Online | Mondays, Nov 23 - Dec 14, 2026
Employer Relations
Essentials
Build the foundational knowledge, skills, and practices
needed to succeed in employer relations.
Build a Strong Foundation in
Employer Relations
Develop the practical knowledge, skills, and confidence to succeed in employer relations within a post-secondary environment.
Employer relations involves much more than connecting employers with students. Professionals need to understand employer needs, navigate campus processes and priorities, support recruitment activities, communicate effectively with employers, and deliver a positive experience for both employers and students.
Employer Relations Essentials provides professionals who are new to employer relations with the foundational knowledge, practical tools, and good practices they need to manage the day-to-day work effectively and build confidence in their role.
Register Now
Tactical Live Training
4 live, 90-minute interactive online workshops (recordings available).
Designed for Early-Career Staff
Designed for Professionals Newer to Employer Relations: Ideal for those in their first 1–2 years of employer relations work or transitioning into an employer-facing role.
Earn a Micro-Credential
Validate core employer relations competencies with an official certificate and digital badge.
Actionable Toolkit
Walk away with practical playbooks, calendars, scorecards, and checklists to streamline daily operations.
Learn Alongside Peers
Connect and exchange ideas with post-secondary professionals doing similar work.
Who Should Participate?
Build Confidence and Practical Skills to Succeed in Employer Relations
Employer Relations Essentials is designed for professionals in their first 1–2 years of employer relations work, as well as those transitioning into an employer-facing role within:
- Career Services & Career Centres
- Co-op & Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) Offices
- Employer Relations & Business Development
- Faculty-Specific Placement & Industry Relations Teams
- Alumni Advancement & Industry Partnership Roles
Which Employer Relations Program
is Right for You?
Newer to employer relations?
Employer Relations Essentials is designed for professionals with up to two years of employer relations experience, helping you build the foundational knowledge, practical skills and confidence needed to manage the day-to-day work effectively.
Ready to advance your practice?
The Employer Engagement Academy is designed for professionals with two or more years of employer relations experience who want to become more strategic and consultative in how they engage employers, deepen relationships and create value for their institution.
Explore Employer Engagement AcademyJoin Over 700 Employer Relations Professionals
Trained by Brainstorm
Program Benefits
Transform Front-Line Operations & Accelerate Results
For Individual Participants
Employer Relationship Fundamentals: Learn good practices for establishing and managing effective employer relationships.
Consultative Solutions: Align employer hiring needs with your institution's specific recruitment offerings.
Operational Efficiency: Improve CRM usage, effective lead prospecting, discovery calls, and event logistics.
Career Advancement: Validate core competencies with an official micro-credential certificate and digital badge.
For Departments & Institutions
Unify Service Standards: Establish consistent vetting, communication, and service delivery across your whole team.
Accelerate Onboarding: Fast-track professional development for new staff with a shared operational foundation.
Safeguard Institutional Knowledge: Improve CRM health and data integrity to preserve vital relationship history.
Build Operational Capacity: Empower staff to manage partnerships with confidence while setting clear service boundaries.
Core Learning Objectives & Micro-Credential
Earn Your Employer Relations Essentials Micro-Credential.
Upon successful completion of all live workshops and practical application assignments, you will receive an official Brainstorm Micro-Credential Certificate and a digital badge to validate your skills on LinkedIn.
Key Learning Outcomes:
- Navigate the Campus Talent Ecosystem: Understand employer hiring cycles, industry context, and how employer relations connects with partners across the institution.
- Conduct Effective Employer Outreach: Apply practical approaches to prospecting, outreach, and discovery calls to identify and respond to employer needs.
- Manage Recruitment with Integrity: Apply best practices to job posting quality, employer vetting standards, student safety, and CRM data health.
- Deliver High-Impact Recruitment Activities: Design, execute, and evaluate inclusive campus events using post-event analytics.
Schedule & Curriculum Breakdown
Program Overview & Workload
Dates: Mondays, November 23 to December 14
Time: 2:00 PM – 3:30 PM Eastern Time
Format: 4 Live Interactive Workshops (90 minutes each) + On-Demand Session Recordings
Time Commitment: 6 hours of live instruction plus 1–2 hours of self-guided weekly application
Dedicated Support: Access to a central online hub for educational materials, peer networking, and weekly assignments.
Module 1: The Landscape & Employer Basics
Monday, Nov 23, 2026
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST
Focus: Understanding the campus hiring ecosystem, recruitment cycles, and employer business needs.
Key Topics Covered:
- Mapping the campus talent ecosystem and institutional landscape.
- Decoding employer hiring cycles, pain points, and industry context.
- Connecting employer outreach with faculty needs and alumni advancement.
- Establishing baseline service standards for employer interaction.
Module 2: Employer Outreach & Relation Building
Monday, Nov 30, 2026
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST
Focus: Proactive prospecting, discovery calls, and building relationship pipelines.
Key Topics Covered:
- Practical approaches to prospecting and personalized employer outreach.
- The art and structure of an effective employer discovery call.
- Identifying, qualifying, and tracking employer prospects and relationships.
- Building strong employer relationships through effective follow-up and consistent engagement.
Module 3: Recruitment Mechanics & Data Integrity
Monday, Dec 7, 2026
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST
Focus: High-impact job descriptions, employer vetting standards and CRM health.
Key Topics Covered:
- Coaching employers on high-quality, student-ready job descriptions.
- Applying clear employer vetting standards to support student safety and well-being.
- Maintaining CRM data health, activity history, and institutional reporting.
- Using market intelligence and employer input to support effective outreach.
