BCBusiness

bcbusiness.ca june 2015 BCBusiness 39 Debra Hewson (a) President and CeO, Odlum Brown Ltd. influenCe: Hewson leads a team of more than 200 employees at storied Vancouver investment firm Odlum Brown (with more than $9 billion in assets under administration) and is a sought-out mentor. faCtOid: In 2012, Hewson was honoured with the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal. Fiona Macfarlane (b) Managing partner (Vancouver and Western Canada) and chief inclusiveness officer, Ernst & Young LLP influenCe: The South African native has drawn upon her experience grow- ing up in a country divided to help make both her industry and her company, one of Canada's largest professional services firms, a friendlier, more-collabor- ative place to work. faCtOid: Macfarlane was named managing partner of EY's Canadian tax practice in 2005–the first woman among the big four accounting firms to hold such a position. Tamara Vrooman (c) President and CeO, Vancity influenCe: Vrooman has shaped fiscal policy at both a private and public level–serving as B.C.'s deputy minister of finance from 2004 to 2007 and as leader of Canada's largest community credit union. faCtOid: Vrooman is cozy with world leaders, having participated in both the Pope's 2014 Vatican Sum- mit on The Global Common Good and the Dalai Lama's Heart-Mind Summit, also in 2014, in Vancouver. Carol Newell (d) founding investor and principal, Renewal Partners influenCe: Renewal Part- ners has been at the leading edge of B.C.'s booming social venture capital movement, and it never would have happened without Newell's money and passion. faCtOid: Among the Renewal investments: Happy Planet juices, SPUD grocery delivery service and Salt Spring Island Coffee. Catherine Dorazio (e) Vice-president, Connor, Clark & Lunn Private Capital Ltd. influenCe: The first (and only) female partner at Connor, Clark & Lunn– Canada's largest investment counselling firm, with $51 billion in assets–Dorazio is a coveted speaker and media expert on investment issues. the Panel says: "She's newer to the scene but hugely involved in char- ity–and she's created her whole practice around the creation of wealth for nonprofits and families." Launi Skinner (f) CeO, First West Credit Union influenCe: Skinner–a for- mer president of Starbucks U.S., where she oversaw 7,000 company-owned stores and 3,400 licensed stores–has led First West since 2010 and helped transform the organization into another made-in-B.C. credit union success story with $10 billion in assets under administration and 240,000 members. faCtOid: Skinner was one of "Four Women to Watch" in a 2007 Fortune magazine feature. Valerie Mann (g) Managing partner, Lawson Lundell LLP influenCe: As manag- ing partner at Lawson Lundell–one of Western Canada's top business law firms–Mann is B.C.'s go-to legal expert on a variety of topics, from venture capital financing to outsourcing, e-commerce and more. faCtOid: Before getting into law in 1991, Mann was a product manager for Pep- siCo's Quaker Oats brand. Tracey McVicar (h) Managing partner, CAI Capital Management influenCe: In addition to running the private equity group's western opera- tions, McVicar is a popular and influential board direc- tor, having served for seven years with BC Hydro and, since last November, with Teck Resources. faCtOid: McVicar is a prodigious fundraiser: her annual Golf for Good tourna- ment has raised more than $1 million in the past eight years to support women's and children's causes. Sandra Stuart (i) President and CeO, HSBC Bank Canada influenCe: Stuart started with HSBC in 1982, rising through the ranks to become CEO of the bank's Canadian subsidiary this month. HSBC is the only major bank headquartered in B.C.–and the only one with a woman chief executive. the Panel says: "HSBC Canada has been the first bank within its entire net- work to create LGBT pro- grams–not just for diversity but for marketing. She was the first one to bring those things to the forefront." Lisa Vogt (j) Partner, chief diversity and engagement officer, McCarthy Tétrault LLP influenCe: Vogt has been a groundbreaking presence in Canada's legal community–leading the national giant's real estate practice from Vancouver (a rarity in Toronto-centric legal circles) while raising five kids and becoming a national voice on diversity. the Panel says: "Her client list alone and the people she works with show her influence." Brenda Leong (k) Chair and CeO, BC Secu- rities Commission influenCe: Leong directs the agency responsible for overseeing the exchange of securities in this province, making her an important figure in ensuring that Vancouver doesn't return to its "scam capital of the world" days. faCtOid: There are more than 1,100 B.C.-based venture companies, representing about half of the companies listed on the TSX-Venture Exchange. f in a nc i a l+p rof e s s ion a l s e r v ic e s (a) (g) (b) (h) (c) (i) (d) (j) (e) (k) (f)

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