Women We Admire is pleased to announce The Top 50 Women Leaders of Vancouver for 2022. The city, a vibrant west coast seaport in British Columbia, is among the country’s most dense and ethnically and linguistically diverse cities. It is regularly named as one of the top five worldwide cities for livability and quality of life. Vancouver is home to many women leaders who are charting new territories and driving change for large and small organizations. This year’s awardees are dedicated professionals who exceed expectations year after year and are role models for future women leaders.
Among this year’s awardees are Laura Socha, Senior Partner and Chief Operating Officer of Capco, who drives the delivery of client transformational strategies and is a core member of the company’s global banking leadership team. Awardee Mary Lou Lauria, Vice President of Operations for Environment and Water for Advisian in North America, makes her impact by managing large environmental and social project teams for industrial sectors all over the world. Also awarded is Bukkie Adewuyi, Vice President of Finance and Business Intelligence at Prospera Credit Union, who deploys her collaboration and multi-disciplinary skills to work with peers in achieving the strategic and operational goals of the organization.
This group of women are experienced and skillful pacesetters in their respective fields. Please join us in celebrating the accomplishments of The Top 50 Women Leaders of Vancouver for 2022.
2. Laura Jamieson
VP of Technology & Innovation, Analyst Relations, SAP
Laura Jamieson is the Vice President of Technology & Innovation, Analyst Relations for SAP. AIn her role, Jamieson brings her deep experience with analytics solutions and the analytics business at SAP to engage industry analysts in supporting customer success and SAP business strategy. She has served with the company for nearly 15 years in various roles including senior director of analyst relations, executive director of global analytics, and director of business strategy.
Jamieson is actively involved in community activities within SAP. She serves on the Steering Committee for the Vancouver Business Women’s network, acting as co-chair in 2011-12. She previously chaired the SAP Vancouver Community team driving employee engagement initiatives for the entire SAP Vancouver site. She graduated from the University of Guelph with an undergraduate degree.
3. Christine Patterson
VP & Director of Operations, AECOM
Christine Patterson is a Vice President and Director of Operations for AECOM’s Canada Environment business. AECOM is the world’s trusted infrastructure consulting firm, delivering professional services throughout the project lifecycle from planning, design and engineering to program and construction management. AECOM consults public and private sector clients in transportation, buildings, water, new energy, and is ranked among the top environmental firms by Engineering News Record in key environmental market segments, including Environmental Science, Engineering/Design and Construction Management/Project Management.
Patterson has been with AECOM for over 20 years helping to lead and grow the Environment business across Canada. She initially started with the company as an Environmental Engineer. Since then, she has held progressive roles in all facets of site investigation and remediation management including feasibility studies; remediation action plans; regulatory liaison and permitting; and remediation design, implementation, and optimization on complex sites across the country including project manager to department manager. Patterson has consistently applied innovative strategies and solutions to help provide solution drive support to clients by integrating forward-thinking techniques and approaches. As Director of Operations, Christine is recognized as a dynamic, analytical, and results-oriented leader who provides operational excellence and financial discipline to the teams she manages. She is driven to develop, motivate and mobilize team leaders and staff, maximizing their potential in parallel to driving profitable growth.
4. Laura Socha
Senior Partner & COO, Capco
Laura Socha is a Senior Partner and the Chief Operating Officer of Capco. She first joined the company in 2021 as a banking partner. Capco is a global technology and management consultancy specializing in driving digital transformation in the financial services industry. With a growing client portfolio comprising of over 100 global organizations, Capco operates at the intersection of business and technology by combining innovative thinking with unrivaled industry knowledge to deliver end-to-end data-driven solutions and fast-track digital initiatives for banking and payments, capital markets, wealth and asset management, insurance, and the energy sector. Socha is a banking executive with 27 years of financial service experience in delivering digital transformation, payments, and multi-channel customer experience.
Socha is recognized for deep expertise in the card industry and the execution of customer migrations and conversions. Prior to her current role, she served as the VP of customer experience and business development and VP for brands and loyalty for Citibank. Before that, she was a senior manager of financial services consulting for Accenture. Socha first got her start with CIBC serving in various roles including director of internet banking and national account manager.
