Sheelagh Whittaker

Sheelagh Whittaker is irrepressibly curious. Meet her and next thing you know she'll be asking about your childhood home or which authors you like to read. When the excitement of Women's Lib began to fill the air, she excitedly sought out Vrginia Woolf's A Room of One's Own and de Beauvoir's Second Self and then went off in all directions. As the first female CEO of a company listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange (Canadian Satellite Communications Inc.), Sheelagh jokes that her meme is that of a professional breath of fresh air. She is particularly proud of leading the licensing competitions for Cantel (now Rogers mobile) and CBC NewsWorld. From her early days as a federal anti-trust Investigator, a management consultant, and CBC executive, she went on to be CEO first at Canadian Satellite Communications (Cancom) and later EDS. The rough and tumble of an international business career has made Whittaker more, rather than less, humble about her insight and experience. Since retiring from the world of commerce, she has written several books.