Module 4: Executing Campus Recruitment Activities
Monday, Dec 14, 2026
2:00 PM - 3:30 PM EST
Focus: End-to-end event workflows, inclusive design, and evaluating event performance.
Key Topics Covered:
- Managing the full lifecycle of campus recruitment events and info sessions.
- Applying inclusive and accessible design principles to employer activities.
- Gathering and analyzing post-event analytics to evaluate effectiveness.
- Using results to improve future event planning and execution.
Dedicated Support
Julie Rahmer
Learning, Research & Engagement Lead
As the Employer Relations Essentials’ dedicated program support person, I’m committed to ensuring that participants get the most out of their experiences. I am happy to answer questions and provide information and updates to ensure that you are well equipped for this unique learning opportunity.
Practical Tools & Program Takeaways
Build Your Employer Relations Toolkit
Participants don't just gain knowledge, they leave with practical, customizable tools for immediate use in their daily work:
- Hiring Seasons Industry Calendar: Outreach timelines to time communications for maximum response.
- Job Posting Quality Checklist: A rubric for evaluating, coaching, and optimizing employer job postings.
- Event Lifecycle Playbook: End-to-end checklists covering pre-event planning through post-event review.
- Concise Employer Relations Scorecard: A framework for assessing departmental service delivery and employer relations practices.
- Micro-Credential Certificate & Digital Badge: Official recognition confirming completion of program requirements.
What Past Participants Say About Brainstorm’s
Employer Relations Programs
"As someone new to employer engagement and higher education, completing the Employer Engagement Academy micro credential gave me a strong foundation in understanding employer needs and building meaningful partnerships. The program helped me develop practical skills and build my confidence. I highly recommend this micro-credential to anyone looking to grow quickly and effectively in employer relations - and connect with employer relations professionals across the US and Canada!"
Arielle Pazzini
Employer Engagement Manager, Career & Professional Development, Western Governors University
"Great program with a lot of great knowledge shared amongst fellow Employer Relation Specialists with great sessions that were very interactive throughout!"
Kyle (KJ) Freeman
Employer Engagement Specialist, Center for Career Development, University of Notre Dame
"The Employer Engagement Academy was an incredibly valuable experience. It provided ample opportunities to hear and learn from industry leaders, post-secondary practitioners from all over Canada and the US and learn from their best practices. Additionally, I gained strategies and a new mindset for employer engagement which will be valuable in my work."
Meghan Reid
Co-op & Career Coordinator, Interdisciplinary Co-op and Experiential Education, UBC Okanagan
"As a new person working in this field, I picked up terminology and concepts from discussions, awareness of current employer and student trends. Thanks to this course, and the willingness of experienced participants, I can carry on intelligent discussions with folks at my institute and have meaningful info to share. This program brought me up to speed quickly."
Sandy MacKay
Work-Integrated Learning Coordinator, Office of Experiential Education, University of New Brunswick
"This program helped me think about my work through a whole new lens. Previously, my team had done okay, but I always felt we were reacting to external pressures. I'm now confident that my team and I can build an employer relations work plan that is intentional and proactive, with clearly defined objectives to guide our work."
Joan Fishburn
Associate Director for Industry Partnerships & Employer Connections, Career Center - Employer Relations, University of Colorado Denver
FAQs
Frequently asked questions
Who should participate?
Employer Relations Essentials is designed for professionals with up to two years of employer relations experience, as well as those transitioning into an employer-facing role within a post-secondary environment. It is ideal for professionals in Career Services, Co-op and Work-Integrated Learning (WIL), Employer Relations, Business Development, and other roles that involve working with employers to support student hiring and career outcomes.
If you have two or more years of employer relations experience and are ready to take a more strategic and consultative approach to your work, explore the Employer Engagement Academy (EEA).
What if I miss a live session?
All live workshops are recorded and uploaded to the online portal. If you miss a session, you can review the full recording at your convenience.
Do I receive a micro-credential?
Yes! Upon completing the 4 modules and required practical assignments, you will receive an official Brainstorm Micro-Credential Certificate and a shareable digital badge.
Can you help me convince my boss to invest in this?
Yes! Investing in Employer Relations Essentials isn't just personal professional development—it delivers an immediate, measurable return on investment for your entire department.
Key Outcomes Your Leadership Will Value:
- Accelerates Staff Productivity: Fast-tracks onboarding for staff new to employer relations, helping new team members build confidence and effectiveness in their roles.
- Unifies Team Service Delivery: Establishes consistent vetting standards, professional communication protocols, and clear service boundaries across your whole department.
- Protects Departmental Data: Instills CRM data integrity practices that reduce "data silos" and safeguard institutional relationship history when staff transition.
- Immediate Operational Value: Participants walk away with a customizable toolkit—including an Event Playbook, Hiring Calendar, Job Posting Checklist, and Service Scorecard—that can be adopted across your office.
- Minimal Work Disruption: Delivered in concise 90-minute weekly online sessions with full recordings available, ensuring staff build their skills without stepping away from daily responsibilities.
Registration Rates
| Ticket Rate | Deadline | Individual | 3 to 5 (Save 15%) |
6 to 8 (Save 25%) |
9 or more (Save 35%) |
| Advance Rate | October 9 | $495 | $420.75 | $371.25 | $321.75 |
| Regular Rate | November 13 | $595 | $505.75 | $446.25 | $386.75 |
| Late Rate | December 7 | $795 | $675.75 | $596.25 | $516.75 |
No refunds will be provided within three weeks of the program. Cancellations three weeks or more before the event date will be refunded less a $100 administration fee.
Substitutions from the same organization are welcome at no cost up to three weeks before the event date.
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