After he completed his M.Sc. in 2013 on Enterprise Systems Management, Daniel Azike worked in various roles at banking institutions in product management as a leader. In 2019, he relocated from Nigeria to Montreal to begin another chapter in his career path.
Upon arriving in Montreal, Daniel wanted to leverage his passion for innovation and join a team that was solving genuine problems. He started working at Shopify as a Product Manager however, due to the pandemic, he lost his job after 1.5 years. Soon after, he began looking for a new position, but despite his extensive experience in payment processing/payment products, Daniel experienced several challenges in finding a new job in product management roles.
“Being an immigrant, it was tough starting fresh and rebuilding one’s career, Daniel says. “Navigating the job market in Montreal, especially as an Anglophone, was daunting especially during a pandemic.”
After learning about YES through a friend (who found a job through our services) this past year, Daniel began his journey with us.
“Working with my counselor was really helpful in getting me back to the basics. We had to re-strategize, learn to understand my strengths and what new skills I needed to improve my chances of being hired”, he says. “We worked on a plan to leverage my network and connections on LinkedIn and other channels to speak with other professionals in my industry”.
After learning how to tap into the hidden job market through networking and informational interviews, Daniel built his confidence back. He participated in a speed interview event with YES in which he got valuable feedback about his profile and interview skills that helped him along the way.
Within a couple of months and several interviews, Daniel got an offer from an Education Technology company as a Product Manager.
“I am really grateful to the entire team at YES who played a role in my journey”, he says “Big shout out to my counselor. She was really patient with me and helped me redirect a lot of my frustrations from interview rejections. Thanks YES!”