The Empire Club of Canada Presents
Black History Month Panel: Celebrating Black Excellence
Chairman: Sal Rabbani, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Moderator
Lori-Ann Beausoleil, Corporate Director, Metro Foods, Brookfield Real Estate Income Trust, Canadian Apartment REIT, State Office REIT, Co-Founder, Board Diversity Network Inc.
Panellists
Dr. Wanda Costen, Dean, Smith School of Business, Queen’s University
Claudette McGowan, CEO, Protexxa Inc
Jaqui Parchment, Board Director & Retired CEO, Mercer Canada
Introduction
It is a great honour for me to be here at the Empire Club of Canada today, which is arguably the most famous and historically relevant speaker’s podium to have ever existed in Canada. It has offered its podium to such international luminaries as Winston Churchill, Ronald Reagan, Audrey Hepburn, the Dalai Lama, Indira Gandhi, and closer to home, from Pierre Trudeau to Justin Trudeau; literally generations of our great nation’s leaders, alongside with those of the world’s top international diplomats, heads of state, and business and thought leaders.
It is a real honour and distinct privilege to be invited to speak to the Empire Club of Canada, which has been welcoming international diplomats, leaders in business, and in science, and in politics. When they stand at that podium, they speak not only to the entire country, but they can speak to the entire world.
Welcome Address by Sal Rabbani, President, Board of Directors, Empire Club of Canada
Good afternoon. Welcome to the 120th season of the Empire Club of Canada. My name is Sal Rabbani, and I’m the Chair of the Board of Directors of the Empire Club of Canada.
To formally begin this event, I want to acknowledge that we are gathering today on the traditional and treaty lands of the Mississaugas of the Credit, and the homelands of the Anishinaabeg, the Haudenosaunee, and the Wendat Peoples. We encourage everyone to learn more about the Traditional Territory on which you work and live.
Every February, we come together for Black History Month, to honour the legacy, the rich contributions, the accomplishments, past and present, of Black people in Canada. I can’t think of a better way to celebrate Black History Month and Black Excellence than by having four incredible Black women leaders sharing their inspirational stories. Thank you for joining us. It’s an honour to celebrate your success, your resilience, and your determination on the Empire Club stage.
The Empire Club is a not-for-profit organization, and we’d like to recognize our sponsors, who generously support the club, and make these events possible and complimentary for our online viewers to attend. Thank you to our Lead Event Sponsor, Accelerate Auto, thank you to our Supporting Sponsor, Wildeboer Dellelce, and thank you to our Season Sponsors, AWS, Bruce Power, and Hydro One.
If you require technical assistance, please start a conversation with our team using the chat button on the right-hand side of your screen. We are accepting questions from the audience for our speakers through that Q&A under the video player.
Diversity is right, it’s beneficial, it’s a good business strategy. Study after study keeps reinforcing this. Closing the gender gap could add billions to the Canadian economy. Companies with racial, ethnic, age, gender, and other diversity dimensions consistently deliver higher performance. Social justice, diversity, and equality are also the promise of a better future, a more inclusive future for our young generations.
Our keynote speaker today, Dr. Wanda Costen, is not only a champion of inclusiveness in business in her role as Dean of Smith School of Business, Queen’s University, Dr. Costen and her team are in charge of preparing our young generation to meet society’s changing expectations of business. This is a privileged, and also a very important role. I know we’ve got students and young leaders from Queen’s, and other top institutions with us today, including the University of Toronto, Toronto Metropolitan University, and the University of Waterloo. Welcome to the Empire Club.
So, today, we not only celebrate Black Excellence; we’re also talking about the role that the young generation has in shaping a more inclusive, more diverse, and more equitable society, and also about what all of us can do to foster a more diverse, and more inclusive world for our future generations.
Dr. Coston will be joined by successful executives Claudette McGowan, CEO of Protexxa, and Jaqui Parchment, Board Director and retired CEO of Mercer Canada. They will discuss their career journeys, and how they obliterated the glass ceiling. This conversation will be moderated by my colleague, Board Colleague Lori Beausoleil, Corporate Director at Metro Foods, Brookfield Real Estate Income Trust, the Canadian Apartment REIT, and Slate Office REIT, and co-founder of the Board Diversity Network. A warm welcome to our guests today. Indeed, it is an honour to have you on the Empire Club’s virtual stage.
Tomorrow marks the end of Black History Month. But every day, in any other month, is a good opportunity to make a difference, and celebrate Black Excellence. It’s been 61 years since Martin Luther King delivered his iconic “I Have a Dream” speech, on August 28th, 1963, during the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedoms, a pivotal moment in the Civil Rights Movement. Beyond being, in my opinion, the greatest and most influential speech of all time, due to its symbolism and importance, “I Have a Dream” is the quintessential message of hope. Hope for a better, more equal, and more equitable world. A lot has changed since 1963; a lot more still needs to be done. From hope to action, I look forward to hearing from our distinguished panellists on how they see the future, and what more needs to be done for Martin Luther’s dream to become a reality beyond any doubt.
Please join us for a short video from our Lead Sponsor, Accelerate Auto, followed by remarks from my esteemed board colleague, Lori-Ann Beausoliel, who will introduce Dr. Wanda Costen.
