Women Wednesday: Learn from Jane Yuen, CIBC

By ibmblogsMarch 30, 2022

Portrait confident girl middle school students conducting scientific experiment in science laboratory

IBM Canada STEM for Girls presents “Women Wednesday,” a video series that encourages youth and young women to knock down any barriers to becoming an engineer, doctor, physicist and more. The possibilities are endless, and the future is bright!

“Don’t ever box yourself in.”

Career advice from CIBC’s Jane Yuen

Jane Yuen is clearly a success story. She is CIBC’s Senior Vice President, Personal Business and Banking Technology, and an active member of the CIBC Diversity and Inclusion Committee. She is a graduate of Queen’s University with a B.Sc in Chemical Engineering and in Biochemistry, and holds an MBA from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto. On top of all that, Jane enjoys a full life in Toronto with her husband Chris and her two boys, Ethan and Owen.

Yes, Jane has achieved her dreams, but she believes the same is possible for anyone else. During our interview, she shared some key pieces of advice.

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Overview

01	Overcoming Challenges	(1:23)
02	Motivation & Inspiration	(4:24)
03	Change in Perspective	(6:13)
04	Change in Personality	(8:18)
05	Dreams for Youth	(9:42)
06	Advice to Youth	(12:20)

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1. Build a community

Jane believes that a strong community is vital to creating a better future for the generations of women to come. She highlights three key building blocks:

Build new relationships. Meeting new people and really taking the time to listen to their experiences and their stories will enrich yourself and those around you.
Invest in yourself. Keep learning, keep growing, keep trying new things because you may find entirely new ways to give back to your community.
Lend a helping hand. We never know when we might need a little bit of help ourselves.

2. Stay motivated by finding your inspiration

On the days she feels deflated by challenges, Jane remembers what inspires her:

Colleagues. Jane calls her teammates “a great group of well-meaning, smart people who care about all the right things – creative problem-solvers who work as a team.”
Youth. Jane loves meeting young women and men who are considering a career in STEM. “There is so much that they are going to be able to do and contribute to.”
New technology. New technology comes with risk, but also great opportunity to shape the lives of clients and society.

3. Work at breaking unconscious bias

Jane believes there are concrete steps that we can all take to break the bias in our lives.

Rely on facts, not feelings, when making decisions. When we rely less on our own assumptions, we make less biased decisions.
Slow down. Our brains are often in overdrive. If we rush, we often take shortcuts in decision-making which are based on unconscious bias.
Evaluate your network and the people around you. Do they look, think, behave differently than you? If so, great. If not, what can you do to change that?

Jane’s final bit of advice to youth and young women just beginning their careers? “Don’t be afraid. Believe in yourself because you deserve to be here. Stay open minded and don’t box yourself in.” You never know what opportunities will come your way when you least expect them!

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Learn with STEM for Girls (SFG) on IBM SkillsBuild!

Youth are telling us they want to learn and grow for greater representation in STEM fields. (And we know it’s hard to find representation in STEM fields!) We’re here to help knock down those barriers so you can see yourself one day as an engineer, doctor, physicist, and more. The possibilities are endless, and your future is bright.

Learn more about STEM for Girls  here
Start building your future today, join IBM SkillsBuild for Students here
Once you register, you can earn the SFG Certificate on IBM SkillsBuild  here

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