Canada's Top Employers for Young People (2026) Magazine - Magazine - Page 46
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CANADA’S TOP EMPLOYERS FOR YOUNG PEOPLE (2026)
Labatt offers a culture of opportunity for young talent
A
t Labatt Breweries
of Canada, Thomas
McNeil, Edmonton
brewmaster, and
Maria Degener, vicepresident, supply, have more than
a little in common. Both started
their careers in notable breweries
— in London, Ont., Labatt’s
hometown, in McNeil’s case, and
in Bremen, Germany, home of
Beck’s beer, for Degener. Early in
their careers, each stepped into a
fast-paced, hands-on role running
a brewery packaging operation,
experiences that cemented their
love for the supply-chain side of
their business.
Labatt invests in
people. They sent me
across the country at
27 years old to manage
an entire operation,
giving me an incredible
opportunity and the
support that let me do
it successfully.
— Thomas McNeil
Brewmaster
And both expressed their
appreciation for the way Labatt
accelerated their learning curves
— and their careers — by making
them “comfortable with being
uncomfortable,” in McNeil’s
words.
“All the key moments in my
career had one thing in common,”
recalls Degener. “They were
all times when, at first, I was
definitely out of my comfort zone
big time and probably stressed.
Looking back now, I can’t believe
I was allowed to do that, and I
Thomas McNeil, brewmaster, at Labatt Breweries of Canada.
can’t believe I pulled it off. But
that’s our culture and culture
matters a lot. I had the training
and, more importantly, the
support I needed,” she says.
“Feedback is ingrained in all our
people processes. It’s how we talk,
how we do things, and why we
can put a lot of confidence in our
young leaders to take on a big
amount of responsibility.”
McNeil knows that feeling. After
finishing his degree in chemical
engineering at McGill University,
he joined a Labatt trainee program
(now known as the Supply Future
Leaders Program) in London, Ont.,
in July 2017. There, McNeil was
constantly exposed to different
departments, which he says taught
him “there’s no such thing as a bad
experience — everything is good
experience for you to build on.”
By September of that year,
McNeil was a manager on night
shift working with a 30-member
packaging crew. “There was a
specific moment when things
were a little chaotic, with an
operator at a key position calling
in sick and a critical piece of
equipment breaking down,” he
says. “It just clicked for me though
as I realized: I actually know the
answer to all this, I know who we
have to call, and I know what to
do.”
Four years later, Labatt sent him
to Creston, B.C., to run its brewery
there. “Labatt invests in people,”
McNeil says. “They sent me across
the country at 27 years old to
manage an entire operation, giving
me an incredible opportunity
and the support that let me do