[VIDEO:]
Christopher Nabeta, Founder & Executive Chair, Accelerate Auto: Accelerate Auto is a non-profit geared towards increasing Black representation in Canada’s auto sector. We want to affect all verticals within the industry, whether it’s manufacturing, dealerships, associations, or media. The automotive industry is ubiquitous to our society. It’s responsible for one in seven jobs in the country. But there are substantial investments being made by the federal and provincial governments in Canada’s auto sector. Those investments are creating jobs, and the creation of those jobs leads to a need for new skills. It is expected to be upwards of 700,000 in labour shortage, within Ontario’s auto sector. It’s important for us to start working together, not only in developing the talent, but also supplementing that workforce through diversification.
In order to implement a diverse workforce, we’ve identified four areas of focus:
1. Awareness: Both within the communities that we serve, as well as at the corporate level.
2. Development: As we attract and make the talent aware of opportunities, we need to develop them.
3. Mentorship. As we attract the talent and develop the talent, we want to retain the talent. And mentorship is a key component in people’s retention.
4. Community: As we put all these pillars in place, the last one is ensuring that people feel comfortable, especially in a new industry that doesn’t necessarily look like them. We also have the pleasure to announce that we recently hosted, at the Auto Show Congress, the inaugural Black Automotive Professional Awards, where we celebrated the achievements of Black professionals within our industry:
We’re the Canadian International Auto Show. We have 100 Black youth from the Toronto District School Board, and from York District School Board, who got to experience the biggest automotive show in North America. Being a new immigrant to Canada, I might have faced a few barriers myself. And growing professionally to actually achieve the career that I’ve set out to achieve to date has not come without its own bumps in the road, unique experiences, nonetheless growing pains. To me, it’s important for the youth that come after us not to have to go through the same journey that some of us have had to do.
Why does it mean so much to me? Because I care, because you should care, because we all should care. There are people here that deserve the opportunity. Let’s allow others to dream, let’s allow the dreamers to aspire, and let’s work together, in order to help them achieve their full potential.
[END OF VIDEO]
Lori-Ann Beausoleil, Corporate Director, Metro Foods, Brookfield Real Estate Income Trust, Canadian Apartment REIT, State Office REIT, Co-Founder, Board Diversity Network Inc.
Wow, Chris, thank you not just for being our Lead Sponsor, but for the message that you’ve left with our audience today. I’m honoured to be moderating this panel today. And more importantly, I just want everybody to note: we are making history today. We are celebrating Black History, but today, we are making our own history. The Empire Club, 1903, I can assure you, did not have people like myself and my panellists on their board, or even on their stage. But that just goes to show you, when you have Black Excellence, things change. So, we have a historical moment right now, in that is the first time—even though it’s virtual—on the stage at Empire Club to have an all-Black panel, and an all-Black panel of women. If you don’t think excellence is in the house—as my poor kids are mortified probably hearing me say those kind of words—excellence is in the house today. But you can’t do and have this conversation unless we all acknowledge our history. We’ve learned about Black history and slavery in our school system, but they leave out some critical points, which I’m going to use to set the stage for the conversation that Wanda is about to have.
We all know from the history books that the Black community arrived to the Americas enslaved. But what we don’t know, and we don’t talk about, is those boats that carried my elders was insured by Lloyd’s of London. Those slaves were literally insured—not as human beings, but as perishable. Yes, Lloyd’s of London have acknowledged, and they’ve given money back. But just imagine, those individuals on that boat coming to this country were thought of as nothing better than a head of cattle. Then the Lloyd’s of London also said, “If one of your slaves is sick, we will not ensure that slave in order to get better. But if you lose slaves on the voyage [a.k.a. they fall overboard] we will insure you.” So, I’m going to leave you with that image, for one moment. But our elders arrived in this country, and they planted seeds of resilience. And that’s what these women today are going to tell you about. But I want you to note that the roots are there from those seeds planted by our elders. The tree is growing, but the branches are not finished. And for the next generation, it’s your job to ensure that our community continues to be successful.
So, on that note, I am going to pass it over to my new dear friend, Wanda—we had the opportunity of sharing this stage once before. You guys are very fortunate to have her as the keynote. Listen, everybody, you’ll take away a bit of information that’s going to help you in your career, and in your journey in life. Over to you, Wanda.
Dr. Wanda Costen, Dean, Smith School of Business, Queen’s University
Greetings, everyone. Happy day. Thanks so much for the warm welcome, Lori. Grateful to be here. I first want to acknowledge that I’m wearing pink today, because it’s actually Pink Shirt Day. And it’s interesting that it would fall on the day that we’re going to have this conversation, because Pink Shirt Day is about bullying. And I think, as we talk about Black Excellence, some of the things we’ve had to overcome could easily be couched under the framework of bullying. So, next slide, please. So, I always want to remind folks that, while I’m a dean, at the heart of everything I do, I’m an academic. And so, we always want to start with some clear definitions, to make sure we’re all starting on the same sheet of music. Now, a lot of people are probably saying, “Black Excellence, what actually is Black Excellence?” So, here are some definitions that might be important for you to understand.
First of all, it’s a celebration. And as you heard Lori say, there is much to celebrate. If we think back to Martin Luther King’s time, and where we are today, clearly, there’s been tremendous growth, there’s been tremendous career progression, we’ve had, in the United States, an African-American President. And yet, I think we would have to admit, we are not there. Sal, I really appreciate your opening to talk about the work that has yet to be done. And as an immigrant to my adopted country—I, I should have warned y’all that I’m a US citizen, so I tend to be a bit direct. But I’ve been in Canada six years now, so I try to tone it down a bit. But one of the things I want to say, that I remind my Canadian friends on a regular basis: do not think for a minute that racism stops at the 49th parallel. Racism looks different in Canada, but trust me when I tell you, it is here. So, it is important that we recognize that there are barriers around racism, sexism, homophobia, that impact people every day. And what we’re talking about with Black Excellence is the success that Black people have had, in spite of those barriers. What’s key to remember is those barriers are systemic. They’re not one-offs, they’re not impacting one individual. They’re impacting an entire race of people.
