Women in Leadership 2026
Leadership, Legacy & Impact
On June 1st, 430 business leaders gathered for Women in Leadership, a night celebrating women who shape and build our community, and whose collective impact extends across our country.
The theme of the evening was reinvention, and we talked about the moments in life that led to reinvention, whether through the dismantling of a previous life or simply the need for renewal and personal growth that calls us to evolve into new versions of ourselves.
The evening was a powerful celebration of leadership, innovation, resilience, and impact. We were proud to welcome an extraordinary panel of leaders who shared their insights, experiences, and perspectives. We were also honoured to recognise outstanding women whose contributions continue to create meaningful change in our communities.
A special thank you to our Title Sponsor, Nicola Wealth, for their partnership and commitment to advancing women in leadership.
To our speakers, award recipients, sponsors, partners, volunteers, and every guest who joined us, thank you for making this event such an inspiring and memorable evening. Together, we celebrated achievement, amplified powerful voices, and reaffirmed the importance of creating opportunities for women to lead, innovate, and leave a lasting legacy.
EVENT HIGHLIGHTS
PANEL CONVERSATION
PHOTO GALLERY
Women In Leadership Legacy Impact Awards
Legacy Impact Award for investment in women-led and women-founded companies
Tracey McVicar
Partner at CAI Capital Partners
“I made a very good gain on a female-owned business. I phoned the founder and said, ‘I’m going to recycle all this money into women-owned businesses.’ I turned that one investment into 20 investments.”
Tracey McVicar leads CAI Capital Partners, a Vancouver-based private equity firm. Over the course of her career, she has played a leading role in Canada’s private equity landscape, backing founders and building successful companies across multiple sectors. Through her work and mentorship, Tracey has also been a strong champion of women entrepreneurs, investing in and supporting women-led businesses and helping to expand access to capital and opportunity for the next generation of female leaders.
Nanon de Gaspé Beaubien-Mattrick
Co-President at MdGB Capital Inc.
“It was harder for women to build networks. Harder to have doors opened. Harder to find advisors. Harder to find sponsors. Harder to raise financing. It was just harder. It’s about the person—their creativity, their willingness to work hard. Those are the people who give you the best chance of success.”
Nanon Mattrick has spent more than three decades at the intersection of capital, community, and opportunity. As Co-President of MdGB Capital, which she co-founded in 1991 with her husband Don, she has supported early-stage technology companies in Silicon Valley and British Columbia through investment, mentorship, and entrepreneurial growth. She later founded Beehive Holdings, an angel fund backing diverse founding teams, and co-founded Maison Homes, a boutique real estate development company building luxury and multifamily residences across BC.
Throughout her career, Nanon has championed women entrepreneurs and leaders, particularly in sectors where they remain underrepresented. She currently serves on the board of Photonic, a Vancouver-based quantum computing company, and actively supports women across the arts and innovation.
A graduate of Harvard College and Harvard Business School, Nanon has also been a vocal advocate for advancing women’s health research and closing systemic gaps in care, with a focus on healthspan, equity, and long-term wellbeing.
Legacy Impact Award for philanthropic impact benefitting women
Cindy Beedie
Executive Director at Beedie Foundation
“Trying to rebuild the fabric of society and the scaffolding to support society is really the best thing that we can all do to make a difference in the world.”
Cindy Beedie is a Vancouver philanthropic leader and Executive Director of the Beedie Foundation, where she focuses on initiatives that expand opportunity for vulnerable communities, particularly women and families. She has championed projects that support education, housing, and economic independence, including the creation of Cindy Beedie Place, which offers affordable housing for single mothers and their children. Through both her leadership and personal philanthropy, Cindy has worked to create pathways to stability and opportunity for women facing significant barriers.
Andrea Thomas Hill
Chair of ARON Foundation, Founder and Chair of Cause We Care Foundation
“I was going through the Downtown Eastside and seeing these families, seeing moms with their babies in strollers… I was compelled at the time to do something for women that needed a little bit of a hand up. You can’t do anything alone, but if you can generate enough interest and enthusiasm for people who have capacity to do something—and that doesn’t necessarily mean money, it’s the interest and the time—you can really change things. You can really make a difference.”
Andrea Thomas Hill is a Vancouver philanthropist, the chair of the ARON Foundation and the founder and chair of the Cause We Care Foundation, a charity dedicated to supporting single mothers and their children living in poverty for the past twenty years. Earlier in her career, she launched Canada’s first Run for the Cure, which grew into a national movement that raised millions for breast cancer research. Through Cause We Care, Andrea has mobilized community and corporate support to provide housing, education funding, and essential resources that help single mothers achieve stability and independence.
Legacy Impact Award for creating community and opportunity for women inside and outside the workplace
Jen Murtagh
Co-Founder of Maturn
“There’s a huge ripple effect in supporting women. When women feel healthy and happy and are able to continue growing in their careers while navigating these key life stages, they’re more likely to stay, grow, and lead.”