6. Jenn Markey
VP of Product Marketing, Payments & Identity, Entrust
Jenn Markey is the Vice President of Product Marketing, Payments & Identity for Entrust. Entrust offers an unmatched breadth of digital security and credential issuance solutions at the very heart of all these interactions. With more than 2,500 colleagues, a network of global partners, and customers in over 150 countries, it’s entrusted by some of the world's most trusted organizations. Markey leads product marketing for the company’s payments and identity business units. She is responsible for developing and driving the implementation of go-to-market strategies to grow Entrust’s share of this rapidly transforming market. Markey brings 25+ years of high-tech sector experience to her current position, predominantly in senior marketing and product management roles across many different technology domains including cybersecurity, SaaS, IoT, telecom, and semiconductors.
Prior to her current role, Markey served in executive leadership roles with several companies including 360pi (acquired by MarketTrack / Numerator), Ross Video, Semiconductor Insights (acquired by UBM TechInsights), and Optm. She graduated from Carleton University with an undergraduate degree in information systems and from York University with an MBA in international marketing.
11. Mary Lou Lauria
VP of Operations, Advisian
Dr. Mary Lou Lauria is the Vice President of Operations, Environment, and Water for Advisian, the consulting arm of the Worley Group, a 50,000+ person-strong global corporation. Mary Lou also is a member of the Board of Directors for Marine Renewables Canada. For Mary Lou, growing up in rural farmland in Hereford, England and the urban bustle of Queens, New York was a privilege that gave her an appreciation of different cultures and world views as well as a love of travel. She is drawn to the ocean, a lure originating from her father's Navy background; excited by business, stemming from her mother’s career and determination; and passionate about protecting nature, a value instilled in her by her grandmother. "We are a result of our influencers and I am fortunate to have had such a diverse and positive mix in mine."
Mary Lou pursued an academic career through a marine biology and business degree, then a PhD in oceanography before landing in environmental consulting, where she knew she had found her professional home. Working in this field allows her to combine her passions and gives her the opportunity to create meaningful change through environmental and social responsibility. She is grateful and proud to be part of the Advisian and Worley family for over 20 years. Based in Vancouver, the unceded and ancestral territories of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh Nations, Mary Lou leads the Advisian Environment and Water Consulting business across North America. She is energized by environmental and social governance, a movement inspired by the desire to create responsible investment and a sustainable future. She is delighted that she and her colleagues, today’s generation and the next, get to be part of a monumental effort where we all work together on what we care most deeply about and what affects us all. “It is an honor and a privilege to lead a business in an industry that creates so much opportunity to change the trajectory for the world's climate, water use, biodiversity, and social equity. What could be more important and exciting than that!”
13. Jo-Ann Smith
Chief Information Security Officer, Long View
Jo-Ann Smith is the Chief Information Security Officer of Long View, one of the most powerful IT solutions and services companies in North America with offices across the continent. Its IT services include developing a converged infrastructure and optimal foundation for cloud solutions, integrating and managing applications, providing end-user computing support, and streamlining the project management process by helping transform IT infrastructure. With a clear focus on combining business and technology through its hybrid IT solutions including cloud, IT infrastructure, managed services, and end-user support, Long View is able to define and customize what the future of IT looks like for its clients. Smith has 14 years of experience. She began her career in 2008.
Before joining Long View, Smith was a director of information security at Vancity, and before that, a director of information security and privacy at Absolute Software. Earlier in her career she worked with Best Buy Canada as a manager of the information security global team.
15. Sara Nathanson
Vice President, Aritzia
Sara Nathanson began her professional career 23 years ago. Today, she is the Vice President of Aritzia, a Canadian women's fashion brand founded in 1984. Aritzia sells a variety of lifestyle apparel through various upscale retail stores across Canada and the United States and online. It develops its own brands, treating each as an independent label with its own creative team and aesthetic. Aritzia is about good design, quality materials and timeless style, all with the well-being of its people and planet in mind. Aritzia community is also committed to supporting organizations that help women and girls succeed at work and in life and mental wellbeing.
