Tell us about your story. CM: 20 years ago, after having started and operated my first business for 3 years, a web development company in Calgary, I found myself with no money, going through a divorce, and suddenly becoming a single mother of a 4-yearold boy. My business partner had drained funds from all our accounts, moved to the US, and left me holding a large debt to the bank that I could not re-pay. I had no choice but to declare bankruptcy and put my business ownership dreams on the sidelines. So back to the corporate world I went. Starting once again as a web developer and slowly moving my way up over 15 years to Senior Director, but I could not seem to get further. Despite my solid performance, continued kudos from senior management, and multiple promises that I was indeed the next VP in line, it just wasn’t happening, and I felt as though I was losing myself and what I truly stood for, at every turn. I was often the only woman in the boardroom. It indeed came time to heed my own advice and pursue a different path. So, when my husband Brian and I made the decision to leave our careers and start our own venture, almost 6 years ago now, we didn’t know if it would succeed, but we knew we had to be all-in. And so Levvel was born. An IT Services and Consulting organization. Levvel, by virtue of our name, was a true account of our combined skills, values, experience, approach, and passion. Through mentorship and volunteering, I share my skills and knowledge however I can. I am passionate about equality, equity, inclusion, and diversity, and women in tech, but know there is much to learn, both personally and professionally, on how to do better and foster change in others. This will be a lifelong journey.
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BM: As a single parent, raising two small, rambunctious boys into men was not a trivial task for a single woman. As one of those boys, it wasn’t until years later that I truly appreciated the strength, sacrifice, kindness, and resilience that my mom was made of! When my father walked out on the 3 of us, my mom was left with mortgage payments and 2 small boys to care for. She immediately went back to work and held down two jobs to keep the house and provide stability for her kids yet despite the long hours she put in, she still somehow managed to keep us in sports and attend all our hockey, football practices, and games. Years later, as we grew older, she returned to university and completed a Bachelor of Commerce degree from McGill University, eventually retiring from a management position at a large Canadian company. I saw how hard my mom worked through these years and the adversity and challenges she faced as a woman that as a man, I never did in my career. I was always protective of my mom; this launched my resolve early on to not sit on the sidelines and observe but to speak out against the inequities that I saw in (and out) of the workplace. My views and opinions on gender equality were sometimes not well received from some of my male counterparts during these years, especially when some of them were my boss, but watching what my mom endured in her career, my stance on this became personal and my resolve to be her voice for others, unbending. I found these same attributes of strength, kindness, and tenacity in my partner, spouse, and company co-founder, Chantal so together we founded Levvel in late 2015. As one of Canada’s fastest-growing startups (Maclean’s Magazine Dec 2020), and a leadership team composed of 60% women and 40% men, our focus on gender equality and diversity is one of our core pillars of success and is directly responsible for our growth and ability to expand during a global pandemic.
