Online career resource Monster.ca conducted a national poll by Harris/Decima asking Canadians to think of the Prime Minister as the CEO of Canada, and to identify the qualifications they felt were most important to them.  The poll revealed:

1. nine out of 10 Canadians (89%) felt vision and leadership is the most important qualification
2. the least important qualifications: being a consensus builder (67%) and customer-service focused (66%)
3. nearly three quarters (73%) of those polled said having a long political career is an important consideration

“At Monster, we’re good listeners. And what we’re hearing from Canadians is that they want a leader who has vision and leadership, who is strategic and who has a clear goal for the country and our future
-- qualities you’d expect a CEO to  have in such an important role,” says Mike Jackson at Monster.ca.

Canadians split over beer
Canadians were basically split down the middle on whether it is important to be able to sit down and have a beer or coffee with the Prime Minister.  “Canadians clearly prefer leadership and experience over the softer skills like being a good person to talk to over a coffee or beer,” says Jackson. Even so, while most Canadians will never have a beer with the PM, half (51%) still consider it an important quality when evaluating who to vote for.

Less important than being a good person to have a beer with was tweeting: 43% of Canadians feel it’s important for their Prime Minister to be an active tweeter.

Clear vision, strategy, goals tops
“Monster fills thousands of senior level positions every year, in both the private and public sector,” says Jackson. “Canadians recognize this is a serious job that requires important skills, skills not unlike those that would be required of a CEO.”

Nearly a third (31%) of Canadians polled said the leader should be strategic; that they could see there as a plan and where it is leading.  The number one question Canadians would ask if they could conduct the job interview: “what is your vision for the country and for the future?”

Experience definitely an asset
“Relevant experience is always crucial in the business world, and Canadians are telling us that being a lifelong politician is a valuable or desirable attribute for the country’s top public servant,” says Jackson. “Career politician doesn’t appear to be a bad label to Canadians.” Interestingly, 83% of Conservatives think having a long political career is important, while 65% of Liberals and 77% of NDPers said the same.

Vote for PM; but vote for CEO?
Prime Ministers get voted in, but CEOs?  When asked if employees should be able to vote for their CEO every four years, Canadians were split: 47 per cent said yes, 47 per cent said no.

“The job for Prime Minister ultimately rests in the hands of the Canadian electorate. By showing Canadians that the election is like one giant job interview, Monster wants to encourage everyone who is eligible to get out and VOTE on May 2.”

Rick Mercer for PM?
For fun, Monster asked what Canadians -- outside of those currently campaigning -- would be best for
the job. Nearly a quarter (22%) said Rick Mercer, followed by Canada’s most recent CEO of the Year Ed
Clark of TD Bank at 16%. Hockey legend Don Cherry received 11% of the vote and hockey great Sydney Crosby came in at 10%. Teen singing sensation Justin Bieber got a mere 1% of the vote (likely because his constituency isn’t yet eligible to vote, nor is he).

This Monster poll was conducted by Harris/Decima via teleVox, the company’s national telephone omnibus.  A total of 1,002 Canadians were surveyed from March 31st to April 3rd, 2011.  Results are accurate to within +/- 3.1% 19 times out of 20.

The survey of just over a 1000 Canadians conducted by Harris/Decima, found 57 per cent of Canadians feel they have more job security today than they did a year ago; 29 per cent feel less secure. This is a significant increase from a year ago, when just 46 per cent of those surveyed by Monster said they felt more secure in their jobs, and 38 percent less secure.

“We’re seeing much higher comfort levels than we did a year ago,” said Peter Gilfillan, Senior Vice President of International Sales and General Manager of Monster Canada. “Canadians are feeling more secure, and they like their jobs, although many are still a little uneasy about the economy.”

Job Security Levels Way Up Ontario

·        Canadians living in Manitoba and Saskatchewan enjoy the highest feeling of job security at 69 per cent.

·        Ontario saw the biggest improvement in job security. As many as 55 per cent of Ontarians say they are more confident in their job security this year compared to 41 per cent who said the same last Labour Day.

·        Across the rest of the country, 63 per cent of Quebecers, 56 per cent of Albertans, 54 per cent of people living in Atlantic Canada, and 52 per cent of those in B.C. feel more secure about their jobs now than they did a year ago.

The biggest risk to Canadians’ sunny sentiment this Labour Day is the fear of recession. Almost 1 in 2 Canadians (46 per cent) think Canada will slide into another recession next year, while 47 per cent are more hopeful.

The fear factor is highest in Ontario and B.C. at 52 per cent and the lowest in Manitoba and Saskatchewan where only 35 per cent are worried about another recession.

Whine of the Times

The economy has picked up, but so has the whining from a generation of younger workers.  A majority, (69 per cent) of workers aged 18 to 24 say single people are more likely to be asked to work nights and weekends than married people. However, more than half of married people surveyed say they do not feel employers discriminate against single or childless people in either formal or informal ways.

“Work-life balance is becoming priority one for more Canadians,” said John Kervin, Sociology Professor at the University of Toronto. “But there’s a price, and it seems young, single workers may be the ones paying it by picking up the slack.”

Balance the Biggest Pay Off

Canadians across all income brackets put a high price on work-life balance. The vast majority of Canadians, 82 per cent, say they’d take a pay cut to guarantee a job with work-life balance. When Canadians were asked what’s most important in their job, one in three (34 per cent) said work-life balance is most important.

From August 5^th through August 9^th 2010 , Harris/Decima surveyed 1,008 Canadians, of which 539 are employed. 

The survey results are  considered accurate +/- 3.1%, 19 times out of 20. To view all of the survey results go to http://www.monster.ca/.