Women's Executive Network Reveals Winners of 2012 Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards

TORONTO--(Marketwire - Dec 4, 2012) - Marking a decade of celebrating female leaders, the Women's Executive Network (WXN) revealed the recipients of the 10^th Annual Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards. Each year, these awards celebrate the professional achievements of women across the country in the private, public and not-for-profit sectors. On December 5 in Toronto, in addition to a celebratory gala for the Winners, WXN is also hosting a leadership Summit networking afternoon that aims to inspire women in leadership roles and the next generation of female leaders.

Since its inception 15 years ago, WXN has created and delivered innovative networking, mentoring, and professional and personal development opportunities for women in leadership roles, growing into a sizable community now 18,000 members strong across Canada and Ireland. What began 10 years ago as a means to celebrate and highlight the achievements of women in leadership roles, Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards has today become the country's premier Awards for recognizing women in leadership.

"When I reflect back on the last decade, it's really thrilling to note the accomplishments of each one of our 653 Top 100 Award Winners and the impact they have made -- and continue to make -- as female leaders," said Pamela Jeffery, Founder, Women's Executive Network. "We still have a way to go before women are fully represented in board rooms and the C-suite, but I hope that through WXN, we can continue to inspire and support the next generation of female leaders."

Co-presented by Scotiabank and KPMG, WXN has awarded an outstanding group of women this year from a variety of industries ranging from corporate executives and entrepreneurs to trailblazers and trendsetters changing the world with their professional contributions. This year, WXN celebrates a decade of the Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards, paying tribute to the 653 incredible women who have received this honour to date, including 88 of whom who have joined the Top 100 Hall of Fame. The complete list of 2012 Top 100 Award Winners can be found at top100women.ca

"We are honoured to sponsor the 10th anniversary of the Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Awards," said Sylvia Chrominska, Group Head, Global Human Resources and Communications for Scotiabank. "Hundreds of accomplished Canadian women have been profiled and honoured over the past decade of this unique recognition program and their examples of leadership have motivated thousands more to reach their own personal potential. Thank you WXN for your commitment to the advancement of women and congratulations to this year's WXN Top 100 honourees on your inspiring achievements."

"Yet again the WXN has delivered an amazing list of women who deserve to be acknowledged and applauded for their achievements," said Michael Bach, National Director of Diversity for KPMG. "KPMG continues to support the WXN and the Top 100 Awards in particular because it puts a spotlight on a group of amazing women. I agree that we still have a way to go, but these awards give us the opportunity to recognize and celebrate the ones who are leading the way."

On December 5 at the Sheraton Centre Toronto, the Top 100 Award Winners will lead WXN's afternoon leadership Summit, appropriately themed "An Afternoon of Inspired Leadership," where they will offer insight to the more than 400 women in attendance. They will then be celebrated at the Top 100 Awards 10th Annual Gala Dinner that evening. Gala attendees will hear from Laureen Harper, who will present the Public Sector Leaders Award category, as well as from keynote speakers Jeanne Beker, entrepreneur and TV personality, and Bonnie Brooks, Hudson's Bay Company President and CEO. 

The 10^th Annual 2012 Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Award Winners are:
SUN LIFE FINANCIAL ARTS & COMMUNICATIONS (5)

• Jeanne Beker, Host, FashionTelevisionChannel (ON)
• Carolle Brabant, Executive Director, Telefilm Canada (QC)
• Catherine Cano, Managing Partner, NATIONAL Public Relations (ON)
• Wendy Freeman, President, CTV News, Bell Media (ON)
• Kevin Garland, Executive Director, The National Ballet of Canada (ON)

RBC CHAMPIONS (9)

• Jane Allen, Partner; Global Leader, Renewable Energy; and Chief Diversity Officer, Canada, Deloitte (ON)
• Clare Beckton, Founding Executive Director, Carleton University Centre for Women in Politics and Public Leadership (ON)
• Dominique Dionne, VP, Corporate Affairs, Xstrata Nickel (ON)
• Martha Fell, CEO, Women in Capital Markets (ON)
• Fiona Macfarlane, Chief Inclusiveness Officer & Vancouver Office Managing Partner, Ernst & Young LLP (BC)
• Stephanie MacKendrick, President, Canadian Women in Communications (ON)
• Cybele Negris, President & Co-Founder, Webnames.ca Inc. (BC)
• Lynn Posluns, Founder & Chair, Women of Baycrest (ON)
• Elizabeth Watson, President & Founder, WATSON (BC)

ACCENTURE CORPORATE DIRECTORS (5)

• Dr. Gail Cook-Bennett, Chair of the Board, Manulife Financial (ON)
• Maureen Kempston Darkes, Corporate Director, Canadian National Railway, Brookfield Asset Management, Irving Oil, Enbridge Inc., and Balfour Beatty plc (ON)
• Isabelle Marcoux, Chair of the Board, Transcontinental Inc. (QC)
• Eileen Mercier, Corporate Director, CGI Group Inc., Intact Financial Corporation, Teekay Shipping Corporation and University Health Network (ON)
• Deborah Rosati, Corporate Director, Sears Canada (ON)

