Women in Nuclear - WiN Canada

Colleen Sidford, Vice President and Treasurer at Ontario Power Generation (OPG) Inc. and WiN-Canada member has been named Catalyst Canada’s Business Leader Champion.

Colleen’s award was announced today (July 15, 2010) in an ad in the Globe and Mail. Colleen was nominated by WiN-Canada for being a powerful champion for the advancement of women at OPG and in the broader nuclear industry.

Cheryl Cottrill, Executive Director, WiN-Canada said, “On behalf of the WiN-Canada Board and all WiN-Canada members, I wish to express our congratulations to Colleen on this wonderful accomplishment. Colleen’s strong passion and outstanding achievement in the development and support of the emPOWered Women’s series at OPG made her an excellent candidate for this award. WiN was very pleased to nominate Colleen and we are thrilled she was chosen as the award recipient.”

The emPOWered Women’s series, is a leadership development and mentoring program designed to provide professional guidance, develop networking relationships, and to be a platform to advance the careers of women throughout OPG by removing barriers to their advancement. Training includes working on presentation skills, having a presence in meetings and gaining confidence and ability to “take the stage,” vocally, verbally and physically.

“We would like to see this program become a model for all companies in the nuclear industry to help put women on a level playing field with their male counterparts. Women currently only represent approximately 20 percent of the industry workers,” said Cheryl.

Colleen is a member of WiN-Canada and has been an active promoter of WiN providing a network where members can find – and offer – support, connect with peers, share ideas, and further professional development. Last year, Colleen attended the WiN-Canada conference and shared the concept of emPOWered Women with the industry, hoping others would be inspired to begin a similar program at their respective companies. Colleen has also shared this program with HSBC and Rogers outside the industry.

The Catalyst Canada Honours celebrates champions of women in business. Recognizing that what’s good for women is good for business; these exceptional individuals are personally and visibly committed to the advancement of women into leadership and serve as powerful role models for Canadian corporate leaders.

For more coverage on Colleen’s award please check out the following: http://www.thestar.com/business/article/835945--making-a-business-case-for-the-advancement-of-women
http://www.catalyst.org/canada/CanadaHonours/Colleen_Sidford.pdf.