I want to draw some attention to this last bullet: exceptionalism. Notice that it talks about being rare. And the sad truth is, people actually believe that this panel today is rare. We are not. We are rare because we’re somewhat unique. But there is tremendous Black Excellence across the globe. We just fail to acknowledge it, and we fail to see it. So, today, we’re actually going to talk about what that means for us. Next slide, please.
Now, if you’ve done any research on this notion of Black Excellence, you’ll know that on the one hand, as Lori framed for today, we’re here to celebrate Black Excellence. But we should also acknowledge that what comes with Black Excellence—for those who are deemed to be excellent—is not actually that positive. Because what happens is that those who are highlighted as excellent actually pay quite a burden for that. There’s hyper scrutiny. We have to continually prove over and over and over and over and over again that we are worthy of the roles that we have attained, the success we have accomplished, the—if I may be so bold—even the salaries we make. This isn’t a gift to us. We’ve actually earned that. And yet, often, we’re not considered to be equal. Now, this may surprise some folks—and I actually had this conversation with our Black students in the Smith School of Business [indiscernible]. Listen, they were very concerned, because as most of you know, the Smith School of Business is the most competitive business school in Canada. The most rigorous to get into, it’s very difficult. So, what I spend a lot of time explaining to my Black students, believe it or not, is you belong here. If you have walked in that door and received an opportunity to take advantage of the amazing education that we offer at Smith, you belong here. And yet, they tell me that some of their classmates may refer to them as the “Diversity Students.” Think about that for a minute. These students worked incredibly hard, did wonderful work, are academically intelligent, and yet, somehow are deemed as not being worthy of being in the building with their colleagues.
Now, the fun thing is I got to say to them, “Well, if it makes you feel any better, I’m called a Diversity Dean, but at the end of the day, I’m the Dean.” And that’s how we have to move through the world. At the end of the day, we have earned positions we have, that we have amassed the skills, qualifications, and competencies necessary to enable success, and we are moving forward. But we cannot forget the journey that we’re on, and what it means to constantly have to prove oneself worthy, irrespective of the success we have had in the past. So, we often frame that as, when is enough enough? And for Black folks, the answer is, often, we don’t know yet, because we keep having to do it over and over and over again. And we are held to a standard that an average person is not. And I would argue we’re held to a standard that even successful people are not. We still have to overperform. And to what degree does that create a burden for young people today? Most of us grew up being told we had to be better than. Do we still have to have that conversation with young people today? Next slide, please.
I always think it’s important that we remember our history. And we must remember that we did not get to this place by ourselves. The place we are at was paid by people who had a much more difficult time than we did. And I love these quotes that talk about the difficult time that Black people have had to navigate. Sometimes, I remind folks, listen, you really can’t get rid of Black people. You all have forgotten, as Lori said, we were brought here against our will, under the bottom of slave ships, and that the people who survived, our elders, were the strongest of the group. We’re not going anywhere. We’re strong people. It’s in our DNA, the capacity we have, the promise of our future. It’s not going away. We have, inside of us, this capacity to perform well, in spite of tremendous odds, in spite of people saying what cannot be done, we get it done. I love Frederick Douglass’s quote, “If there’s no struggle, there’s no progress.” I said just yesterday to a group of folks, “No learning happens in the comfort zone.” So, you actually have to get outside your comfort zone. You have to do things that you’ve never done before, in order to grow as a human being, and in order to amass some kind of success. My grandmother used to always say, “To whom much is given, much is expected.” So, we take that on. We bear that. But we do so proudly, because we are advancing, not just ourselves and our families, but the future. And not just of our race, but of the entire country—the globe, if you will. So, we must remember the history that we stand on, so that we can propel ourselves forward, and not forget how incredibly fortunate we are to be here at this moment in time. Next slide, please.
I always focus on whose shoulders am I standing? How am I elevated in the opportunities that I’ve had? And this list here is a group of very famous, very successful, groundbreaking Black Canadians. And here’s what their view has been. Here’s—my favourite, is Mary Ann Shadd, I have to say. “It is better to wear out than rust out,” right? What she’s saying is we actually have to get busy, we have to do some work. We can’t just hang out coasting. Anytime you decide to coast, you’re actually going downhill. You are not improving, you are not getting better. Rosemary Brown: “When we walk through a door, we can’t close it, we actually have to pull it open wider, so that more and more people can get through and have opportunity.” And then Lincoln Alexander has my best, “It’s not your duty to be average. Set a high standard for yourself, lead the way, be the beacon of life, be the inspiration, help others see what is possible.” This panel today is an example of that. I don’t know about the other women on the panel, but I can tell you, rarely, growing up, did I see an African-American, a Black person, or a Black woman, on any panel, any dais, any position of power and authority. I didn’t see it. And so, how could we think about what was possible for our future, if in fact, we never saw what could be possible? So, I’m always grateful to be invited to be on a panel like this, to talk about how we got to where we are, and how we’re going to continue to do and move forward. Next slide, please.
