One of the great challenges for industries and businesses today is challenging conventional ways of operating by embracing digital innovation as well as diversity and inclusion.
That’s exactly what Janet Lin (BCS’05) has been helping leaders in industry do for 20 years.
Lin built an impressive career leading digital transformation and delivering innovative customer-engagement technology in the Canadian banking, retail and healthcare industries and launched multiple innovative, industry-breaking initiatives.
As a senior executive at Loblaw, she led the development of three credit card payment innovation products and merged the loyalty program when Loblaw acquired Shoppers Drug Mart, making it the largest points program in Canada. Then came multiple innovative e-commerce platforms and products – PC Chef, PC Health, T&T Asian online grocery, Wellwise online and an omnichannel beauty product at Shoppers Drug Mart – all of which were huge during the pandemic.
“These products were so innovative and exciting to work on,” said Lin. “My goal is always to create a seamless human-centric experience by leveraging cutting-edge technologies.”
Now VP, Lending and Payments Technology at Equitable Bank, Lin challenges the status quo in the banking-and-payments niche by pushing the limits of digital innovation, and by championing diverse, flexible and inclusive environments for women across all levels of technology. She’s led equity, diversity and inclusion (EDI) committees and programs and spends a great deal of time speaking and providing best-in-class opportunities to women in tech for networking, career growth and recruitment.
“Women are still underrepresented in tech,” said Lin. “At entry level, it’s about 33 per cent, then it drops to 25 per cent at the management level, then to 20 per cent at the senior director level to less than 10 per cent at the executive level. It’s a challenge across the board in the sector.”
UNB has long been involved in the advancement of technology and is recruiting more women to its technology programs. The faculty of computer science in Fredericton was the first such faculty in Canada and the university has been studying and teaching computing sciences for more than 50 years. The faculty is also looking to the future and putting its ambitious plans into action to support the digital future and help reduce pressure on an extremely tight labour market by graduating highly skilled and diverse graduates seeking interesting careers in tech who are ready to address critical issues facing communities and the world.
