A Year in Review - Inspiring Female Leaders | School of Accounting and Finance

The last 18 months have been challenging to say the least, for individuals as much as it has been for organizations and businesses. By December 2020, Canada and much of the world were optimistic that communities and businesses would be transitioning back to some semblance of a pre-pandemic environment come 2021. In anticipation of a return to normalcy, the SAF launched a weekly alumni story series to celebrate and acknowledge our alums for their leadership in pivoting their teams and organizations through and beyond the pandemic.

Reflecting on this past year, the stories we’ve told of the successes of our alums have not only celebrated their leadership, adaptability, and courage, but the stories have also served as inspiration and benchmarks for the resiliency of human nature and what can be done when you’re given the right tools, opportunities, and education to meet and surpass uncertainties and challenges head-on.

I invite you to peruse the SAF Alumni Story Series to find insight and your inspiration to make a positive impact, regardless of how small or big, for yourself, your team, and your organization.

Patty Mah
Associate Director, Communications & External Relations

Inspiring Female Leaders

For the week of December 6^th, we’re revisiting stories to celebrate the powerful women who inspire and motivate through the leadership and actions they take. In this round-up are stories of SAF women who face and overcome challenges head-on; advocate for equity, inclusion, and sustainability; and have successfully balanced work and life, all while effectively pivoting and leading their teams and organizations through and beyond a global pandemic.

COVID-19 has spotlighted the issue of gender equality regression with lots of research having been published on the topic. The courage and leadership demonstrated in these stories provide positive lessons to create an assertive effort in all career fields for compassion, empathy, and eventually elimination of gender disparity.

SAF invites you to stay engaged and connected so that together we can continue to build equity and diversity within our teams and organizations and to be inclusive of all equity-seeking groups.

A conversation with Shana Laurie de Hernandez (MAcc’98, PwC Audit Partner and Chair of the Supervisory Board of PwC Europe) sheds light on the impact that the pandemic has had on women’s participation in the workforce.

In the span of only a few months, a large number of women have lost their jobs, lost advancement opportunities, or have voluntarily dropped out of the workforce. According to a new study from the Royal Bank of Canada, women's participation in the labour force has reached its lowest level in 30 years due to COVID-19.

Cousins Elaine Lee (BA ’03, pictured second) and Michelle Lam (BA ’01, MAcc ’01, pictured first)spent their university days together. Both were accepted into the Accounting and Financial Management (AFM) program and became roommates, supporting one other through their studies and university life. SAF caught up with the two to reminisce about their academic and career paths.

As the global pandemic enters its second year, research is showing women with children are spending significantly more time in caregiving and housework than their male counterparts. This is true in the corporate and service worlds as it is in academia. This is also true for dual-career couples in which women still bear the larger burden of what is traditionally accepted as “women’s work.”

Christine Wiedman (MAcc ’88), professor with the School of Accounting and Finance (SAF), highlights the current disparity between genders as it specifically pertains to performance on the job.

COVID-19 has seen entire industries retooling their production to make personal protection equipment (PPE) for frontline healthcare workers. With all the PPE that’s being produced, Purolator Canada was the logistics company selected by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Federal Government to deliver the PPE to hospitals across the country.

Julia Klann (MAcc ’05) is one of the lucky few who knew exactly what they wanted to do after graduating from university. From her co-op experience at Big 4 accounting firms, she developed an affinity for working in tax early on – Canadian tax that is. It was when she was searching for her final co-op work term that she came across a role focused on U.S. tax – a realm she wasn’t as familiar with. She made the leap, and from that moment on fell in love with U.S. tax and never looked back.

Two points Susan Uthayakumar (MAcc ’95) wants to make clear: Sustainability is not just a trend, and climate change is not an ‘if’ but a ‘when’. As president of the Global Sustainability Business Division at Schneider Electric, Uthayakumar advocates for diversity and green practices in business to not only save our environment but to stay relevant in the marketplace.

A Year in Review - Inspiring Female Leaders

Inspiring Female Leaders

Women left behind in the wake of COVID-19

Accounting and finance runs in the family for these two SAF grads

Advocating for positive change in gender disparity

Alumni leads courier service in delivering PPE to frontline healthcare workers

Specializing in U.S. Corporate Tax Lets This Alum Travel the World

Why prioritizing sustainability benefits your bottom line

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