So, this is the key: what does it actually mean to push for, strive for excellence, and why should you do it? My favourite is Garrett Morgan: “If you can be the best, why not try to be the best? Why coast? Why not leverage your capabilities, your God-given talent? The people who are investing in you, who believe in you. You have to set that stage.” And for young people, you need to know, this is just the beginning. The impact you can have is vast. For those who think that this focus on Black Excellence or this focus on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, Indigeneity is “woke,” or time has passed, we’ve ticked that box, let me assure you: this isn’t actually for Black Folk, this is for the Country. Canada, the US, any major country in the world cannot afford to have a significant portion of its population not be successful. That’s craziness. It’s about productivity. And we know the research shows that Canada’s productivity isn’t as robust as it ought to be. What does that mean for the economic progress of this country? How are we going to contribute?
And least you forget the impact we can have on a nation, and on the world, Garrett Morgan—and I actually learned about Garrett Morgan from my son. In the second grade, he had to do what I called an “arts project,” which is to create something that a Black inventor had made. So, we went to the library and he did all this research—this is what happens when you have a professor as a mom—and sure enough, he comes up with Garrett Morgan. I’d never heard of Garrett Morgan, I’m embarrassed to say. Well, Garrett Morgan is an inventor, who invented two things, one that I used as a foreign military person, which was the gas mask. I am very grateful for that invention, let me just say, as someone who was in the military. But here’s something he invented—and particularly because we’re here in Toronto—that the world would be in sheer chaos, and I guarantee you probably didn’t know this. Garrett Morgan invented what we now call the three-light stoplight. Yes, the traffic light. Red, yellow, green. Invented by Garrett Morgan, a Black man. Now, I happen to reside, right now, on the 30th floor of Simcoe building, right on Simcoe in front, this is [indiscernible] Toronto. The only way to get from the ground floor to where we are on the 30th floor—great view, by the way—is to take an elevator. Well, get this: those automatic doors that open and close and prevent you from falling down the shaft? That was created by a Black man. Yes, Alexander Mills. So, just think for a minute, where would we be without automatic doors on your elevator, and no traffic light? So, for those people who think this is about Black—no, it’s about the contributions we can make to society. That’s why we need to celebrate excellence, we need to talk about the contributions of Black people, and we need to continue to strive for excellence. It’s required for the future. Next slide, please.
So, Lori, let’s get this party started. Let’s hear from my colleagues, and let’s have a robust conversation to get these young people motivated.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Well, thank you, Wanda; as always, fantastic. I’m going to take two points from your phenomenal conversation is, we are contributors to the Canadian economy, and we will continue to be contributors to the Canadian economy. But we must do it not as average, but as above-average, to strive for the excellence that Wanda talked about. And I’m so lucky, because the panel that I have to moderate, that’s dead easy—because all of these women have done more than just contributed to our economy and society, but they’re leading in ways, and giving back in ways. Each one of these panels, when they walk through the door, it’s not a door. Because they don’t understand the concept of walking through a door. They bring the community through the door, so you know that door is wide. And I got to first turn my first question over to Claudet. I know you’ve all read about Claudettein The Globe recently. And you want to talk about Black Excellence, think about her journey: Chief Information Officer. Come on. I didn’t even know what a CIO was back in the day—and STEM, what’s STEM? And here she is, leading one of the few Black female leaders in this area. But she got here, and I can’t wait to hear a bit about her journey, but I really want her to take the concepts of excellence, and share with us how she had excellence and success in her career. Over to you, Claudette.
Claudette McGowan, CEO, Protexxa Inc.
Thank you so much, Lori. It’s a pleasure to be here. And Dr. Costen, wow, what a way to get us kicked off. I have to tell you, when you think about STEM, science, technology, engineering, mathematics, if we go back to the early 70’s, there were eight percent of women in technology. And now, we’re at 27 percent. Is that success? Are we done? Is that improvement, or do we have a lot more way to go? So, when I think about my role, being that woman in the room—at one point I was the youngest in the room—the only woman, the Person of Colour. You were tested, I was challenged. Are you technical enough? Will you give the time that’s needed? Are you tough enough to work around the clock when something goes wrong, a system goes down and needs to come back up? All those things, that was my reality. And I remember and reflect on this one time when there was a role that everyone said, “The role is yours, Claudette. It’s yours, slam dunk.” They showed me to the office and asked me, “Do you want this picture on the wall? Do you like this picture?” I said, “I like the picture. But I don’t have anybody in power offering me this job. I have all my peers telling me the job’s going to be mine, but not the people in power.” And then I got the call into the office, and they told me the news, “The job is going to someone else. But we want you to help that person, because they don’t have the skill to do the job. And here’s tens of thousands of dollars as a bonus to help you help that person do the job. Are you happy, Claudette?”
So, what do you do? We reflect on the things that our parents told us: work twice as hard as everybody else, be lucky to be invited to the party, make sure that you know that the job is to fit in. So, this thing of today, bring your authentic self to work? The guidance I got from my parents says don’t ever bring your authentic self—you bring that authentic self at home; you don’t do that at work. And so, the world has changed. And so, I helped that person in that job. And I can tell you that that leader, one year later, stepped down and said, “I’ve told them to give you this job.” This is where allies and advocates come in. “I don’t feel that I’m the right person for this job, so I’m going to advocate for you to take this job.” And so, I want to be clear that we’re not doing anything by ourselves. It is through partnerships, and collaborations, and networks. I heard someone say, “If you don’t network, you might not work,” or “Your network sets your net worth.” It’s really, really critical that we understand that it’s going to take many people collaborating together to make a change.
And so, I have this “Five-Up Strategy” that I talk about when you want to define yourself. The first step is to wake up; you’ve got to assess the state of the nation. The second step is to stand up; what’s the cause? What are you taking that stand on? The third step is to speak up; find your voice, share your vision. The fourth step is the set up; find your crew, get your processes, your procedures, your controls in place. And last is to step up; execute with precision.