Nathanson first got her start in 1999 as a senior sales associate at Aritzia before eventually rising to become a senior director of organizational development and HR at Please Mum, her most recent position prior to returning to Aritzia. Nathanson graduated from The University of British Columbia with an undergraduate degree in education and from Western University with an undergraduate degree in English language and literature.
View the complete list of awardees.
16. Bukkie Adewuyi
VP of Finance & Business Intelligence, Prospera Credit Union
Bukkie Adewuyi is the Vice President of Finance and Business Intelligence at Prospera Credit Union. As a community-based, purpose-driven organization, Prospera delivers financial services to more than 117,000 members across British Columbia through a network of 26 branches and their Member Service Centre. Adewuyi is part of the Prospera Leadership team where she is deploying her collaboration and multi-disciplinary skills to work with her peers in achieving the strategic and operational goals of the organization. She moved into her current role after leading and transforming the internal audit function for the credit union. Always one to get involved beyond core work responsibilities, she is a member of the credit union’s DEI council where she gets the opportunity to contribute to the strategy in this area, sits on the Prospera Foundation board as a member and was also an integral member of the team that co-created and created awareness of the new Prospera values.
Adewuyi is a business leader with over 19 years of consulting and audit experience. Prior to relocating to Canada in 2019, she was a partner and director with SNG Grant Thornton in South Africa, leading large complex portfolios and providing insights to boards, audit committees, and the c-suite. She played a big role as an advisor enabling clients' anticipation and management of both current and emerging risks, transforming their internal controls, and fostering an effectively governed environment. An active player in the industry, Adewuyi was a board member of the Leadership Academy of the IIA(SA) as well as chair of the Occupational Qualifications Committee. She was also a panel member of the ACCA (South Africa) and part of the Community of Expert Practitioners (CEP) that redeveloped the national occupational qualifications for Internal Audit in South Africa. Adewuyi was one of the esteemed judges on the Annual Global CFO Competition from 2016 - 2019. She is currently a board member and treasurer for Impact Toolbox, an NGO in Canada and a participant in the Dress for Success program with the Professional Women’s Group (PWG) in Vancouver. She is passionate about community impact and currently achieves this by volunteering on various programs with her tribal group – The Yoruba Social and Cultural Association of BC. As an eloquent communicator and public speaker, Adewuyi has been quoted on topical issues in publications such as BusinessDay, FINWEEK, NEW AGE as well as the IIA Adviser, the ACCA Accounting & Business and the ACCA Ambition Magazine, alongside her speaking activities at various forums and conferences. She graduated from Obafemi Awolowo University with an undergraduate degree in accounting, and from the University of South Africa with an MBA.
18. Jay Grewal
President & CEO, Manitoba Hydro
Jay Grewal is the President and Chief Executive Officer of Manitoba Hydro. She first joined the company in 2019. Manitoba Hydro is a provincial Crown Corporation and one of the largest integrated electricity and natural gas distribution utilities in Canada. It is a leader in providing renewable energy, clean-burning natural gas, and the lowest electricity rates in Canada. More than 98% of electricity generated in Manitoba comes from clean and renewable sources such as hydroelectricity and wind, and nearly 70% of it is produced by hydroelectric generating stations on the Nelson River.
Previously, Grewal was a president and CEO at Northwest Territories Power Corporation, and before that, an SVP of strategy and corporate development at Capstone Mining. Earlier in her career she worked with Accenture as a managing director. Grewal earned an MBA from Western University.
20. Doris Hall
Chief Human Resources Officer, Olds College
Doris Hall is the Chief Human Resources Officer for Olds College. She first joined the college in 2021. Olds College, the largest agricultural College in Alberta, works to be the premier Canadian integrated learning and applied research community specializing in agriculture, horticulture, and land and environmental management. The college’s emphasis on hands-on training, applied research, and innovative learning creates graduates who are in-demand and have the skills and the tools they need to succeed. Hall’s passion is building strong and trusting relationships by developing programs that enable leaders to engage, grow, and develop in order to gain measurable business results.
