A short time ago, the Interns had the pleasure of sitting down with Gary Clement, Director of Government Relations from TD Bank Group. As a former federal political staffer on parliament hill, Mr. Clement has worked on various notable campaigns such as those of former prime minister’s Kim Campbell Stephen Harper.
As a member of TD Bank Group for 15 years now, the interns were fascinated to hear about his transition from the public to private sector. Mr. Clement shared with us how the valuable the knowledge we are gaining in government now, can help us in whatever industry we choose to enter later in life. The key is to keep an open mind because there are transferable skills to be absorbed in everything we do.
The last piece of advice Mr. Clement highlighted as the most important, was to be nice and make friends. He stressed that politics is a small world. Getting to know others and form relationships is the best part of the job. In his political life he referenced experiencing the best and worst times with his colleagues by his side. We want to sincerely thank Gary for his candidness and open discussion about his life in politics. His advice on how engage with people and make lasting relationships and friendships is something we will never forget.