The RRC Polytech Café, powered by Ten Thousand Coffees, is RRC Polytech’s free online networking and mentorship platform that connects RRC Polytech students and alumni through ‘coffee chats’ and exclusive nation-wide events with career development experts.

More than 3,200 current students and alumni members have already joined the Café, and more than 17,700 connections have been made so far since launching in 2020.

Learn more about how the platform works >

Contest Now Closed

Accelerate your personal and professional development – sign up to become a member of the RRC Polytech Café between July 18 and 29, 2022 for your chance to win one of 10 $25 digital gift cards for Goodlocal! This contest is open to all current students and RRC Polytech alumni.

The contest closes on July 29 at 3 p.m. and the winners will be notified by email. Forgot to enter the contest? You can join the RRC Polytech Café at any time to start working your network!

Visit Contest Rules and Regulations for the official contest rules.

RRC Polytech alumni are invited to a Celebration of Indigenous Cultures, Arts, Languages, and Entrepreneurship, an RBC Reaction by Collision Event on June 20^th from 2:00 – 7:00 p.m. – the perfect precursor to your National Indigenous People’s Day and Summer Solstice festivities!

This is a great opportunity for alumni to network with fellow RRC Polytech community members, meet Indigenous entrepreneurs and community organizations, and explore Manitou a bi Bii daziigae – Where Creator Sits, Brings Light in Anishinaabemowin – our newest building at our Exchange District Campus, which features Indigenous elements, art, and inspiration, and is designed as a hub for technology, collaboration, and community.

Settle into the newly opened Roundhouse Auditorium, with incredible artwork by Anishinaabe/Nêhiyaw/British artist KC Adams, for the opening Pipe Ceremony at 1:30 p.m. with RRC Polytech Elders-in-Residence, followed by intimate Teachings and Storytelling. Enjoy the hustle and bustle of elegant, top-rated, and high energy performances, a panel discussion, and special guest speakers in the main Agora. Explore pockets of Indigenous makers and entrepreneurs, and connect with community groups and special guests throughout the near net zero efficiency space. All are welcome to this community celebration that highlights Indigenous knowledge, talent, and innovation.

You are also invited to join us for a special announcement at 3:30 – 4:00 p.m. to celebrate and honour the partnership between RBC and RRC Polytech. RBC’s investment in students today will put RRC Polytech in front of what’s ahead.

Check out the lineup of special guest performers and learn more >

There’s no question a Hospitality and Tourism Management diploma from RRC Polytech can take you places, as grads and practicum students alike land in workplaces as varied as mountain lodges in Banff, Alberta, to northern outposts among the polar bears in Churchill, Manitoba.

For Mitch Hyndman, though, it’s hard to beat a career in as far-flung a place as New Zealand, where he’s excelled in hotel and wine tourism for much of the last 16 years.

“I’m from small-town Manitoba, just north of Brandon,” says Hyndman, who graduated from RRC Polytech in 2007. “Back when I was studying, they said you can go anywhere in the world — and my mom’s uncle was down here. I decided to go check it out.”

Today, Hyndman is working at Pernod Ricard Winemakers, the second largest alcohol and wine producer in the world. He’s the Brand Home Manager at Church Road Winery — located in picturesque Hawke’s Bay, just a stone’s throw from the Pacific Ocean. Church Road offers wine tastings, winery experiences, large-scale events, and also features a restaurant, with Hyndman overseeing all of it and maintaining consistency in customer experience.

“It’s quite multi-faceted what I do,” says Hyndman. “I’m leading a team, including HR and payroll, but it’s also quality control, keeping everything up to what our standards need to be. We’re also a marketing business in some capacity, so it’s ensuring that everyone who comes through the door has the best brand experience possible.”

Before landing in the current role, which he’s held for eight years, Hyndman bounced back and forth between New Zealand and Canada — working more than half of the time at hotels, including the Delta and Fairmont in Winnipeg, and a luxury lodge back on the island. There were some challenges along the way, including coming to New Zealand’s capital for a practicum and having it fall through on arrival.