SCOTIABANK CORPORATE EXECUTIVES (23)

• Dr. Amiee Chan, President & CEO, Norsat International Inc. (BC)
• Trudy Curran, SVP, General Counsel & Corporate Secretary, Canadian Oil Sands Ltd. (AB)
• Cynthia Devine, CFO, Tim Hortons Inc. (ON)
• Laura Dottori-Attanasio, Global Head, Corporate Credit Products, CIBC (ON)
• Andrea Goertz, SVP, Strategic Initiatives, TELUS (AB)
• Judy Goldring, EVP & COO, AGF Management Ltd. (ON)
• Marianne Hasold-Schilter, EVP & CAO, International Banking, Scotiabank (ON)
• Sandra Hokansson, President & Country Manager, Adecco Employment Services Ltd. (ON)
• Lynn Jeanniot, EVP, HR and Corporate Affairs, National Bank (QC)
• Marie-Josée Lamothe, CMO & CCO, L'Oréal Canada (QC)
• Lisa Lisson, President, FedEx Express Canada (ON)
• Sheri Lucas, CFO & EVP, Finance, SaskCentral (SK)
• Lorraine Mitchelmore, President & Canada Country Chair & VP, Exploration Americas Onshore Shell Canada Limited (AB)
• Leslie O'Donoghue, EVP, Operations, Agrium (AB)
• Jane O'Hagan, EVP & CMO, Canadian Pacific (AB)
• Kerry Peacock, EVP, Direct Investing, TD Bank Group (ON)
• Jane Rowe, SVP, Teachers' Private Capital, Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan (ON)
• Launi Skinner, CEO, First West Credit Union (BC)
• Cheryl Smith, EVP, Consumer & Trade Marketing, Parmalat Canada (ON)
• Lynda Sullivan, EVP & Controller, Manulife Financial (ON)
• Mary Ann Turcke, EVP, Field Operations, Bell Canada (ON)
• Helen Wesley, EVP, Corporate Services, Talisman Energy Inc. (AB)
• Zoë Yujnovich, President & CEO, Iron Ore Company of Canada (QC)

CIBC ENTREPRENEURS (5)

• Sally Daub, President & CEO, ViXS Systems Inc. (ON)
• Karen Flavelle, Owner & CEO, Purdy's Chocolates (BC)
• Dr. Wendy Lisogar-Cocchia, CEO, Century Plaza Hotel and Absolute Spa Group (BC)
• Heather Reisman, Founder & CEO, Indigo Books & Music Inc. (ON)
• Lise Watier, Founder & President, Lise Watier Cosmétiques (QC)

TELUS FUTURE LEADERS (5)

• Yael Cohen, Founder & President, F*** Cancer (BC)
• Emilie Cushman, President, Students in Free Enterprise - SIFE Windsor (ON)
• Lauren Friese, Founder, TalentEgg inc. (ON)
• Kanika Gupta, Founder & Chief Catalyst, SoJo (ON)
• Bailey Vaez, Founder & President, Proactive Movement Inc. (ON)

KPMG PROFESSIONALS (12)

• Susan Barber, Partner, McDougall Gauley LLP (SK)
• Linda Bertoldi, Senior Partner & Chair, National Electricity Markets Group, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (ON)
• Shelley Brown, Partner, Deloitte & Touche LLP (BC)
• Jane Caskey, Global Practice Leader - Intellectual Property, Partner, Lawyer, Trade-mark Agent, Norton Rose Canada LLP (ON)
• Madeleine Chenette, Partner & Chair of the Board, KPMG Secor (QC)
• Lisa Kimmel, General Manager, Edelman Public Relations, Toronto (ON)
• Shannon MacDonald, Atlantic Practice Managing Partner, Deloitte & Touche LLP (NS)
• Mary Lou Maher, CFO/CAO, KPMG LLP (ON)
• Karen McBride, President & CEO, Canadian Bureau for International Education (ON)
• Rosemary McCarney, President & CEO, Plan Canada (ON)
• Monique Mercier, SVP, Chief Legal Officer & Corporate Secretary, TELUS (BC)
• Kim Thomassin, Managing Partner, Québec Region and Partner, McCarthy Tétrault (QC)

PUBLIC SECTOR LEADERS (18)