Previously, Hall has worked with and led teams in many environments varying in size and complexity in both the profit and not-for-profit sectors, including the government. Her skill lies in the ability to take lessons from across the spectrum of these experiences and apply them into the current context; that of a leader, consultant, business owner, advisor, or board director. Prior to her current role, she served as the VP of people, culture, and learning for Alberta Energy Regulator. Hall graduated from Red River College Polytechnic with an undergraduate degree in business administration and from Royal Roads University with an MBA.
23. Morgan Whitney
Chief Operating Officer, INDOCHINO
Morgan Whitney is the Chief Operating Officer of INDOCHINO. INDOCHINO is at the forefront of a global suit revolution that is seeing more and more people suiting up each year. INDOCHINO offers suits, shirts and other clothing that are completely customizable and tailor made to the wearer’s personal measurements, all at an incredible value. Their omni-channel experience allows customers to order their made-to-measure clothing online, via mobile or in person at INDOCHINO showrooms across North America. Whitney joined INDOCHINO in 2016 as VP of finance. She was promoted to CFO in 2017 and COO in 2020. Whitney currently leads the operations of INDOCHINO as well as the sales and marketing, supply chain, and product functions. In previous roles, Whitney was responsible for all areas of finance, business intelligence, real estate and legal.
Prior to joining INDOCINO, Whitney served eight years with lululemon athletica, and before that, was a senior staff accountant with Ernst & Young. Whitney holds a Chartered Professional Accountant designation from CPA Canada and graduated from The University of British Columbia with an undergraduate degree in mathematics.
27. Deborah Maynard
Chief Human Resources Officer, Coast Mental Health
Deborah Maynard is the Chief Human Resources Officer for Coast Mental Health. She first joined the organization in 2010 as a director of HR. For over 45 years, Coast Mental Health has been empowering people living with mental illness by providing three essential pillars of sustained recovery including housing, support services, and employment/education. Maynard is an HR professional with more than 25 years of experience in strategic HR performance management, labor relations, HR strategy, employee engagement, succession planning, employee relations, coaching, and leadership development.
Prior to joining Coast Mental Health, Maynard served as the VP and director of HR for Cascade Aerospace and the VP of HR for Golden Boy Foods. She graduated from Royal Roads University with a graduate certificate in HR and from Athabasca University with an MBA. Maynard has previously been awarded with the HRD Global 100 in 2021 and the HR Canadian Team of the Year in 2020.
29. Chantal Mackenzie
Regional Vice President, Canada Protection Plan
With over three decades of experience in the financial industry, Chantal Mackenzie is the Regional Vice President at Canada Protection Plan, a Foresters Financial Company for Alberta South, NWT/YT. As Vice President, she focuses on transforming and coaching advisors and general managing agencies with their business growth plans. With an impressive record of success in developing winning growth strategies and building effective teams, Chantal has set strategic direction for brokers and distributors through Canada Protection Plan and Foresters Financial product solutions and tools. Over the course of her career, her experience in growing organizations has ranged from traditional to simplified issue insurance providers.
32. Claire Johnson
President, TSX Trust
Claire Johnson is the President and Chief Executive Officer of TSX Trust, a wholly owned subsidiary of TMX Group that provides transfer agent, corporate trust, employee equity plans and other corporate services to publicly traded companies and private issuers along with ancillary services to security holders. As President and CEO, Johnson oversees the business's overall strategic direction, promotes its client-centric culture, and executes its growth strategy. Since joining the company in 2018, TSX Trust has doubled its number of clients through both organic growth and acquisitions and increased the number of service offerings to include workflow automation for private transactions, employee equity plans, proxy advisory services and structured financial services. TSX Trust services over 1,800 clients and employs approximately 250 employees. Johnson also serves on TSX Trust’s board of directors. She is an experienced business leader with more than 25 years of experience in the financial services sector.
Johnson joined TSX Trust as President and CEO after a 20-year career at CIBC Mellon, a leading Canadian financial-services company exclusively focused on the investment servicing needs of Canadian institutional investors and international institutional investors. At CIBC Mellon, Johnson served in increasingly senior roles, including senior vice president - strategy and corporate development, chief financial officer, head of marketing and product, and in an operational role as manager, investment fund accounting. She is a board member of JA Americas, a youth-serving NGO creating pathways for employability and job creation. Johnson is a graduate of Queen’s University and holds a CPA, CA designation. She is a proud mother of five.
