An Inside Look at the Co-op Experience at Bench.
Co-op terms at Bench offer the opportunity to make a real world impact on clients and other Benchmates with your work — allowing for an unparalleled learning experience.
We recruit co-ops for a variety of roles in Accounting Operations, Client Success, Sales, and Bench Tax.
While the day-to-day responsibilities of these roles vary, one thing they all have in common is that they are directly impacting the lives of our clients — by removing the financial complexity of entrepreneurship.
As all of these roles are entry level positions, we don’t place a strong emphasis on needing specific work or school experience. Instead, we look for soft skills — ones that allow folks to be successful at Bench include coachability, adaptability, and empathy.
Every journey is unique and we wanted to share some of the stories from our current co-op students, and previous co-ops who are now full-time Benchmates:
“When I applied to Bench, I was in my 3rd year at UBC. In my first year of the co-op program, I had seen a job posting for Bench that prompted me to research the company and different roles available. From what I researched, the culture at Bench really stood out to me as being a progressive, supportive and driven environment. I also really wanted to have the opportunity of working in a highly dynamic and fast-moving tech company.
Fast forward to a couple of years later, I saw a few job postings from Bench on the co-op board and I jumped on the opportunity to apply.
I checked LinkedIn to see if I had any mutual connections working at Bench and was able to have a chat with a friend who I discovered worked on the Sales team. We chatted about his experiences which encouraged me to send in my application on the same day.
I was invited to a 30 minute phone call interview with a recruiter very shortly after. That led to a second interview with a couple members of the Sales leadership team on Zoom, and I received an offer over the phone less than a week later.
I joined the Sales team as an Inbound Sales Development Representative, which is an incredibly fun, high energy and driven team to be a part of. I immediately jumped into a comprehensive Sales training program that lasted a few weeks and I felt that gave me all the knowledge and expertise I needed to feel confident starting the job.
One of my favourite things about Bench as a company is how much they value feedback and how seriously they take the feedback of their employees. There were instances that Bench would ask for feedback and implement the change within a week’s time!
Currently, I’m wrapping up my 8 month term here at Bench which has absolutely flown by, and am heading back to UBC to finish up my degree.”
— Enola
“I was grateful to be given the opportunity to work a co-op term at Bench in January 2020 as part of the Inbound Sales team. This was at the beginning of my 3rd year of university at SFU’s Beedie School of Business.
This originally planned 4 month co-op term turned into an 8 month term due to the amazing company culture, managers, and colleagues. The way the team shifted so quickly due to COVID, and still made work enjoyable was amazing to see.
In January 2021, I was able to come back to Bench and work with the Retro partner sales team. This was a great experience as I was exposed to clients from our tax resolution firm partners and required me to learn about some of the intricacies involved with the IRS. While working with the Retro team, I also took on some small analytical projects and the creation of reports for our internal teams. This then led to the opportunity to be a Junior Analyst for the Retro team on a part time basis while I finished up my undergraduate degree.
The great part about Bench is how everyone is treated equally, even if you are a co-op student.
If there is something that intrigues you, start asking questions. Those questions can lead to some interesting answers and even future opportunities.”
— Nabeel
“I was in my final year at Kwantlen Polytechnic University when I applied for a co-op position at Bench. I had one last co-op work term left to complete in my Accounting degree and stumbled upon the Accounting Associate position at Bench.
When I came across the Entry Level Accounting Associate co-op posting, I wasted no time and began preparing my application. A few days later, a member from the People team reached out for a Zoom interview and it was one of the best interviews I’ve ever had. It was super relaxed, not at all stressful and I could be myself.
In that interview, the recruiter mentioned that with my background and qualifications, I would be a better fit for the Quality team and asked if I was interested.
I worked in the Quality team where I spent most of my time completing reviews (YERs and MERs) during tax season. It was definitely a very fast paced environment packed with lots of learning. I enjoyed the challenge as it allowed me to critically think and actively apply my knowledge from school to the workplace. I also had the opportunity to brush up on my existing knowledge and skills from being exposed to new things at work.
The best part of my role was that when I made mistakes, I was always given feedback which allowed me to improve my understanding and learning. Furthermore, questions were always welcomed by the team and I could see how the work I did contributed in serving our clients and making a difference in their lives. The constant support, room for educational growth and professional development at Bench always kept me motivated and productive.
After my co-op experience, I spoke to my team lead, and told them that I was graduating and would love to join Bench full-time.
I have now rejoined Bench and I’m currently in the quality team as a QA Accounting Associate and absolutely love it here!”
— Yash
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Interested to learn more about our co-op opportunities?
Apply to our current co-op positions on the Bench Career’s page.
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