“In New Zealand, there’s lots of transient people, a lot of people that come here on a working holiday visa. I was supposed to do a practicum up in Auckland, but it fell through because I came in May — you’d think that would be a great time to come, but it’s the start of winter here — so the hours for the tourism sector were declining at that stage. There wasn’t as much happening as in the summer.”

“So the first practicum fell through, which I had lined up before I came. I had to find something else when I got here. With that, I got an exception and was able to graduate with the rest of my class.”

Hyndman says his RRC Polytech experience laid a solid foundation for the learning he’s done since, with each workplace adding to the skillset he now needs to perform in a management role.

A new series on RRC Polytech’s RED Blog celebrates alumni career successes and the—sometimes wayward—journeys our alumni take post-graduation. The series features a variety of RRC Polytech programs from the viewpoints of different alumni, each with an amazing story to share.

In April, two Creative Communications graduates were highlighted: Lucasfilm lore master and Distinguished Graduate Award winner Pablo Hidalgo, and grad-turned-instructor Doug Darling, CEO of Tripwire Media Group.

Pablo Hidalgo took what he learned in Creative Communications at RRC Polytech and combined it with his love of Star Wars to become the resident Yoda at Lucasfilm—seemingly all-knowing and the go-to guy aspiring Padawans approach to learn the history and lore of the force. When J.J. Abrams had questions during the production of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, Hidalgo was the master with all the answers.

RRC Polytech graduate Patryk Siedlik (Photo: Shared Health)

Patryk Siedlik is the definition of a hands-on learner.

“When I was a kid, I wanted to be an inventor,” says Siedlik, 27. “I always wanted to build stuff and test it.”

A penchant for the practical has served this graduate of RRC Polytech’s Electronic Engineering Technology program well.

On completing the 28-month diploma program in 2018, he found work in his field with Winnipeg-based multinational bus manufacturer New Flyer.

In a role he characterizes as “a lot of fun,” Siedlik integrated, programmed, and validated aftermarket electronic systems to modernize existing bus fleets. In the process, he travelled to more North American cities than he can readily list.

Yet it was with fond memories of a final-term biomedical elective that Siedlik decided to make a change after three years with New Flyer. In 2021, he joined Health Sciences Centre Winnipeg (HSC) as a Biomedical Engineering Technologist in the hospital’s Clinical Engineering department.

“I work on most types of medical equipment, including infusion pumps, defibrillators, respiratory equipment, and electrosurgical units. One piece might be 30 years old, and the next is one week old.”

“The main thing is ‘can they (health care providers) trust the machines?’”

It might seem like a logical progression: a curious kid grows up to land cool tech jobs. However, Siedlik is quick to explain his career path has hardly been a straight line. After graduating from Sturgeon Heights Collegiate, he found university a disappointingly frustrating match for his learning style.

RRC Polytech is not only where Siedlik got the training to launch a career, but also where he found like-minded people who share his interests.

“My good friends – my closest friends – are from college. All of us are in the field and happy with where we are. I’m such a fan of the school.”

More than a decade ago, CreativeMornings was launched out of a desire for ongoing, accessible events for creative communities to connect. Today, these communities gather in 223 cities across 67 countries — including right here in Winnipeg.

The Winnipeg chapter of CreativeMornings not only celebrates our city’s creative talent, but also promotes an open space to connect with like-minded individuals. From marketing legends to hometown heroes, speakers are selected by each chapter based on a global theme. This month’s theme is KISMET: chance encounters, happening onto a fortune, finding true love – it’s all fate or destiny. It’s all kismet.

Amanda Buhse, a graduate of RRC Polytech’s Communication Design program and co-founder of Coal and Canary Candle Company, is CreativeMornings Winnipeg’s speaker on Friday, April 29 from 8:30 – 10:00 a.m. CT. This ‘accidental entrepreneur’ will be sharing her career journey, from starting a business with only $40 in her bank account in 2014, to being named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Women Business Owners of Manitoba by 2019.

