What do you do and what is it about your job that gets you out of bed in the morning?
At Equifax, I work with governments across Canada to help them utilize data, insights and analytics to make policy decisions more data driven. We also have fraud and authentication solutions that tend to work well for government departments administering social assistance programs. We are a member of DIACC and I am a Co-Chair of the Outreach Committee this year. We’re focused on getting lots of identity content out, on topics that might need more explaining like facial recognition technology, for example. It gets me out of bed in the morning because I enjoy the people I am working with and these are problems I really enjoy solving.
How did you get to where you are today?
That is a long story. My Dad was (and still is) the Mayor of the small town I grew up in, so I quite literally grew up in politics. In university, my desire to understand how governments worked was strong so I started doing internships. I got hired at Queen’s Park as my first job out of university and ended up in the Ministry of Finance. That led me to the financial services sector where I first got introduced to the world of identity and authentication as more transactions started happening online.
What is the most important lesson you have learned along the way?
My degree is in Environmental Policy so I always felt like I didn’t belong in financial services or technology. The most important lesson I have learned along the way is that hard work and a strong willingness to learn and execute is just as important as credentials. Work hard, have a growth mindset, and don’t be intimidated.
What’s your pitch to CEOs in the identity space? What do you suggest they START /STOP / CONTINUE doing and why?
There are a lot of solutions out there today and the sector is evolving so fast. What we are starting to do really well and need to continue to do is collaborate. I have been part of many co-pitches now
and it is really fun.
What we need to start to focus on more is how do we better reach the general public and build trust? That’s not any one person or organization’s role, but it is a focus of the DIACC outreach committee because we believe that education will help adoption.
Communication is so important, and one thing I think we should stop doing is speaking too technically about product benefits and features. Let’s talk instead about values and solving customers problems. Identity solves so many customer problems and it will help people and organizations connect the dots.
In one sentence, why does diversity matter to you?
We need different perspectives around the table in order to make informed decisions.
What book/film/piece of art would you recommend to your fellow members?
I recently read The Choice by Dr. Edith Eva Edger. She is a psychologist and one of the last remaining Holocaust survivors. It is one of those life changing books. Although the book is about struggle and suffering, it is an inspiration.
What advice would you give to the teenage ‘you’?
Don’t limit yourself to things that you know, accept failure as part of the skill development process.
Where can we find you on social media?