Toronto, Ontario — Carl Mohammed Jr., Assured Automotive’s Business Development Manager has proved his everyday hero status in the industry after stepping up to support Tropicana Community Centre’s Auto Body students.
Assured Automotive is an active partner with both Tropicana and Centennial, which offers the community centre’s Auto Body program. In typical circumstances, apprentices would meet Carl at in-person recruitment events to ask their questions about the trade and apprenticeship placement with Assured—though the pandemic has proved challenging.
On May 14, Carl hosted a virtual session via Google Hangouts for the current class of Tropicana Auto Body students, where he answered their most pressing questions about the trade and opened up his experience and knowledge to these students.
“At the end of the day, a lot of these students have a passion for cars, but don’t have a lot of experience in the industry,” Carl told Bodyworx Professional. “That’s where I can come in and help them answer questions about what it’s like working for a collision repair facility. The opportunity to be able to interact with them and influence a potential career in the industry is really beneficial for both the students and Assured, in the long run.”
Carl said the session became highly interactive once the students warmed up to its online format.
“Online sessions are new to a lot of people, but once the students got adjusted to the format and were more comfortable, we started to get into more intimate and personal questions about working in this industry.”
Assured currently has just under 70 auto body apprentices working within its facilities across Ontario. The company takes a very personal approach when matching apprentices with the proper certified technician, ensuring the student is paired with someone both skilled and supportive.
“No one likes being slowed down by someone who doesn’t know how to do something properly—but often the reason they aren’t doing it properly is because they haven’t been taught how. We’re looking for people that are both willing to learn and share their knowledge, but we always pay close attention to how two personalities will work together.”
Assured has also been focusing on training current technicians and other team members amid the pandemic. Carl says when slowdowns hit, Assured’s techs hit the books to brush up on their knowledge—and that includes everything from welding certifications, professional conduct as well as Health and Safety.
