Speaking of Business with Goldy Hyder

As a child growing up in Pembroke, Ontario, Meghan Roach remembers driving more than an hour out of town to shop at a Roots store. “Roots was always something special,” she recalls, pointing to the durability of their well-worn products. “I love the Roots TUFF Boots. You would buy these things and you could not wear them out.”

Little did she know then that she would one day become CEO of the iconic Canadian company.

With humble begin...

For decades, the names John Risley and Clearwater Seafoods were practically synonymous. The story of Clearwater’s founding is the stuff of legend in Atlantic Canada.

It’s a story of how John and his business partner Colin MacDonald started selling lobsters in a store on the Bedford highway in 1976 … and how they grew Clearwater into a global seafood giant. 

As the Chairman and CEO of CFFI Ventures, Risley has been involved in many ot...

They’re taking on underground construction obstacles, tackling mining and energy quandaries, and don’t hesitate to brainstorm daily about how to address climate change.

Hatch is an engineering and professional services firm that employs 12,000 people in 150 countries around the world, all from its perch in Mississauga, ON.

But you may have never heard of them, and that’s by design.

“It's true that we're not a household name,” says Hat...

When Jennifer Wong was an economics student at the University of British Columbia, she walked into an Aritzia store with her resumé. The company at the time was only three years old and operated two locations. She landed a part-time job, which led to other Aritzia jobs as the company grew. 

Three decades later, she became Chief Executive Officer of the clothing retail giant that now boasts 117 stores in two countries, plus a global ...

When the last spike was driven into the Canadian Pacific Railway track on November 7th, 1885 in British Columbia, CP became the first transcontinental railway to connect Canada from east to west. 

Last April, the iconic Canadian company marked another first, when – in Kansas City, Missouri – a ceremonial final spike connected Canadian Pacific with Kansas City Southern. The new railway, now named CPKC, became the first and only singl...

It was a summer job that sparked Mike Rencheck’s lifelong career in the energy industry. He started out as an intern at the Beaver Valley Power Station in Pennsylvania in the 1980’s, and never looked back. “It really opened my eyes to what was possible in nuclear energy,” he says.

Skip ahead a few decades and Rencheck is now the President and CEO of Bruce Power. The nuclear plant on the shores of Lake Huron produces 30 per cent of O...

Iggy Domagalski is a big believer in having fun at work. “Work can be enjoyable,” he says. “When people know that they can have a bit of fun and that they can take five minutes to spend some fun time with their peers, I think that sends them back to their desk smiling.”

Domagalski is the President and CEO of Wajax, a Canadian industrial products and service company. With 3000 employees working in 120 branches across the country, a s...

François Poirier and his co-workers see themselves as problem-solvers.

The problems are many, and familiar to anyone who follows North America’s energy industry. 

• The need to reduce emissions from traditional energy sources like oil and natural gas. 
• The need to transition to lower-carbon sources without raising prices for consumers. 
• The need for energy security in a world that is increasingly unpredictable.

It’s a tall order,...

Twenty-seven years ago, WestJet took to the air with just three aircraft and five destinations. Today, the Calgary-based airline serves more than 100 cities across four continents.

Overseeing the operation is CEO Alexis von Hoensbroech. He's a newcomer to Canada but not to the industry, having spent two decades working for and running airlines in Europe. 

When he arrived in Canada last year, he was struck by the country’s rugged geog...

If you filled up your car’s gas tank recently, or popped into a convenience store, there’s a good chance you visited a Parkland location. The Canadian company supplies fuel and operates convenience stores across Canada under many banners, including On the Run, Chevron and Ultramar. Founded in Red Deer, Alberta, in the 1970s, Parkland now operates 4,000 locations in 25 countries. 

The company has expanded quickly. “We're a 50-year-ol...

Growing up in rural Saskatchewan, Tracy Robinson liked to watch the trains roll by. Little did she know then that trains would have a lasting impact on her life.

She spent 27 years working at Canadian Pacific Railway before switching to the energy sector for almost a decade. Last year she returned to her roots when she was appointed President and CEO of CN, a job she calls “the best in the world.”

Overseeing 30,000 km of track across...

Rania Llewellyn spent 26 years working at Scotiabank before making a move she describes as a “big leap and a big change” – becoming President and CEO of Laurentian Bank. And yet she says the hardest part of that transition was joining a new institution in the middle of a pandemic.

The inability to walk through the office and meet people created unique challenges, she says. “Organizations are made of people. You need to be a really g...

When Deanna Zumwalt became President and CEO of Coril Holdings in 2021, she took on responsibility for an organization with a rich Canadian legacy. The Calgary-based company, with roots in the railway industry, has evolved considerably since its beginnings nearly 125 years ago. Now Zumwalt is looking ahead to the next century.

“Being a family enterprise for 125 years, we think across generations – we think in 25-year chunks,” she te...

Canada needs a new foreign strategy that positions it to compete successfully in a changing world, according to former Canadian ambassador Louise Blais.

“There are major shifts occurring in the geopolitical landscape,” she says. “Canada will either come out as losing or winning from an economic and security perspective, but we need to have a plan.”

Blais served as a senior diplomat in Canadian embassies and consulates around the worl...

When Dani Reiss took over his grandfather’s apparel business more than two decades ago, he gambled on Canada. He resolved to continue making high-end outerwear in Canada, at a time when others in the industry were moving production abroad.

The bet paid off. Today Canada Goose is recognized around the world for its luxury clothing. Reiss credits part of that success to the decision to stick with a “Made in Canada” label. 

For internat...

COVID-19 created an “inflection moment” that offers Canadians a chance to build a better future, according to Penny Wise, President of 3M Canada. “We have a huge opportunity to make a difference and really change the growth trajectory of Canada if we really seize that moment,” she says.

In a conversation with Goldy Hyder on the Speaking of Business podcast, Wise points to three ingredients that should be part of the country’s econom...

Is Canada poised to be a winner or a loser as the world transitions toward cleaner sources of energy?

Charles Brindamour, the CEO of Intact Financial Corporation – the country’s largest provider of property and casualty insurance – is convinced that Canada has everything it needs to be a global leader in the drive to net-zero greenhouse gas emissions. 

He points to the country’s highly skilled and diverse workforce, its robust energy...

Mary Ann Yule worries about the long-term economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women. “Many working women struggled to balance the responsibilities that came with assuming dual roles,” says the President and CEO of HP Canada. “They are 12 times more likely to step away from their jobs to take care of their family.”

The risk, she points out, is that many women’s career trajectories will be hindered or knocked off course. She c...

John Graham has a clear mandate. As CEO of Canada Pension Plan Investments, he oversees the retirement savings of 20 million Canadians, with the goal of achieving the highest possible returns without undue risk. 

And yet in a volatile and unpredictable world, his challenge is anything but simple.

Take, for example, the fund’s investments in the energy sector. Recently CPP Investments committed to achieving a net-zero portfolio by 205...