London Inc. May 2024 - 26

COVE R
WOMEN WITH
INFLUENCE
Many of the top communications and PR positions in
London are held by women, including the following:
● Eliza Bennett, director of strategic communications, City of London
● Althea Blackburn Evans, chief communications officer, Western University
● Patricia Hoffer, chief communications officer, St. Joseph's Health Care London
● Nancy Hutton, director of public relations and corporate communications, London Hydro
● Laurie Lashbrook, director, communications, Ivey School of Business
● Kathy Leblanc, director of corporate communications, London Police Service
● Liisa Sheldrick, global corporate communications director, Solventum
● Tania Testa, corporate communications & public engagement executive, London Health Sciences Centre
● Cheryl Weedmark, corporate communications lead, Thames Valley District School Board
leaders whom I've worked with and learned from over
the years that I've been back in London. "
Having female mentorship early in their careers
seems to have played an important role for these women.
" I've had male and female leaders over my career, and I'd
say that the experience that I had with female leadership
was pretty different for me, " Testa explains. " They
were the ones who talked to me about what I wanted to
do and where I wanted to go but also, at the same time,
asked me how I was doing. "
Testa also credits a female leader with providing her
with invaluable career advice: " She told me that my
days should be comprised of listening more than I'm
speaking - and to remember to ask the question, 'why.'
Why is this like that or why are we doing that or why
can't it be different? "
For Sheldrick, one of the most important pieces
of early advice she received was to focus on meaningful
tasks and not to shoulder the burden of " office
housework " and low-value assignments - often the
invisible hurdle to gender equality in the workplace.
" [That meant] to be very selective about doing the work
I wanted to be doing, which I think was a good foreshadow
to some of the articles you see these days about
women and their corporate domestic work, " she says.
" I think there's a lot to celebrate in London and I think
that there are many, many women who have built a
26 | londonincmagazine.ca | MAY 2024
legacy for all of us to follow here, " Sheldrick adds.
Weedmark also points to the many strong female role
models London has seen over the years, and not just in
communications. " There's just so many names that
come to mind and I think we're fortunate to have those
- mentors and role models who have paved the way for
a lot of us to make it a little bit less challenging to be in
these leadership roles. "
The third area these four leaders have in common is
their approach to leadership. Empathetic leadership -
identifying with others and taking a genuine interest
in their point of view - and creating strong teams are
at the core for each.
" There's an old saying, that if you want to go fast, go
alone. And if you want to go far, go together, " notes
Sheldrick. " And I think that vulnerability and the
ability to articulate a strategy, a goal, a mission, a vision,
ultimately allows you to go farther together. "
Testa, whose résumé includes time at Trojan
Technologies, TVDSB and Western University, points
to the opportunity to shape great teams as one of the
most rewarding aspects of her career. It's been " a
pleasure and a privilege that has been a common thread
throughout my career, " she explains. " I've been able to
come in as a team of one or two and then build around
me to be the team that the organization needs. "
Having the opportunity to team-build and provide

http://www.londonincmagazine.ca

London Inc. May 2024

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of London Inc. May 2024