Andrew Macklin (he/him)

About me

I was born/grew up in: Brantford, ON

I now live in: Burlington, ON

I completed my training/education at: I studied media, history and music education at The University of Western Ontario, and obtained a Post-Graduate Diploma in Public Relations from Mohawk College

What I do at work

A typical day for me starts by reading through any media articles that talk about our company. I then browse through the Canadian media landscape for articles that are relevant to the markets we serve. From there, I work with our internal team to learn about what they are working on. I look at how it impacts communities and whether it's innovative. Then I’ll work with my team to figure out whether sharing this information would be valuable to our company, our industry, and/or the public. If it makes sense, I will then work to create the written content. Finally, I will then figure out where and when it should be posted.

I get to work with a ton of great people including engineers and scientists. I love that I get to tell their stories. Their work is vital in creating a low carbon Canada and a better environment for everyone. We are a Global company, with our headquarters in Montreal, so French is a real asset. For anyone who likes STEM, but also really likes writing, social media, or producing video content, a communications role is something work investigating.

My career path is

I didn't learn about the whole media thing until my third year in university. The radio station at Western had a volunteer sports broadcasting program. Once I got involved, I was hooked. I changed majors, started focusing on media, and became a journalist. Once I became a journalist, I covered some really tough stories. Sometimes I had a hard time finding work. So, I went back to school (at age 29), and got my PR degree.

I ended up staying in the media area because I, again, couldn't find a job. But I stuck with it, picked up any writing or editing gig I could find. Eventually, I got into communications. Here’s a piece of advice you never get as a kid that I think is important to know. That is, very few careers have a straight path to them. Some are hard to get into. But it's worth it if it is what you are passionate about.

I am motivated by

I love being a storyteller! I work for a company of 12,000 people. Most of them are creating built structures across Canada and around the world. These structures help provide better services for communities, reduce our carbon footprint, and help withstand extreme weather. These are important, positive stories to tell. I get to be the guy who tells them! Telling these stories is what gets me out of bed every day and puts me in front of my laptop. And the communications industry is a great group of people. It's a group that likes to share information that helps us all do our jobs that much better.

How I affect peoples’ lives

We are helping to create things like roads, buildings, and parklands that can withstand the impact of a changing climate. And I am helping tell stories that educate people on how we do this. I get to share stories of how the work of our company is helping people in communities across Canada. It's pretty amazing.

Outside of work I

I sit on four boards, which are a lot of fun and keep me busy. I have some fun writing projects I do on the side. I also have a part-time gig announcing sports. It's important to help your industry outside of work, but to also have hobbies and volunteer work.

My advice to others

You can be involved in STEM and communications at the same time. I didn't take STEM courses in university, but my job now would be easier if I did. Keep both interests going and see where it takes you.