Celebrating the achievements and advancement of women is important in all industries and at all levels – not only to recognize industry leaders but to encourage the next generation of women to pursue their dreams. Organizations like the Women’s Executive Network (WXN) make this possible. Every year, WXN shines a light on women across the country with their Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 awards, recognizing 100 women who personify what it means to be powerful through the way they empower and champion others, influence change and stand up for others.
While you’ll find powerhouses in all corners of Interac Corp., we are thrilled to share that Kashmera Self, AVP, Strategy & Emerging Solutions, has been named one of Canada’s Most Powerful Women.
What makes Kashmera one of Canada’s most powerful women? Her leadership, her capacity for innovation, strategy, foresight, and her commitment to collaboration and mentorship – just to name a few.
Known by her colleagues as Kash – she leads strategy development and evaluation of opportunities on emerging trends to guide and futureproof Interac and with impact on the Canadian innovation ecosystem. She was instrumental in the launch and expansion of Interac Debit mobile payments, and spearheaded efforts to explore new areas of opportunity beyond payments – including leveraging emerging technologies like blockchain to change consumer behaviour through the use of incentives. Looking further into the future, she shepherded a cross-functional leadership team of senior executives through a process she enhanced to be more inclusive and collaborative than ever before.
Kash believes great results come only from a coherent approach to change: that is, one that develops a visionary strategy and then makes it real through a top-notch team of motivated people. Unsurprisingly, she is dedicated to the development of her team providing daily coaching and mentoring and pushing them to take on new challenges. And since a strong team needs to play its part within an equally strong organization, Kash also invests time in ensuring the wider organization has access to the best talent – leading, for example, the formation of an internship program based on the principles of mentorship and reverse-mentorship, where learning happens reciprocally between interns and staff.
Coherence also implies that external initiatives align with internal efforts. A recognized authority with a proven track record of influence, within both Interac and the broader ecosystem, Kash has been a key leader in shaping financial services in Canada. She plays an active role in industry associations working with all three tiers of government to help Canadians own and control their financial data. She contributed her expertise as an invited member of the United Nations’ Financial Inclusion Community of Practice and is a Fintech Fellow for On Deck.
Kash is an example of the dedication, innovation and leadership required to drive success in any organization. Her significant accomplishments, combined with her passion for learning and innovation, will no doubt help shape the future and pave the way for the next generation of leaders at Interac, and beyond.