So, I want to show you how this showed up for me. I was working at a company where things were changing; it’s like all of your other companies, digital transformation. We’re going to use social media, we’re going to use mobile, we’re going to use analytics, we’re going to use collaborative tools; they called it SMAC, how we’re going to use Cloud? All these things were changing in the company, and I saw tens of thousands of people struggling, with these little new devices in their hand, and trying to figure out what they’re going to do. And I said, “Hold on, I think when it comes to waking up, we need to say digital literacy, cyber literacy, is a problem at this company. People don’t know what to do.” When it came to standing up, it was to basically say, “I’m going to declare that I’m going to solve this problem. We’ve got a problem, and I’m going to solve it.” When it came to speaking up, I was in a room with my boss, and people said, “What do you do?” Someone says, “I run the network” or “I run the hardware,” and I said, “I’m accountable for the employee technology experience at this company.” And my boss looked at me and said, “What job is that?” And I can tell you, that became a job. And that was the first time I became CIO. And so, we’ve got to do something about it; we have to create something. And at that company, they still use—I’ve left the company—and they still have the job, they still use the tools, they still use the systems. We have to create something, and add value. I don’t want a handout; and I want to be able to deliver value like everybody else in this room.
And so, we can reflect on the past, we can look at all the things that brought us here. But the thing I ask myself—and it’s posted up in my washroom, and I see it every day: “Do I want to be a prisoner of the past or a pioneer of the future?” Hands down, it will always be pioneer for me. Thanks for having me here today, Lori.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Oh, my pleasure, Claudette. And speaking of pioneers, I’ll hand it over to Jaqui. Jaqui Parchment, a retired CEO of Mercer Canada, the largest risk and insurance professional services firm in our country, led by a Black woman. So, she was definitely pioneering before she knew she was pioneering. But, my gosh, Jaqui, you know, did you have to work harder? What was your critical success factor? Share with everybody how you got to be at the top.
Jaqui Parchment, Board Director & Retired CEO, Mercer Canada
Well, thank you so much, Lori, for including me on this amazing panel. So, inspirational. I’m sitting here as part of the panel, but I’m also fangirling, and being inspired in real time by yourself, by Dr. Costen, and by Claudette. So, listen, you know, I’ll share a little bit of my career journey—because we don’t have a lot of time, and it’s relevant to the answer to your question. You know, I grew up in professional services, actuary by background, so one of a handful, literally, of Black students, talking about STEM, that studied mathematics at the University of Waterloo. Really, really proud of that background. Stepped into the workforce, immigrant parents, lots and lots of really smart Black women in my family. And I was almost always the only one at the table who looked like me. And as I got to be more and more senior, more and more the only. And I think there was something in that that made me question whether it was possible for a Black woman to have a certain position. Because I knew we were really smart; I had lots of smart women around me. But I never saw anyone who looked like us. And that led me to think that the bar was so high that maybe, I could never achieve it.
So, how did I, how did I overcome? For me, it was largely about people. People that I worked with, who were excellent, who supported my excellence, and sponsors—and I use that word very intentionally, instead of the word “mentor,” because a sponsor is someone that believes in you, that knows you well enough to believe in you, that will use their privilege to open doors for you, that will speak about you in rooms where you cannot be, yourself. And I was really fortunate to have sponsors who said, “Wow, you are, you would be so amazing for this job. Why aren’t you putting your hand up?” And my pattern was, I’m ashamed to say it, initially, I would let a job go by, and see someone else fill it, and then maybe, maybe second time around, I’d take it. After doing that a couple of times, I realized that I was more than capable, and I stepped up myself, and I took responsibility in myself. So, for me, my journey has been really enabled by people who helped, but it’s also been enabled by the people who worked with me. I think one of the things that I’ve been able to do that has been helpful is I think of myself as a bit of a talent-spotter and talent enabler. So, you never get there alone. And if you want to focus on what’s really going to matter, that’s going to move you forward in your career, you have to be able to trust and rely on people to do things around you that are going to support what you do. And so, for me, what’s been amazing, is to be able to look around at people who are excellent, who are not getting the opportunity, give them the opportunity, sponsor them myself, see them do great work, and be successful, and at the same time, make me look amazing—what could be better than that, right? You pull up, but you also get the support.
I want to touch really briefly on this issue of working harder. I worry, when we use that phrase. Because that, that speaks to, or can imply volume of work. What matters is being excellent, and doing the right work at the right time. So, when, of course, there’s a correlation to volume of work in that. But, you know, I’ve worked with people who will work 18 hours a day on something, and they achieve results that are not as good as the person working eight hours that’s really creative, and good hours. So, you know, don’t come to me and talk to me about, “I worked really late at night, and I didn’t get the promotion.” What did you achieve? What was the outcome? So, it’s, it’s output and not input that I’d ask everybody to think about. And as you progress in your career, and you have more and more choice about how to spend your time—because there’s an infinite number of things to do—understanding what the most important thing to do in a day that you’ve got to focus on, and letting other people do their jobs, and supporting them in their jobs, that is a really critical skill that I would encourage everyone to think about.