Jen Murtagh is the co-founder of Maturn and an executive leadership coach dedicated to advancing women’s leadership and well-being through every stage of life, including fertility, maternity leave, motherhood, and menopause. A former C-suite executive, she is widely recognized for championing women in leadership, advocating for more inclusive workplaces, and building communities that support women both professionally and personally. Through her leadership and philanthropic work, Jen has helped raise millions of dollars for initiatives advancing women’s health, gender equity, and life-saving research. A heart disease survivor and advocate for women’s heart health, she also uses her voice and platform to raise awareness of the cardiovascular risks women face and to drive meaningful change both inside and outside the workplace.
Changemaker Award
Christine Amuge
Holistic Counselor
“One of our greatest needs is to belong. We need it to survive. So when the people you’ve come to know and love just throw you away like that, it puts a certain level of hurt in your soul…I took myself back to school, and I’m very proud of that cuz I did that on my own, and I graduated, and I’m a therapist now.”
Born and raised in Uganda, Christine is a trained therapist with a deep commitment to helping others. In late 2017, she immigrated to Canada alone. As a 2SLGBTQAI+ activist, she faced real danger at home. Arriving with limited resources and no legal status, Christine sought refuge at Covenant House Vancouver, where she found safety, support, and hope. Through determination, she began rebuilding her life, working toward independence and a brighter future.
Christine studied at Rhodes Wellness College, where she earned a professional counselling diploma and a life-skills certification. She is currently a Registered Therapeutic Counsellor (RTC) Candidate with the Association of Cooperative Counselling Therapists of Canada and is working toward full RTC designation. Her training includes trauma-informed practice, basic counselling, youth and family counselling, Cognitive Behavioural Therapy, Dialectical Behavioural Therapy, as well as narrative and somatic therapies.
Combined with her lived experience, Christine’s training enables her to support clients in navigating their lives with greater awareness, intention, and self-understanding. Her approach is holistic, culturally informed, and grounded in empowering clients to move forward with confidence.
A lifelong creative, Christine has also explored expressive outlets, finding opportunities to model, dance, and work in the local film industry. Today, she is a youth worker at Covenant House Vancouver, where she regularly draws on her own experiences to connect with and support others.
Panelists
Dr. Stephanie Simmons
Founder and Chief Quantum Officer, Photonic Inc.
“You have to force yourself into moments of discomfort if you really want to stretch. Everything is intimidating until it’s boring.”
As the founder of Photonic, Stephanie, an Oxford-trained PhD physicist, is one of the few women in “Deep Tech.” Already, she has secured a partnership with Microsoft and investments from RBC, TELUS and BC Investment Management.
Dr. Stephanie Simmons is the Founder and Chief Quantum Officer at Photonic, driving the technical vision for next-generation quantum technologies based on optically-linked silicon spin qubits. She is a world-leading expert in quantum technologies, silicon spin-photon interfaces, condensed matter spin dynamics and control, silicon-integrated photonics, and quantum optics.
Stephanie is co-chair of the advisory board to Canada’s National Quantum Strategy, a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in Silicon Quantum Technologies, and a Canadian Institute for Advanced Research Fellow in Quantum Information Science. She is also an Associate Professor at the Department of Physics at Simon Fraser University (SFU).
Stephanie is an international speaker, Arthur B. McDonald Fellowship winner, and Top 40 Under 40 in Canada honoree, with over 30 publications and numerous patents. Her work on developing CMOS-compatible, scalable quantum technologies won the Physics World Top Ten Breakthrough of the Year in 2013 and 2015.
→ Click here to read SPOKEN’s feature article on Dr. Simmons
Dawn Jia
CEO/CIO, UBC Investment Management
“Reinvention doesn’t have to happen when you are faced with a cliff. It can be a constant series of small reinventions. You build the muscle. You build the confidence that you can step outside of your comfort zone. You can learn and adapt. You can develop new skills.”
Manages $7 billion in assets for UBC, having previously held some of Canada’s most prestigious investment roles. Dawn began in Engineering in China, worked in Toronto and New York (State Street and Barclays) before moving to Vancouver 7 years ago.
As the President and CEO of UBC Investment Management Inc. (UBCIM), Dawn Jia is responsible for the overall investment activities and monitoring of the portfolios under UBCIM’s oversight. She also oversees the operations of UBCIM and provides strategic and operating objectives to the organization. Prior to joining UBCIM, Dawn was a Managing Director at the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB). At CPPIB, Dawn and her team were responsible for ensuring that the total portfolio delivered on its overall mandate, by rebalancing it to the desired systematic exposures.
Before Dawn joined CPPIB in 2013, she was Vice President and Head of Active Equity for North America at State Street Global Advisors. Previously, she was an equity portfolio manager at Barclays Global Investors and a quantitative strategist at CIBC World Markets.
Dawn serves on the Board of Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC). She is also the Vice Chair of the Board of Canadian Coalition for Good Governance (CCGG). Previously, she served on the Vancouver Foundation Board and the Investment Committee of Ontario Hospital Association (OHA). Dawn is a founding member of the Advisory Board of Western University’s Master of Financial Economics Program.
Dawn received her MBA from the Ivey Business School and an MS in Engineering from Tianjin University in China. She is also a CFA charterholder.
