For our third annual survey of women making an impact on B.C., we honour those who support others’ success
What is mentorship?
Ask a group of women that question, and you’ll probably get more answers than there are people in the room. That was our experience at the Vancouver Club in November, when for the third year we turned to a panel of experts to help us identify B.C.’s most influential women. The focus this time around: leaders who are outstanding mentors.
The panel offered plenty of suggestions, leaving us to narrow the field down to 30 women from business and other walks of life. Our list could have been much longer: those featured here represent excellence, but they have a host of equally deserving peers.
As we’ve learned, mentorship has many dimensions and shades of meaning. Is a mentor a sounding board? A role model? Should mentorship be formal or informal? Should it have a direct outcome? For panellist Nanon de Gaspé Beaubien-Mattrick, the ultimate goal is sponsorship—championing someone for a position. “Because mentoring is quiet, it can be unseen, unheard, and I don’t know if I’m having an impact,” she said. “If I’m a sponsor, I know I’m having an impact because either the person makes it to the C-suite or the board or they don’t.”
The mentees we interviewed have found encouragement and support for their personal lives as valuable as help with that promotion. For mentors, the rewards can also be generous. “Mentorship is more listening and coaching,” said panellist Tamara Vrooman, president and CEO of Vancouver City Savings Credit Union. “Through that listening, the mentor—at least in my case—learns as much as, if not more than, the mentee.”
Talking to mentors and mentees also showed us how many B.C. organizations make it their goal to help women succeed. With backing from our mentors, these groups and agencies seek to level the playing field in what is still a man’s world.
Whatever mentorship means to you, we hope you find the women (and a few good men) recognized here as inspiring as we do.
B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Gerri SinclairGerri Sinclair uses her success in the tech sector to support and encourage women at all stages of their careers
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Bev BriscoeFor corporate veteran Bev Briscoe, a mentor helps others look at things differently by offering unexpected insights
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Judy BrooksJudy Brooks has become the mentor she didn’t have when she built three international businesses
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Karen JosephKaren Joseph, CEO of Reconciliation Canada, makes business part of the effort to build a new relationship with indigenous people
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Donna SpencerAt the Firehall Arts Centre, Donna Spencer has played mentor to actors and producers for more than three decades
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Laurel DouglasLaurel Douglas, head of the Women’s Enterprise Centre, has matched thousands of B.C. entrepreneurs with female mentors
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: Anne StewartDrawing on her own experience, lawyer Anne Stewart spearheaded the Leaders in Transition program to help senior female executives move to the next stage of their lives
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors Group 1As their mentees can attest, these leaders are staunch friends and allies. In fields ranging from finance and law to science and visual art, they mentor formally, informally—and selflessly
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors Group 2As their mentees can attest, these leaders are staunch friends and allies. In fields ranging from finance and law to science and visual art, they mentor formally, informally—and selflessly
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors Group 3As their mentees can attest, these leaders are staunch friends and allies. In fields ranging from finance and law to science and visual art, they mentor formally, informally—and selflessly
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors Group 4As their mentees can attest, these leaders are staunch friends and allies. In fields ranging from finance and law to science and visual art, they mentor formally, informally—and selflessly
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B.C.'s Most Influential Women 2017 | The Mentors: A Few Good MenMen who have led efforts to promote women within their organizations say that diversity leads to better decisions
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Our Panel of Experts
Nanon de Gaspé Beaubien-Mattrick, Founder and President, Beehive Holdings
Fiona Douglas-Crampton, President and CEO, Dalai Lama Center for Peace and Education
Chair, Women’s Leadership Circle, Greater Vancouver Board of Trade
Jill Earthy, Chief Growth Officer, FrontFundr
Tracey McVicar, Managing Partner, CAI Capital Management Co.
Kelly Thomas, Director of Sales, The Vancouver Club
Tamara Vrooman, President and CEO, Vancouver City Savings Credit Union