For me, as I became more senior, sometimes the most important thing in a day would be to represent our clients, represent our people on a stage. I’ll tell you one thing, one advantage of being the only Black woman is people are going to remember you. So, huge responsibility to make sure that you show up with excellence. And I would work very hard on it. So, thank you so much for, again, for allowing me to be on this amazing panel. And Lori, I’m turning it back to you.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Thank you, Jaqui. Fantastic. Lots of good takeaways for our audience. And now I’m gonna turn it back to Wanda. I mean, Wanda, you’re in such an influential position, not just because the first Black Dean of Business, but also, the role that you have for our youth. How do you create that resilience and tenaciousness that you have naturally, and help us help those on the phone today? Because it doesn’t just have to be students, it could be people in their careers, achieving for more. We’ve all heard it may not be work harder, Jaqui saying work smarter, Claudette is saying you got to have a strategy for your own personal success, however you define personal success. So, Wanda, help us, and help our audience, understand from your personal journey some key takeaways around resilience and excellence.
Dr. Wanda Costen
Yeah, I—thank you for that, Lori—and my colleagues are right on point, here. What you have to do is embrace what’s in front of you. You don’t know what’s possible until you do it, right? Oftentimes, I’m blessed to be in a room that is going to select the dean for a particular faculty. And I always have to remind the faculty, you do realize that you don’t know what it means to be a dean until you’re a dean, and that the person you’re looking for honestly goodness does not exist. That is not a human being, that has all those high qualifications, right? But what you want to do is you want to set yourself up—and I love the way Jaqui put it—with experiences that prepare you for the next step. So, I always tell people, care less about the actual job title; what kinds of task activities are you most passionate about? I think you know, Lori, because I talk about this a lot—for me, it’s all about impact. What is going to allow me to have the greatest impact on the largest number of people? That’s where I go. And then, I think about, very concretely, what skills, competencies, abilities, experiences do I need to have, to best prepare me for that role? And then you just keep going.
I read this book once—and a lovely student who was so inspired about it actually painted it for me, and it literally hangs in my office today: “Do the best you can with what you have, from where you are, and watch what happens.” Instead of wallowing around, and, oh, I didn’t get the—whatever. Go to work. Like, literally. Go. To. Work. What do you need to do to get better? But recognize, not everybody’s going to see you in that same light—particularly as a Person of Colour, particularly as a Black person, particularly as a woman or Black woman, right? Woman of Colour.
A great example of that is, I used to work for Aramark. Some of you may know, that’s a vendor services company, very large, global company. And I was the HR Director. And I had probably started with the company on the West Coast, and had probably been in the role about six months. And I was famous—thank you, Jaqui, for talking about this, and you too, Claudette—the notion of succession planning. Like, you have to be preparing your backfield. Because guess what? If you’re doing a great job—which we all do—you’re not leaving that job, without telling them who’s going to be your replacement. So, some of the reason we’re stuck is because we haven’t developed our backfield, and they’re not letting us leave. So, I have always prided myself on hiring the best talent, putting them to work, preparing them to grow, so that when I saw an opportunity, I want to go, “And by the way, three people here could do this job. Do you want this, this, this? Either of those three can do these things,” right? So, we were having that conversation with my colleagues—I was in HR at the time—and someone said out of the blue, “So, Wanda, okay, so what are your career aspirations?” Well, that was a big mistake, because I made the mistake of actually being honest, and telling them what I thought. And I said, “Well, my future aspiration is to be a Vice-President, and I think in three to five years, I’ll be a VP.” Well, oh my God, how could this woman say that? She’s only been here six months. We’re a global company.
Well, luck would have it, shortly thereafter, I have my one-on-one with my boss, the HR VP for the organization, who said to me, “Did you tell people that you were going to be a VP in three to five years?” I’m like, “Sure did.” Like, I didn’t even see what was wrong with it. Like, seriously, I did not understand what was wrong with it. Sometimes ignorance is a good thing. And he says, “You can’t tell people that.” I said, “Well, why not? They asked the question. I’m gonna tell the truth,” right? West Point. Duty, honour, country. Yeah, I’m going to tell you the truth. And so, he says, “Well, you know, there are, there are colleagues that you were talking to that have been in their jobs for 5 and 10 years.” “Yeah, that’s not my problem. I hope they’re fine with that. But I’m here to tell you—[this was my boss, sometimes, you know, youth, you just don’t know what you should be saying, so I literally say to him, well]— I’m here to tell you right now, if you think five years from now I’m gonna be in this job, that’s not true. I will no longer be with the company in five years, if you think that’s going to happen.” And he was just so taken aback. And I’m like, “I’m just, I’m just telling you now. This is what I want.” And of course, in two-and-a-half years, I was interviewing for VP jobs, right? But the courage it takes—I didn’t think of it as courage at the time, to be honest—but the courage it takes for you to say, I am aware of my skill set and the contributions I bring.
And I’m confident enough to know, as Jaqui said, I’m gonna work hard enough, or as Claudette says, I’m going to step up, I’m going to get busy, I’m going to do the work, that I know I’m going to be ready. The question is, will you have an opportunity? And if you don’t—I used to say this, even as a back fielder, “Well, I had a job before this one, didn’t I? I had a job afterwards. It’s all good,” right? But the courage—and Jaqui, thank you for being so, so vulnerable, I call that the “V Word,” to say you let jobs go because you didn’t believe that. We’ve all done that. I need people to know, don’t think Dean Costen doesn’t have Imposter Syndrome. Of course I do, right? It’s less now, because more and more success, you recognize, I have what it takes, right? But early on, we have Imposter Syndrome,because, first of all, no one’s ever been in that role that looks like us. So, that’s why being a role model is so important. And I do want to say with the young people today, everyone is a role model. So, if you’re in university, if you’re in high school—if you’re in high school, you should be looking at middle school and elementary school kids. If you’re in university, you should be going back to your, literally to your high school, every single break, and going in that room, and talking to people about, “Here’s what you need to do, here’s what I wish I’d learned, here’s what you need to prepare,” and invite them to your university to see what you do, and what it takes to be at that level. But we’re all role models, and we’re all mentors, and we just have to remember that. It’s not just people who are at key positions.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Wow, Wanda. That was some fantastic advice. And I love the word courage, as well, which we haven’t talked about. So, everybody listening, it takes courage. But also, you have to be ready. In closing, ladies, we’ll do a little speed dating, just quick final thoughts, each and every one of you. What do you want this audience to be left with, as a thinking point—if I can frame it as such—and before we open it up to a Q&A. Claudette, I’ll start with you.
