From fierce athlete to the CEO seat
Nicola Vavasour
BA, Economics and Finance, 1999; Master’s in Finance, 2000 CEO, Scotiabank
A Maynooth adage that two-time MU alumna Nicola Vavasour recalls fondly:
If you walk onto campus in the spring and you haven’t begun studying for exams by the first time the grass is cut, there is still time. If you haven’t started studying by the second time the grass is cut, you’re doomed!
It’s unlikely Nicola ever waited for that second buzz of the lawnmower. By looking at her success at Maynooth and her subsequent rise to her current post as CEO of Scotiabank Ireland, it’s hard to imagine her a procrastinator. Scotiabank is the third largest bank in Canada.
Nicola, originally from Castleknock, first earned her honours degree from MU in 1999, studying Economics & Finance and then her Master’s in Finance in 2000. She won the Royal Irish Academic thesis prize, working closely with advisor Dr Tom Flavin.
Following a brief foray in academia as a tutor at MU and subsequently as Assistant Lecturer in University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand, Nicola returned to Dublin and landed a job at Merrill Lynch. An untapped interest in risk management eventually brought her to Bank of Scotland, Ireland and subsequently Scotiabank. She moved to Toronto in 2008 where she had her first two children and then it was off to Singapore, where she spent five years as the Chief Risk Officer for Scotiabank in Asia – and had a third baby to boot. She loved the time abroad, but when the CEO role in Dublin opened up in 2018, she made the move home.
“Working internationally has been amazing. It’s something I always encourage people to consider.
If you can make it work with your family, it just opens up your mind personally and professionally,” she said.
Nicola attributes her success to a supportive husband and lots of self-reflection. She said she forces herself to make deliberate choices when confronted with professional decisions. She is also fiercely competitive, traits honed from her days as a young athlete. Nicola played for Dublin GAA in the juvenile division. “I think sport develops confidence and a mutual respect between boys and their female peers at an early age,” said Nicola, is a strong advocate for Diversity, Equality and Inclusion and iss the DEI Executive Sponsor for Scotiabank Europe. It’s so important to start at the grassroots when it comes to changing societal perceptions that lead to inequality.”
Female banking CEOs are still rare enough, but Nicola is not content to lead by example. Recently, upon seeing an intern candidate pool with few female candidates, she tasked her team find more. She also contacted her old lecturer, Tom Flavin, who knew just the woman for the job. That MU student not only succeeded in the internship, but was recently offered a permanent role at Scotiabank. “Sometimes you just have to look harder.”