Interview 001: Nancy Wilson

Our first interview for our Distinctive Women series is, Nancy Wilson.
Nancy is the Founder and CEO of the Canadian Women’s Chamber of Commerce (CanWCC). CanWCC is the only Chamber of Commerce in Canada that represents and advocates for the interests of women-identified founders, entrepreneurs, and business owners. Additionally, Nancy is a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and, prior to starting CanWCC, she worked for over a decade in corporate finance and accounting roles. She also ran her own accounting and advisory firm where she worked with women small business owners.

Read the full interview below:

LIW: Give us a quick synopsis of who you are and what you do?

NW: I am the Founder and CEO of the Canadian Women’s Chamber of Commerce (CanWCC). CanWCC is the only Chamber of Commerce in Canada that represents and advocates for the interests of women-identified founders, entrepreneurs, and business owners. In my role as CEO, I am responsible for managing the team, coordinating operations, and ensuring strategic goals are achieved.

You can learn more about CanWCC membership here: https://canwcc.ca/membership/

I am a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) and, prior to starting CanWCC, I worked for over a decade in corporate finance and accounting roles. I also ran my own accounting and advisory firm where I worked with women small business owners. I still have two clients that I work with in my spare time.

LIW: What's one characteristic you possess that you think has helped you get to where you are and why?

NW: The one characteristic that has helped me get to where I am is empathy, which in turn makes me cognizant of the arbitrary power imbalances that exist in our world. When I worked in the corporate world, I would see someone doing amazing work but never receiving any recognition, while another employee was consistently rewarded because they knew how to play the game. These types of situations bothered me – perhaps more than they should have – and occasionally resulted in me losing opportunities (or being terminated) because I spoke up and was labeled “not a team player”. I was often counseled to divorce all emotions from business. But that’s not me. And I do not think that an emotionless, passionless business environment is something to strive for. While I may not have been a good fit for the corporate world in the long-term, empathy has served me well in my personal relationships and in the work that I do now with the Chamber.

LIW: One of the biggest lessons you learned throughout your career?

NW: One of the biggest lessons that I’ve learned over my career is not to assume that people in leadership positions or positions of power have all of the answers – or deserve to be in the positions they are in. People end up in positions of power through a variety of mechanisms and meritocracy is a myth. I include myself in these statements. I am the CEO of CanWCC because I founded the Chamber. Am I the best person for the role? I don’t know. That remains to be seen. Do I have all the answers? Absolutely not. But I am willing to admit that I don’t have all the answers and I’m committed to learning from CanWCC members, the Board, and the broader community.

LIW: If you had to do it all over again, would you change your career path? Why or why not?

NW: No – I wouldn’t change anything.  All of my failures and successes have led me to where I am and who I am today.  Some bruises have yet to heal, but I’m still breathing.

LIW: One piece of advice for young women?

NW: Question everything – but ultimately, trust your gut.

LIW: What do you wish to accomplish within the next few years?

NW: Professionally, I am focused on expanding CanWCC across Canada and growing membership to 5,000 or more business owners.  I want to build a powerful advocacy network that is sufficiently large and loud that the Government has no option but to listen and take action on what women business owners need to be successful.

Personally, I would like to learn French and (maybe) write a book.