Honour your ambition, know your worth

As the CFO of Ecora Engineering and Resource Group, Kim Corea is a powerhouse—a confident leader who isn’t afraid to advocate for herself and others. But, as she’ll be the first to tell you, she didn’t start out that way.

“I used to love how accounting allowed me to hide in an office,” Kim laughs. “Of course I had a passion for business and finance as well, but that was honestly a big part of it.”

Despite her shyness, Kim thrived in her early career. And when her life took an unexpected turn, it didn’t phase her.

“Shortly after I started out, I took a pause in my education and my career to embrace the roles of mother and wife,” she explains. “It lasted a bit longer than I’d wanted, but it didn’t stop me from jumping right back in.”

Kim continued to build her career by taking on various accounting roles within companies as well as at public practice firms, and her ambition was nearly insatiable. She soon discovered that not everyone was receptive to her constant pursuit of growth.

“As a woman and a mother, I noticed people tended to make assumptions about my goals,” she says. “I never wanted to dial back my workload. I was always asking for more work and more responsibilities and I was committed to ensuring fair and equitable compensation for my work. When an employer wasn’t responsive to that, I knew it was time to move on.”

All the while, Kim was still contemplating whether to go back to school and obtain her CPA designation. It wasn’t until she found stability and support during a public practice job that she decided to take the leap.

“It was 2007 and I was working with a strong and compassionate female partner at the firm—she inspired me to go after what I wanted and not to settle for something just because it was comfortable,” Kim says.

Completing her education after years in the field brought on complicated feelings. “I had a little voice in my head telling me I wasn’t as good as the others,” Kim admits. “But as always, I pushed through and, as always, it was so worth it.”

Fast forward to 2023, after a move from her home province of Alberta to Kelowna in 2015 and a few more senior accounting jobs, Kim accepted a new position as the Director of Finance for Ecora. She was promoted to CFO after only a few months.

“I just knew this was going to be an incredible place to work,” she recalls. “In all the jobs I’ve had over the years, only a handful of my employers ever really showed the kind of trust I needed to thrive, and Ecora is definitely one of them.”

Ecora is widely known as a company that invests in their team members and gives them the support they need to pursue their goals. “It makes a big difference working for and with people who believe in you,” says Kim. “If you can find those people, you will thrive.”

Today, Kim is as far from the shy young woman hiding in her office as she’s ever been. And she truly believes other women can overcome shyness, imposter syndrome or lack of confidence just like she did.

“I used to have great fear about not being able to meet the expectations of an executive,” she admits. “But here at Ecora I have learned that being in the C-suite is not about conforming to a predetermined personality type or sacrificing who you are. You really just need to let your passion shine through, break down the barriers of coldness and unapproachability, and show the world the amazing leader you really are.”