Enter now for your chance to win a ticket to this year’s Digital Marketing Day conference on April 20, 2022, presented by the Advertising Association of Winnipeg.

Learn from the most relevant speakers in digital marketing and advertising from across North America. You’ll hear from industry gurus working at brands like Google, TikTok, and LinkedIn, and learn how to up your organization’s digital game.

From social media superstars to SEO wizards, each speaker will provide insight from working in the field and each session is designed to enlighten and inspire. Take your knowledge to the next level – enter to win today.

You’re invited! Ten Thousand Coffees is hosting a special Office Hour event celebrating International Women’s Day! The event will be held on March 10th at 2:00 p.m. CT and will align with IWD’s 2022 theme – #BreakTheBias.

This International Women’s Day, Ten Thousand Coffees is shedding light on the barriers that women face as they enter or navigate the workforce. The first step is building awareness and the next step is breaking them down – and we need women and allies to do both.

Ten Thousand Coffees founder and CEO Dave Wilkin will chat with guest speakers Christine Silva (Senior Lead, Community & Underrepresented Entrepreneurs at Shopify) and Emma Mohns (Senior Legal Counsel at Kinaxis) about the tactics these women used to navigate and succeed in their career. They will also highlight the role allyship played in their success and share the tools and tricks that other allies can leverage to build inclusive environments.

If you identify as a woman, it’s critical to understand what barriers you may encounter and the proven tactics you can use to overcome them – spoiler alert, sponsorship is key! As an ally, it’s your job to actively call out bias when you see it and fight to break the mold.

This Office Hour event is free and open to all RRC Polytech students and alumni. Whether you’re already a member of the RRC Polytech Café or new to our mentoring and networking platform, you’re invited to listen in and ask questions!

More than a decade ago, CreativeMornings was launched out of a desire for ongoing, accessible events for creative communities to connect. Today, these communities gather in 223 cities across 67 countries — including right here in Winnipeg.

The Winnipeg chapter of CreativeMornings not only celebrates our city’s creative talent, but also promotes an open space to connect with like-minded individuals. From marketing legends to hometown heroes, speakers are selected by each chapter based on a global theme. This month’s theme is MONUMENTAL: what will you bear witness to? What will you leave behind when you’re gone? We each have stories and creativity to share – and what we do and how we do it not only impacts our lives but also the lives around us.

Sean Rayland, a graduate of RRC Polytech’s Indigenous Social Entrepreneurship program, is CreativeMornings Winnipeg’s speaker on Friday, February 25 from 8:15 – 9:30 a.m. CT. You won’t want to miss his talk: Making Monumental Change – one t-shirt at a time. He’ll be sharing about his experience as an ex-gang member and recovering addict who now runs a successful social enterprise as owner of Indigenous-led clothing company Red Rebel Armour.

Out with the old and in with the new – now is the perfect time to level up your office set-up and rep RRC Polytech at home and on the go!

As our world slowly begins to open up and we emerge from two years of adapting to pandemic work and home life, we’re looking forward to more “precedented times”. Whether you’re working from home or the office, staying put or itching to travel, you can rep new RRC Polytech swag as a proud alumni member.

*Contest Now Closed*

We’re giving away 10 prize packs filled with RRC Polytech-branded goodies so you can level up your office space.

From keeping your coffee the perfect temperature, to making sure your sound is crystal clear (meetings or music – we won’t judge), these prize packages are sure to make working and playing from home much sweeter.

Each prize pack is worth CAD$650 and includes branded RRC Polytech merchandise, including:

• An Ember self-heating mug
• Skullcandy Riff headphones
• Clothing and an insulated tumbler from RRC Polytech’s Campus Store
• A bamboo wireless charging pad
• A smart reusable notebook from Rocketbook
• A mobile phone tripod