Sasha Plavsic
Founder, ILIA Beauty
Featured on The Failure Factor podcast
“When something so severe happens, it’s like everything stops. It starts to make you question what is important. If we can stop and just sit in it for a minute and ask, ‘What matters?’ I think it helps create clear priorities for what you want, which will ultimately bring you more happiness and peace. It teaches you how to be resilient. It teaches you how to be humble.”
Founded clean beauty company, ILIA Beauty, from the ground up in Vancouver. ILIA was acquired by Famille C, the French parent company of Clarins.
Sasha Plavsic explored the idea of ILIA after struggling with acne and other skin issues back in 2009. She sought to fill the gap between natural and prestige brands with something new and different. This new category did not have a name yet, but the goal was clear: to create makeup that makes your skin better.
In 2011, Sasha launched ILIA Beauty with six lip tints in a small shop in Vancouver, Canada. She continued to expand her range with a product-first approach and a mission to protect and revive the skin. ILIA is recognized as a leader in the clean makeup space with products that make your skin look and feel alive. The brand views skincare and makeup as one, with impressive clinicals that improve skin both immediately and over time. Daily essentials are
designed to instantly refresh the skin, and add vibrancy with vivid washes of colour. It’s makeup that looks like the real you and celebrates raw, unfiltered beauty.
Abi Coman-Walker
COO, Nicola Wealth Management
“My moments of reinvention have often been moments where I have felt less powerful—powerless—and then stepped into that power to reinvent myself. You have to be aware of your own power, your own bravery, your own resources, and you have to step forward and take that. Because no one is going to hand it to you.”
Abi Coman-Walker is a seasoned executive with over 20 years of global leadership experience across financial services and biotechnology, specializing in operations, transformation, and risk management. As Chief Operating Officer at Nicola Wealth, she oversees operations, facilities technology and asset‑management support, enabling scalable growth and high‑quality client service.
Previously, Abi served as COO at Acuitas Therapeutics, where she led business operations and transformation initiatives during a period of rapid growth in Canada’s biotechnology sector. Her career also includes nearly two decades with HSBC in senior international leadership roles, including COO, Wealth and Personal Banking, Canada, and Global Head of Business Financial Crime and Regulatory Risk, with experience across the UK, Middle East, South America, and Asia.
Beyond her executive roles, Abi is deeply committed to community and mentorship. She currently serves as Board Chair of JA British Columbia, and previously is a Director at the Centre for Commercialization of Regenerative Medicine and Boys and Girls Clubs, BC, and mentors emerging women leaders as a leader of Mentor Walks Vancouver.
Hosted by
HOST/PRODUCER
Tassan Sung
Founder, SPOKEN Leadership & Education
Tassan Sung is a founder, facilitator, and community leader with over three decades of experience at the intersection of leadership, finance, education, and philanthropy.
With over 20 years experience in the financial industry, Tassan brings deep expertise in strategy, planning, and stewardship. She holds an undergraduate degree in psychology from the University of British Columbia and a Master’s in Higher Education Leadership from the Harvard Graduate School of Education.
In 2024 and 2026, she was named one of Vancouver Magazine’s “Power 50” for her community impact, and in 2025 received the King Charles III Coronation Medal for her work supporting vulnerable communities. Through SPOKEN, Tassan creates spaces where complex conversations are approached with humanity, clarity, and purpose—inviting leaders to reflect not just on what they build, but on what they leave behind.
EMCEE
Robin Gill
Robin Gill Communications
Robin Gill is a media and communications expert who has worked in various sectors. She has helped major companies and non-profits with communications plans, media relations and media training. Before switching to communications advising, Robin worked as a journalist across Canada for 30 years, most notably as anchor and BC correspondent for Global National. She has covered countless elections, the pandemic, the BC floods and fires, the visits of the Dalai Lama and the Pope in Toronto, the tsunami in Japan, and the list goes on. She has interviewed politicians, business leaders and everyday Canadians with important stories to share. With news still in her DNA, she guest hosts on talk radio every once in a while.
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About the Event
Women in Leadership is a flagship leadership summit produced by SPOKEN Leadership & Education. This event is designed to convene trailblazing women and allies across generations for thoughtful, elevated conversations about leadership, resilience, stewardship, and purpose.
Women in Leadership brings together an audience of 400 leaders, changemakers, and emerging voices for a moderated panel featuring exceptional women from areas including business, entrepreneurship, the arts, science, medicine, education, and beyond. These accomplished panelists share candid insights into their leadership journeys—the decisions, challenges, failures, and defining moments that shaped their paths.
Moderated in a dynamic, live setting, the conversation offers the audience rare access to lived experience, practical wisdom, and perspective across industries and generations. Attendees are invited not only to be inspired, but to learn—gaining meaningful takeaways they can apply to their own leadership, careers, families, and communities. The evening blends a high-calibre panel discussion with purposeful storytelling, an expanded philanthropic component, and intentional opportunities for connection across business, family, and community. More than a single event, Women in Leadership is a platform—one that creates space to reflect on how leadership shows up in our lives, how legacy is built over time, and how values are translated into action for the next generation.