View the complete list of awardees.
33. Stacey Emerson
VP of Corporate Services, Century Group
Stacey Emerson is Century Group's Vice President, Corporate Services. Century Group is a family-owned real estate development and property management company with a mission to curate places people love. For 65 years, Century Group has built a portfolio of operating real estate assets and land, residential rental properties, seniors' residences, hotels and restaurants, and commercial retail spaces, emphasizing a mixed-use approach. As a senior leader, Stacey oversees the company's project management framework, accountability and engagement approach, enterprise information systems, and corporate communications vision, planning, and strategy. Her focus is to ensure that the business has the resources, training, and support required to succeed and be future-ready. She ensures the company is agile and that Century Group's team is passionately aligned with Century Group's values of community, diversity, and integrity.
Stacey is a finance professional with decades of experience in construction and real estate development and holds a Certificate in Strategic Management. She leverages a broad range of multidisciplinary expertise in corporate services, including digital strategy, project and corporate governance, marketing and communications, human resources and employee services, to help develop strategic plans that achieve comprehensive organizational objectives.
37. Sarah Crone
VP of Sales, Aviso Wealth
Sarah Crone is the Vice President of Sales for Aviso Wealth, a leading wealth services supplier for the Canadian financial industry, helping hundreds of institutional and retail organizations from coast to coast to gain a competitive edge. It empowers better wealth management for all Canadians, Canada's credit unions, as well as a range of independent financial organizations. In the vast and unpredictable sea of financial markets, clients come to Aviso in search of seasoned professionals who can help them take advantage of investment opportunities and manage their exposure to market risk. With decades of experience in the industry, and proprietary research methods, Aviso advisors have the tools to help. Crone has 14 years of experience. She began her career in 2008.
Before joining Aviso Wealth, Crone was an inside wholesaler at Sun Life Financial, and before that, she was a business development associate at Franklin Templeton Investments. Earlier in her career she worked with TD as an investment consultant. Crone graduated from Royal Roads University with an MBA.
38. Ella Misfeldt
General Manager, MBS Equipment Company Canada
Ella Misfeldt is a bold and empathetic leader who acts with integrity and clarity to build teams that exceed expectations for customers. After 20 years holding progressively more responsible roles in the energy industry with Fortune 500 companies, she took on a new challenge in the TV and movie production industry 18 months ago, heading up Lighting & Grip Operations for MBS Equipment Company in Western Canada, one of the world’s largest sources for lighting, grip, and expendables. They work as a collaborative partner on a customer’s team, helping them navigate the complexity of their production and working together to bring their vision to life.
Misfeldt holds a Black Belt in Continuous Improvement and uses this expertise to identify challenges across functions and to guide teams. She is passionate about building cultures where employees are empowered and feel their contributions make a difference. Misfeldt’s career highlights include guiding her current team through an acquisition, growing a new market segment delivering fuel to end customers wherever they’re parked, and launching a national loyalty program in the U.S. for 750 ExtraMile convenience stores, found at Chevron gas stations. She is a volunteer with Girl Guides and Scouts for over 25 years in a variety of national and local roles spanning group leadership to event planning to marketing communications. Misfeldt will be volunteering to give 50,000 youth from around the globe the experience of a lifetime at the World Scout Jamboree in South Korea in summer 2023.
39. Lisa Schwenk
Regional Vice President, TMP Worldwide
Lisa Schwenk began her professional career 31 years ago. Today, she is the Regional Vice President of TMP Worldwide. TMP leads talent marketing through personalized employer branding and communication. Powered by proprietary intelligence from nearly 400 million user sessions from its TalentBrew network, TMP can predict, personalize, and influence the entire candidate experience to help build and retain the right talent. Since its inception, TMP Worldwide has progressed every single day, developing new technology and revolutionizing the industry as it goes. Today, they are a global innovator in talent acquisition that leverages software, strategy, and creativity to develop and deploy its clients’ employer brands. It has revolutionized the way companies and candidates connect.