Claudette McGowan
Yeah, I think the one thing I would share is around adversity. It doesn’t matter who you are, there’s eight billion people on earth, all of us are going to encounter adversity at some point in our life. What I’ve tried to do is let adversity fuel me. And to do that, you know, run the tape. Did I do everything right? Were the conditions right? Was the environment where it needed to be? Where could we get better? Every opportunity, I say, feedback is a gift. So, ask the questions, get the feedback, and recognize that we all have a role to play.
So, adversity doesn’t have to be a bad thing. And I think all of us went through some tough days—and we’re, we’re here, we’re standing, we’re telling you there’s light at the end of the tunnel. And this whole thing of the notion of the trailblazer, you know, yes, I can break through the ceiling, and yes, I’ve, you know, the glass is shattered. Well, guess what? I’m cut, I’m bruised, I’m bleeding, but I’m still standing. There’s this other side to being “The One,” and being the first, and creating the pathway and the trail, is that you will encounter that adversity. So, I don’t want anyone to think it’s easy days ahead. These six tips that you got are going to set you on a path of greatness without any kind of rough patches. But just know that you’ll get through it. And that thing that you’re feeling could be fear. And there’s this whole notion of reframing fear, the F, the E, the A, the R. And does it mean forget everything and run, or face everything and rise? Thank you.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
We are gonna face everything and rise based on that inspiration. Thank you, Claudette. Love it. Over to you, Wanda.
Dr. Wanda Costen
Thanks, Claudette. For me, I’m going to steal Nike, “Just Do It.” Just do it. What, I always say to myself, what’s the worst thing that could happen? And if I can deal with that, then just go. Because opportunities are going to come your way, just because you did that, right? People ask me, you know, why I came to Canada; I remind them: 2016. So, I came to Canada. But people were shocked by that. Like, I told people, like, “I’m leaving.” And they’re, “You’re really leaving?” “Yes.” Now, I didn’t know what I was going to find in Canada. I didn’t know if I honestly could be a Dean. I thought I could. I thought I had the skillset. So, I just did it. But if I don’t—and I want this, I want people to hear this: don’t think I wasn’t afraid. I mean, I literally drove from Arizona straight up to Edmonton. Edmonton, people. The frozen tundra. Like, I drove to Edmonton from Arizona—exactly, Jaqui’s face is like, what?
But listen, rest assured, I didn’t know what was going to be there. But I promise you this, I would not have the distinct honour and privilege of serving as the dean of one of the most prestigious Business Schools in Canada, the oldest business school in Canada, if I stayed in the United States. It doesn’t happen, right? So, you don’t know. So, that’s why I say, just do it. Just go and do something, and watch what happens. Say yes. You know, Shonda Rimes wrote that book, “The Year of Yes.” Say yes, and doors will open, opportunities will come your way, you just don’t know. When I graduated on [indiscernible] at West Point, on the 20th of May, 1986, if you had told me, at 60, that I’d be in this role, I would have laughed in your face. I would have. There’s no way I could have envisioned this opportunity. And a PhD? Like, yeah, no. I’m not doing that. Right? And yet, this is where I find myself. So, just say yes, go for it, and see what happens.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Fantastic, gosh. Jaqui?
Jaqui Parchment
All right. So, building on what both Claudette and Wanda said, themes of reframing fear and just doing it, I want everybody listening to this session to know that there’s no way, no way, to get rid of that little voice that comes to you sometimes, that says, “Can I do this?” Other than by doing stuff. Okay? So, I get asked all the time, “How do I get rid of that voice?” You just got to do stuff. So, similar to Wanda, if you had told me that I would have been CEO of a firm, you know, with revenue of close to half a billion dollars a year, and how could this immigrant girl from Jamaica think she could do that? Well, if that voice comes up in my head, I just think about all the other times that voice was in my head, in all the other jobs that I took, and all the other risks that I took. So, get used to taking risks, get used to just doing it. Because it’s like building muscle. That’s the only way you get there.
Maybe the final thing I want to say is we talk a lot about adversity and the difficulty of the journey. But I want everybody to know how much joy there is in the journey. Do not let anyone tell you that it is not fun to be a CEO. Zero chance of that. You know, to have a job that you love, where you get to make a difference, where you get to impact people’s lives, where you get to pull people along with you, that is amazing. To be able to make decent money, and start to set the groundwork, maybe, for some intergenerational wealth and equity, and give back to the causes you care about, that is amazing. And to make your family, and the people who did so much for you proud, and your community proud, and be able to be on stages with women like this? Come on. So, go for it.
QUESTION & ANSWER
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Oh my goodness, Jaqui, inspirational. We do have one question. But I do want to just frame that great advice. Because, you know, Claudette said, “adversity, and fear,” Wanda says “you just got to do it, overcome that fear, you belong in the room, you’ve achieved so many things to get there,” and then Jaqui says, “yeah, you’re bruised, and let me tell you from my career, it is lonely, so you’re alone by yourself—sometimes talking to yourself—but the joy of success makes that tough journey, those bruises, the scratches, the hurt, worth it. ” And I can’t wait for this next generation to stand on our three, collect—or four, I guess, including myself—collective shoulders for success. And the question that’s come up is: “Great, ladies. This is all fantastic, inspiring, wish I could have more of your time. But what needs to be done for sustainable change?” Wanda?
