit, non-profit
and broader public sectors.
CAAT’s growth has accelerated
since 2019, giving Khan expanding
opportunities to grow with the
organization.
CAAT facilitates employees’
mobility in the organization by offering secondments, mentorship,
and an extensive range of in-house
and external training and educational choices. For instance, CAAT
is helping Khan take the Pension
Plan Administration Certificate
(PPAC) program through Humber
College. Among other initiatives,
employees have access to CAAT
Academy, an online learning
and training portal that allows
employees to up-skill and re-skill.
“There’s honestly a pretty big emphasis on you constantly learning
and developing your skills,” he
says.
Khan is also impressed by the
way the organization engages
employees through community
involvement and volunteerism,
and by focusing on the physical,
financial and mental well-being of its employees. As one of
myriad examples, he mentions the
meditation sessions held weekly
that are open to everyone. “It’s just
little things throughout the year
that accumulate, and I think keep
everyone really engaged.”
Julie Giraldi, chief human
resources officer, says CAAT’s
“culture really distinguishes us.”
The organization does a lot to
ensure that employees feel that
they’re treated well and respectfully, she says. A recent survey shows
that 90 per cent of CAATsters, as
employees are known, feel that
they are treated fairly and with
respect.
“They will help you get to
where you want to get. They
want you to grow within the
organization.”
— Zain Khan
Senior Pension Analyst
Employees at CAAT give back to the community through frequent volunteering and participation in charitable
initiatives.
“Culture is our secret sauce,”
Giraldi says. “It’s one of celebrating, collaborating, having fun
together, and really striving to
ensure that everyone in the organization has a sense of belonging,
that everyone feels that they can
bring their whole professional self
to work.”
Another way CAAT nurtures its
culture is by ensuring the senior
executive team is “very accessible.” For instance, town halls are
followed by a lunch attended by
the entire senior executive team.
Giraldi and CEO Derek Dobson
also hold regular meetings with