Schwenk first got her start in 1991 as a classified sales manager at WestEnder & Kitsilano News, before eventually rising to become a VP and managing director at Bernard Hodes Group - Canada, her most recent position prior to joining TMP Worldwide. Schwenk graduated from The University of British Columbia with an undergraduate degree in history.
42. Sheetal Narwal
CEO, Harkav Security
Sheetal Narwal began her professional career a little over 12 years ago. Today, she is the Chief Executive Officer of Harkav Security, a Canadian private security services company offering commercial building security, parking enforcement, loss prevention service, security in uniform, event security, patrol services, surveillance, and security advisory services. Harkav Security strives to provide the clients complete peace of mind with transparency and diligence of the premier security services. They aim to offer the greatest value to their clients with services, and give back to a large number of communities by providing maximum employment possibilities all across Canada.
Sheetal is a seasoned leader with demonstrated history in the profit and non-profit, academic, and government sectors. Over the course of her career, she has developed a broad skillset and experiences including cybersecurity, digital strategies, branding, corporate strategies, customer relationship management, competitive intelligence, mergers and acquisitions, marketing and stakeholder relations. Under her leadership, Harkav Security has been winning multiple awards year after year across various security domains. She is a keen listener, strong relation builder, and a great leader and mentor. She sits on multiple boards for various non-profit organizations. She is the perfect example of leadership that drives performance in the company and her unique management style which sets the right example for the c-suite to create efficient strategies for the success of the business.
45. Diane McIntosh
Co-Founder, PsychedUp & SwitchRx
Dr. Diane McIntosh is the Co-Founder of SwitchRx, an online psychotropic switching tool. She is also the Co-Founder of PsychedUp, a continuing medical education program developed to encourage appropriate, rational prescribing. She also serves as a Clinical Assistant Professor for The University of British Columbia.
In addition to her roles with PsychedUp, SwitchRx, and The University of British Columbia, Dr. McIntosh is the Chief Neuroscience Officer for TELUS. Her role is to ensure all mental health solutions TELUS offers are aligned with their mental health vision of providing personalized, accessible mental healthcare, backed by science, and delivered with compassion. She has published blogs in the Huffington Post and Psychology Today, focusing on mental health issues. Dr. McIntosh graduated from Dalhousie University, where she completed an undergraduate degree in pharmacy before completing her medical school training. After 2 years of a pediatric residency, she transferred and completed an adult psychiatry residency. She has a community psychiatry practice and is extensively involved in continuing medical education programs to colleagues nationally and internationally, with a focus on rational pharmacology. She has a particular interest in the neurobiology of mood and anxiety disorders and ADHD.
46. Jeanine Lassaline-Berglund
President & Certified Coach Practitioner, Automate Canada
Jeanine Lassaline-Berglund is an organizational, process and leadership development specialist whose passion is for helping individuals, teams and organizations deepen their impact both professionally and personally. For over twenty-five years she has worked in and with industries encompassing manufacturing, agriculture, healthcare, government and not for profit, small and large. She has helped organizations improve performance by effectively assessing needs and designing solutions that deliver strong leadership with impactful strategies and execution models. Jeanine continues to be involved in initiatives aimed at skill development, leadership and business improvement & innovation. Through her consulting agency, she also continues to apply her experiences to challenging work in the gap that exists between managing processes and leading people and shares her past outcomes in her book titled Stupid Conversations with Crazy People.
Jeanine started her career in manufacturing as a pioneer, being one of the first female skilled trades in the Windsor Essex area. She progressed through various roles and leadership responsibilities, including various project management, leadership and special launch activities of platforms and manufacturing locations. Jeanine left the manufacturing industry in late 2010 as director of quality over North America for a global automotive firm, which saw her and her team of professionals responsible for product quality, but also quality systems, product warranty and continual improvement. She continued to stay connected to industry through her consulting practice which launched in 2005. Her years in industry exposed her to professional development opportunities where she attained certifications and certificates for business operations, program management, leadership, training and development, quality management and continual improvement but it’s her keen interest in people and the environments they operate within that allow her to shine.
View the complete list of awardees.