The 2022 Women of the Year awards: Corporate Leader - Christine Bergeron
GABV member, Vancity Savings Credit Union's CEO, Christine Bergeron, has been awarded the 2022 Women of the Year - Corporate Leader award. In mid-2020, at the very start of the full Covid-swing, Christine was named as interim president and CEO of Vancity. Taking charge of Canada's largest community credit union would be a daunting task even in normal times, but Christine rose to the occasion.
"Early on in the pandemic, it was about standing up as much as we could to help our members, from small businesses to individuals. And then we shifted into, OK, how do we start thinking again about our strategy for the next few years?", says Christine, who was previously with Vancity for more than a decade, before receiving the top job in January 2021.
She led her team of 2,600 with a steady hand. Vancity grew its total assets and assets under administration by nearly 9 percent last year, to $33.2 billion, and membership topped 560,000. Her success can be contributed partially to her valuation of her employees. Christine says, "My approach is always about remembering and really appreciating the work that the teams are doing."