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Zabeen Hirji

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Zabeen Hirji
Zabeen Hirji in 2015
Born1960 (age 63–64)
Tanganyika Territory
(present-day Tanzania)
EducationMBA, Simon Fraser University
Occupation(s)Chief Human Resources Officer, RBC 2007-2017
Years activePurposeful Next Act 2018 - present
EmployerRoyal Bank of Canada
SpouseDr. Mark Nowaczynski (1986 - 2013)

Zabeen Hirji (born 1960)[1] is a former Chief Human Resources Officer and a former member of the Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) Group Executive in Toronto from 2007 to 2017.

A native of Tanzania, she immigrated to Vancouver in 1974 and joined the RBC as a teller in 1977, advancing through various departments until becoming CHRO in 2007.

She is an advocate and spokesperson for diversity and inclusion in Canadian business.[2][3] She was listed in the 2001 edition of Who's Who in Canadian Business and the 2009 edition of Canadian Who's Who.[1][4]


Early life and education

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Zabeen Hirji was born in Tanzania to parents of Indian and other South Asian origin.[1][5][6] Her father died in an automobile accident; she and her mother immigrated to Vancouver, Canada, when she was 14.[7][8][9] She earned her MBA at Simon Fraser University, British Columbia, in 1994,[1][9] submitting the thesis, "A Strategic Analysis of a Toronto Family Medicine Practice".[10] In 1997 she completed the Advanced Human Resources Executive Program at the Ross School of Business, University of Michigan.[7][11]

Career

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She began working for the Royal Bank of Canada as a teller while attending university part-time in 1977.[7] Over the next two decades, she advanced in positions in retail banking, training, operations, credit card operations, and human resources.[1]

From 1994 to 1997, she was the Regional Manager of Card Services for Central Canada. In 1997,[1] she was appointed Vice President of Human Resources and, in 2001,[7] as Senior Vice President.

In 2007, she was promoted to Executive Vice President and Chief Human Resources Officer, giving her global responsibility for nearly 79,000 employees in 50 countries.[7] Together with senior management, she conceived and developed strategic initiatives to increase diversity and inclusion in hiring and talent management.[5] She is also responsible for branding, communications, and corporate citizenship.[12]

Diversity advocate

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In 2001, she co-led the founding of the RBC's Diversity Leadership Council, a global initiative that brings together senior business executives from many fields.[13] Hirji introduced a Diversity Dialogues Reciprocal Mentoring Program,[14] which pairs senior managers with junior employees from minority backgrounds for mutual encouragement,[15] as well as "hidden bias" training.[13] According to Hirji, the RBC "actively targets recent immigrants, women entrepreneurs, Canadian Aboriginals, the gay and lesbian community and people with disabilities".[8]

Affiliations

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She is a fellow of the Institute of Canadian Bankers.[1] She is co-chair of the Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council, director of the Greater Toronto CivicAction Alliance, director of the Mosaic Institute, and a member of the DiverseCity Steering Committee.[9][13] In 2005 she was named a fellow of Centennial College.[9]

Honors and awards

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Zabeen Hirji was listed in the 2001 edition of Who's Who in Canadian Business[1] and the 2009 edition of Canadian Who's Who.[16]

In 2010, she was honored as Corporate Executive of the Year by the Indo-Canada Chamber of Commerce.[9]

She was named one of the Top 25 Women of Influence by the Women of Influence organization in 2011 and in 2014. She was inducted into that organization's Canada's Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Hall of Fame in 2012.[12]

In 2014, she received the Catalyst Canada honour for championing the advancement of women and minorities in Canadian business.[13]

In 2016, she was granted Canada's Meritorious Service Medal for advancing diversity and inclusion, [17] and the Outstanding Alumni Award for Professional Achievement from Simon Fraser University.[18]

In 2017, she received the Ivey Business School Lifetime Achievement Award in HR Industry by Canadian HR Awards.[19]

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h Holmes, Gillian K. (2000). Who's Who in Canadian Business 2001. University of Toronto Press. p. 370. ISBN 0920966608.
  2. ^ Stoller, Jonathan (24 October 2013). "Workplace diversity: 'To win in your market, you need to hire the market'". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  3. ^ Barton, Eric (1 July 2014). "A Tiny Island's Big Lesson". BBC. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  4. ^ Lumley, Elizabeth (2009). Canadian Who's Who 2009. University of Toronto Press. p. 592. ISBN 978-0802040923.
  5. ^ a b "Canadian Immigrant: Interview with Zabeen Hirji, TRIEC Co-Chair". Toronto Region Immigrant Employment Council. 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  6. ^ Babcock, Pamela (28 March 2013). "Female HR Leaders Share Lessons They've Learned". Society for Human Resource Management. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  7. ^ a b c d e Owens, Donna M. (1 May 2011). "Bank on Diverse Talent". HR Magazine. 56 (5). Society for Human Resource Management.
  8. ^ a b "DiversityInc Leadership Profiles: Zabeen Hirji, Royal Bank of Canada". DiversityInc. 1 July 2010. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  9. ^ a b c d e "Zabeen Hirji". Women of Influence. 5 October 2011. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
  10. ^ Hirji-Nowaczynski, Zabeen (1994). "A Strategic Analysis of a Toronto Family Medicine Practice". Simon Fraser University.
  11. ^ "Executive Profile: Zabeen Hirji". Bloomberg Businessweek. 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  12. ^ a b "Executive Biographies: Zabeen Hirji". Royal Bank of Canada. 2015. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  13. ^ a b c d "RBC's Zabeen Hirji to Receive 2014 Catalyst Canada Honour for Championing Women and Minorities in Business (press release)". Hire Immigrants. 19 June 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  14. ^ "2014 Catalyst Canada Honours Champions Announced". Sodexo Canada. 18 June 2014. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  15. ^ Wong, Jan (4 August 2010). "All Mixed Up: Toronto is the mixed-marriage capital of Canada". Toronto Life. Retrieved 19 September 2015.
  16. ^ Lumley, Elizabeth (2009). Canadian Who's Who 2009. University of Toronto Press. p. 592. ISBN 978-0802040923.
  17. ^ "RBC Awards".
  18. ^ "SFU Outstanding Alumni Award presented to MBA alumna Zabeen Hirji | Ideas@Beedie".
  19. ^ "Zabeen Hirji: A stellar career in HR".
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