On the latest episode of TheEdge, our host, Leslie Vickrey, ClearEdge Marketing CEO and Founder, is joined by Leonie Tyler, President of S.i. Systems. The episode opens with a story about how Leonie started her career at just 16 and goes on to discuss how the intersection of allyship and friendship, Leonie’s personal meditation practice and how that has expanded to her professional realm, and the process of working with private equity firms along with advice for other women working with them now or in the future.
Leonie, unlike many in the Staffing Industry, started her career outside of the industry. She moved to Canada from the UK at the age of 16, due to differing school systems, she decided to look for a job until she could register for university. Along with her mother, she stepped into the tallest building in downtown and applied for a job at the Bank of Montreal (BMO). She was offered a position the next day, and so began her career. Through on the job training programs, she continued to move through the ranks and stayed at BMO for 25 years.
After a sabbatical, which really allowed her to focus on her values, she took a courageous leap and left BMO to take a position at Canadian Pacific Rail. During her time there, she was introduced to S.i. Systems as one of their vendors. She grew to know the team, including Derek Bullen, the CEO. Leonie and Derek started a friendship between not only them, but their families, and Derek began to encourage Leonie to join his team. Leonie recounts times how that friendship really solidified the allyship that Derek provided for her when she did eventually join S.i. Systems. Derek stands beside her and allows her to do what she is passionate about, developing people, and their friendship has been a catalyst for that.
Leonie is also very passionate about wellness- she has her own daily meditation practice, that as you will hear in the episode, has really been transformative for her. It is through that practice that she become grounded in her values and decided to start taking steps towards a life and career that gave to her what she needed. She has brought this practice into her professional life and to her team with great success. Creating grounded spaces in the office, during meetings, and beyond has opened up new opportunities of growth for her team. Leonie and Leslie talk about the importance of this and share a few different ways that you can bring these practices to your team.
S.i Systems recently received a private equity investment that wil provide additional opportunity for expansion. Leonie’s background in finance uniquely suited her for her part in this conversation, although traditionally there are not many women involved in these processes. Leonie suggests that it was not necessarily the background in finance that uniquely suited her for this, but the ability to present her successes and how she was able to present and bring that to the table with her. She provides a great framework to think about how to build up these talking points for yourself and package them to present.
This conversation is not one that you want to miss. It is full of insights, actionable takeaways, and Leonie’s passion for developing people in a grounded and thoughtful way truly shines through. Be sure to take a listen, share with your colleagues who could benefit, and leave a review on the podcast platform of your choice.
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