Upon graduating from the University of Winnipeg in 2008 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, I knew I was entering the job market with a distinction that many other job-seekers already had and in order to stand out to employers, I had to set myself apart from the rest of the competition.  

Communications was always a field I was interested in, so I enrolled in the full-time PACE Public Relations and Marketing Management program and was surprised to learn just how broad the public relations industry in Winnipeg really was. After having successfully completed the program, I obtained a PR internship at the Canadian Wheat Board and it was during my time there that I discovered Canada’s largest and fastest growing industry, agriculture.

Within one year of graduating from PACE, I found myself working as the Communications Manager in Corporate Affairs at Cargill, one of the world’s largest agriculture and food production companies.

The PACE program equipped me with the tools I need to fulfill my day-to-day functions at Cargill, such as: written and oral communications; influencing the media; speech writing; PR fundamentals; organizational behavior and ethics; and corporate social responsibility.

Within my role at Cargill, I am responsible for managing Cargill’s brand and reputation amongst our Canadian stakeholders. On a daily basis I interact with government officials, policy makers, executive directors in the not-for-profit sector, as well as Cargill customers. Thanks to the communication fundamentals that I learned during my PACE studies, I am able to confidently position myself as an expert in my field and continue to grow within my role.

Brigitte Burgoyne
Director, Communications & Community Engagement
Cambrian Credit Union