• Bonnie Adamson, President & CEO, London Health Sciences Centre (ON)
• Melanie Aitken, Commissioner of Competition, Competition Bureau Canada (QC)
• Karen Branscombe, Superintendent, New Brunswick School District 02 (NB)
• Janice Charette, Associate Secretary to the Cabinet and Deputy Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, Privy Council Office of Canada (ON)
• Connie Fair, President & CEO, BC Assessment (BC)
• Terri Harris, Chief of Operations, Premier's Office, Executive Council, Government of Saskatchewan (SK)
• Kim Henderson, Deputy Minister, Labour, Citizens' Services and Open Government, Province of British Columbia (BC)
• Irene Lewis, President & CEO, SAIT Polytechnic (AB)
• Dr. Deborah MacLatchy, VP, Academic & Provost, Wilfrid Laurier University (ON)
• Dr. Barbara Paterson, Dean, School of Nursing, Thompson Rivers University (BC)
• Maureen Piercy, President, Loyalist College (ON)
• Geri Prior, CFO, Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (BC)
• Anne Sado, President, George Brown College (ON)
• Dr. Daphne Taras, Dean, Edwards School of Business, University of Saskatchewan (SK)
• Christyne Tremblay, Deputy Minister, Ministère du Développement économique, de l'Innovation et de l'Exportation, Gouvernement du Québec (QC)
• Dr. Catharine Whiteside, Dean, Faculty of Medicine & Vice-Provost, Relations with Health Care Institutions, University of Toronto (ON)
• Debra Woodgate, Commissioner of the Manitoba Civil Service Commission, Government of Manitoba (MB)
• Susan Yurkovich, EVP, Site C Clean Energy Project, BC Hydro (BC)

XSTRATA NICKEL TRAILBLAZERS AND TRENDSETTERS (18)

• Stacey Allaster, Chairman & CEO, Women's Tennis Association (FL, USA)
• Dr. Kimberley Amirault-Ryan, Performance Consultant, Canadian Olympic Committee, Edmonton Oilers & Kimberley Amirault PH.D Inc. (AB)
• Sepanta Dorri, General Manager, Business Development Xstrata Nickel (ON)
• Gail Edwards, President, JH Investments Inc. (BC)
• Kathy Gregory, Founding President & CEO, Paradigm Quest Inc. (ON)
• Lia Grimanis, Founder, Up With Women (ON)
• Clara Hughes, Olympian (MB)
• Isabelle Hudon, President, Sun Life Financial, Québec (QC)
• Brenda Kenny, President & CEO, Canadian Energy Pipeline Association (AB)
• Amanda Lindhout, Founder & Executive Director, Global Enrichment Foundation (AB)
• Karen Meades, President, Ottawa Health Services Network Inc. (ON)
• Noella Milne, Senior Partner, Borden Ladner Gervais LLP (ON)
• Vivian Prokop, CEO, Canadian Youth Business Foundation (ON)
• Dr. Janice Ristock, Vice-Provost (Academic Affairs) and Professor, Women's & Gender Studies Program, University of Manitoba (MB)
• Dr. Cheryl Rockman-Greenberg, Professor and Head, Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, University of Manitoba (MB)
• Barbara Stegemann, Author & CEO, The 7 Virtues Beauty Inc. (NS)
• Catherine Swift, Chair, President & CEO, Canadian Federation of Independent Business (ON)
• Ilse Treurnicht, CEO, MaRS Discovery District (ON)

WXN HALL OF FAME (5)

• Debra Hewson, President & CEO, Odlum Brown Ltd. (BC)
• Zabeen Hirji, Chief Human Resources Officer, Royal Bank of Canada (ON)
• Anne-Marie Hubert, Managing Partner, Advisory Services, Ernst & Young LLP (QC)
• Debra Kelly-Ennis, President & CEO, Diageo Canada Inc. (ON)
• Sue Paish, CEO, Pharmasave Drugs (National) Ltd. (BC)

Top 100 Awards enjoys a strong commitment from corporate supporters. For a complete list of Partners, click here http://www.top100women.ca/?w=top100.toronto.

About the Women's Executive Network (WXN)
At WXN, we inspire smart women to lead. WXN creates and delivers innovative networking, mentoring, professional and personal development to inform, inspire, connect and recognize our community of 18,000 smart women and their organizations in the pursuit of excellence. WXN enables our Partners and Corporate Members to become and to be recognized as employers of choice and leaders in the advancement of women.

Founded in 1997, WXN is Canada's leading organization dedicated to the advancement and recognition of women in management, executive, professional and board roles. WXN is a Founding Member of the Canadian Board Diversity Council, dedicated to increasing the diversity of Canada's corporate boards. In the fall of 2008, WXN launched in Ireland, a first step in creating an international community of female leaders.

In June 2012, WXN Founder, Pamela Jeffery was named the only Canadian resident to Fast Company's 2012 League of Extraordinary Women, in the leadership category. In its inaugural year, the League of Extraordinary Women recognized 60 women from the world's largest companies, innovative start-ups, philanthropic organizations, government and arts for their dedication to changing the lives of women and girls everywhere. WXN is the only Canadian-based organization on the list. Other Charter members include Hilary Clinton and Melinda Gates.

As individuals, we can inspire and be inspired. To our community of members and Partners, we thank you for inspiring WXN to lead. 

More information and details are available at wxnetwork.com or top100women.ca.