Dr. Wanda Costen
Yeah, that’s a, that’s a great question. I would say first and foremost is the recognition that Black Excellence exists. That we are, we’re not that rare, actually.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Yeah.
Dr. Wanda Costen
It’s the willingness to acknowledge the capabilities of the people that are in front of you. It also requires for senior leaders in corporations, HR departments, people who do recruitment, certainly in the post-secondary sector, that we ensure there is greater access to education. Let me be clear—I’m a sociologist: education is not the panacea we thought it was. It is not. We do a really nice job of social reproduction often, within high ed, right? However, you cannot get to where we are without an education. You cannot. Another one of Lincoln Alexander’s quotes was, “Life is not fair. Get an education.” I mean, his answer is literally, “Well, when you’re educated, they can’t take it.” My mom used to say that all the time, “You need to get it upstairs, because nobody can take that from you.” When you have the capacity intellectually, there is literally nothing you can’t do. So, make sure that you’re getting the grades, make sure that you’re studying—and it’s really less about the grades, it’s really about, can I walk out of a room and say, “I did my best”? Some days, honestly, my best is 60 percent; some days my best is 95 percent. But if I can look in the mirror and say, “I did my best today”? Move on. Move on. We’re human beings, right? So, that recognition of the role of education, the preparedness to ensure that you have what it takes academically, you’ve taking the right courses, you’ve developed the academic skillsets, and that you apply yourself to whatever vehicle you want—college, Polytech, university. It doesn’t matter. Get educated in a field that’s going to add value to you, about what you’re passionate about today.
Last thing for young people, everybody thinks, “I need to come out of university, and know what I’m going to do for the next 20, 30 years of my life.” All of us on this panel did not graduate and think that. We are not doing what we thought we’d be doing. And yet, we’re successful. The education just serves the foundation that allows you to grow, right? And keep it watered. Long live, long life, education.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Thank you, Wanda. Jaqui, and then Claudette, and then I’ll close.
Jaqui Parchment
Be a sponsor. I’m gonna keep it short and simple. If you—and by the way, it’s not just people who are super senior in an organization that can be a sponsor. You know, at one point, I left Mercer, which is a firm I retired from, went to work for a large global money manager. The person that brought me back to Mercer was the woman of Colour who had been my admin assistant before I left, who said, “There’s this amazing job opening up, you should go for it.” And then, she actually went and pushed her way into the existing CEO’s office, said, “Call her, and bring her back.” Two jobs later, I was CEO, okay? So, who do you think is amazing, that you can reach out and touch and help? And if you are in a more senior position, and you find yourself wondering every once a while, “Oh, there’s that amazing person there, I don’t understand why she’s not doing better.” Even if that person doesn’t look like you—especially, if that person doesn’t look like you—find a way to work with them, so that you can be their sponsor.
Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Fantastic. And Claudette?
Claudette McGowan
Yeah. I think what I would say is, you know, obviously, I spent two decades in corporate Canada, and now I’m on my own, as a CEO of Protexxa. And so, we have the decision, do we join a lane, or do we create a lane? And I think, for people who are looking for sustainability, what you can do is you can build it yourself. I had the joy of being at AfroTech. There were 25,000 people that look like us, who were doing amazing things in the world. Who do you surround yourself with? What are you creating? That’s how I believe you can make a difference.
Note of Appreciation by Lori-Ann Beausoleil
Fantastic. I think this audience has had a blessed day, given the information, the passion, the enthusiasm, the encouragement, that the three of you exhibited. My job was easy, moderating excellence. And I can assure you, the Empire Club, remember, 1903, 1924, is going to have a new video. And I can assure you, it’s going to look a lot different. And I can assure you that this historical panel—and I use the word historical panel—will be showcased. Because, ladies, excellence is in the room. But more importantly, we’re making a difference. Because we give our time.
And Andrew, our Lead Sponsor from Accelerate Auto, you care. I can assure you, this panel, we care. So, collectively, we are all going to make a difference because we care. Wildeboer Dellelce, who is our Supporting Sponsor—fantastic law firm that I actually happened to do some strategy work with—this is why you signed up to be part of this sponsorship, because it’s this conversation that we need to have more of on Bay Street.
In closing, it’s been an honour. And I have to smile, because you see in my background? I’m in Mississauga, Ontario; it looks like I’m in Hawaii, or somewhere, the sun is so bright. I’m going to say the elders are shining on us today. Because it doesn’t look like that outside, but we got this bright light coming through my back window. And I think today, if we go a full circle on our history, we came in as slaves, and today, we’re leading the economy through excellence. Thank you. And with that, we bring the panel to a close.
Concluding Remarks by Sal Rabbani
Thank you, thank you, Lori Beausoleil, Dr. Wanda Costen, Claudette McGowan, and Jaqui Parchment, for your gift of your time today. I’m humbled, and I’m honoured to have this opportunity to host today’s inspirational dialogue. Thanks again to our sponsors, Accelerate Auto, Wildeboer Dellelce, and everyone joining us online.
As a club of record, all Empire Club of Canada events are available to watch and listen to on demand on our website. A recording of this event will be available shortly, and everyone registered will receive an email with the link. Thanks again for joining us today. This meeting is now adjourned.
