Jackie Daitchman. Consultant at MacCormick. CSR Job.

Looking for a CSR job? Get inspired by reading about Jackie’s story carving out her own career path to meaningful work. Jackie never saw a tradeoff between doing good and making money. However, unlike other professions there’s no set path to a CSR job or career. What makes Jackie successful as a millennial with a CSR job is her determination and drive. Fluent in multiple languages, Jackie leads with her skill set first making her stand out from the crowd. 

Can you describe your CSR job in a nutshell?
I work for a CSR mining consultancy called MacCormick. Most recently I’ve been working on a Social Impact Assessment for a Canadian gold company in Africa and the creation of a Socially Responsible Junior Mining Company Index. I also assisted with some financial analysis to see if there’s a relationship between social responsibility and financial performance (there is!)

When did you know you wanted to pursue a career in Corporate Social Responsibility?
I have always loved travelling, learning new languages, and meeting people from different cultures. After high school I was influenced by the documentary The Corporation and felt that it was important to be part of the growing “ethical business” movement so I wanted to focus on CSR while studying international business.

How did your past life and work experiences help get you to where you are today?
I was first exposed to the idea of using business for good at the Net Impact National Conference. To figure out what aspect of CSR I was interested in I joined lots of university clubs, took on research assistantships and internships. I tried everything from marketing organic plant food to researching the relationship between obesity and food policy in US public schools. I studied abroad in Argentina and after graduation I worked in Peru with the Int. Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) through CIDA’s  Internship Program. This opportunity led to work looking at the relationship between CSR and competitiveness in the extractive sectors. It was through this research paper where I realized a CSR job in the extractive sector was an area I wanted to explore further.

How did you get your current meaningful CSR job?
I went to as many conferences, luncheons, and networking events as possible to learn and to meet key people in the industry. I set up informational interviews with CSR executives to understand how they got their CSR job and the skill set that they were looking for in CSR professionals. But how I got my current CSR job was through networking. I bumped into a former contact at an event and he suggested that I speak to his boss as they were looking for someone with my skill set. A few months later, I started at MacCormick!

What advice would you give to someone interested in a CSR career?
First, it’s important to be able to promote your unique skill set beyond having a passion and interest in CSR. Whether it’s analyzing data, communications, or research you have to articulate what you can do for the company. Second, work your networks to find the CSR jobs that aren’t posted. Meet new people by going to paid industry specific networking events and CSR related conferences. There you’ll have the opportunity to meet decision makers and other employed professionals. At the free events I was only meeting other unemployed job seekers.

How do you stay up to date about CSR and industry trends?
It’s important for me to keep up with general sustainability practices and industry trends. I read a lot of newsletters, updates from different industry organizations and companies, LinkedIn discussion groups, and I go to many mining and CSR specific conferences and networking sessions.

If you could have one superhero power what would it be?
To be in multiple places at once.

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