Own it, show up, support each other: Air Canada & ACV celebrate 4th annual Women in Business event

Air Canada (AC) and Air Canada Vacations (ACV) hosted their fourth annual Women in Business event at The Vue in Etobicoke on Wednesday (March 10), and from the turnout and energy in the room, the momentum keeps building each year.

The event is the brainchild of Christine Faulkner, manager of sales operations and planning at ACV, who shared her thoughts with PAX on how the event, held during International Women's Month, has evolved.

"What started as a simple idea to create space for meaningful conversations has grown into something much more impactful – a place where people feel comfortable sharing their stories and supporting one another. That sense of community and authenticity is what continues to drive the event forward each year,” Faulkner said.

Alongside a tea and panel discussion, guests were asked to bring an anonymous letter to their younger self. The letters will be displayed in AC and ACV's offices for anyone who needs a moment of inspiration, confidence, or perspective.

"Supporting one another along the way is one of the most powerful things we can do," shared Faulkner.

Following a high tea luncheon, the panel discussion was led by Erminia Gallina, director of sales at ACV, who opened the afternoon with a quote that drew strong applause from the room. "A strong woman doesn't just find her voice – she creates space for other women to find theirs," she said.

The panel included well-known industry leaders Lisa Pierce, former VP of global sales at Air Canada and ACV, who retired on December 31, 2025, after nearly 40 years of shaping the airline's leadership; Selma Filali, senior director of marketing, digital, and loyalty partnerships at ACV; and Zeina Gedeon, president of Trevello.

Lead with adaptability, own your accomplishments

When Gallina asked Pierce to reflect on the most pivotal moment she realized she had become a leader and not just a high performer, she brought the room back to September 11, 2001.

As station manager at LaGuardia Airport in New York, Pierce was commuting across the George Washington Bridge when the 9/11 attacks changed everything around her. Pulling into the airport, she was overwhelmed with emotion and took a few moments to collect herself in the car. When she got out, she found employees and crew members stranded on the curb - planes grounded, no way home - all looking to her for direction. She stepped up and took care of every one of them.

Her takeaway: composure under pressure is a skill, and leaders are often tested in moments they never see coming. According to Pierce, the most important qualities women will need going forward are adaptability and empathy.

Both Pierce and Gedeon pushed back on the tendency women have to sell themselves short. "(I) always hire smarter than me because then I look amazing," Gedeon said to laughter. 

Pierce added that the same energy needs to go into advocating for yourself. "Speak about your accomplishments. Be objective - say, I deserve this rating because I do these things. Don't be afraid to toot your own horn," she said.

Own it, build your network

Confidence, not competence, remains the gap, and Gedeon was not shy about saying so. According to Gedeon, women are often better equipped than they give themselves credit for.

"We have empathy, we take care of everything inside and outside the home, we are accountants and psychologists to our customers – but own it," said Gedeon.

When she became CEO of a tour operator in 2006, she was the only woman "at the table", so she built her network and asked for help. Gedeon's advice today is to build your community, brand and network because no one is coming to do it for you.

As for mentorship versus sponsorship, Filali shared that, “mentoring is great but give me visibility. Bring me to the meeting where decisions are made. That's when you give me the credit.”

Filali also pointed out the competition that can exist among women at the top. "Sometimes we decide not to support the female colleague because we're in competition. We don't talk about it, but it's true. When we help another woman, we help ourselves," she said.

"If we don't depend on each other, who's going to support you?" Gedeon added.

“Lead the tech conversation, don't let it lead you”

Filali, who works across marketing, loyalty, and digital transformation, challenged attendees to rethink their approach: stop thinking about technology as a tech problem and start thinking about it as a customer strategy. 

Her advice to women navigating fast-changing environments is to stay close to the customer, measure ambition with data, and stop trying to know everything.

"You need to hire subject matter experts. You don't need to know everything about tech. You need to know what matters," said Filali.

When Filali inherited a marketing organization under pressure to move fast, she did the opposite - paused, mapped the talent, and rebuilt strategically. "Transformation really starts with casting. If you have the right people in the right roles and give them a clear ambition, they will overachieve," she said.

Accessible travel: "Redesigning the map"

The event's keynote came from Kristen Hayes, a disability advocate, world traveller, and speech-language pathologist who has visited 53 countries, with Chile and Peru on deck this month.

Born with osteogenesis imperfecta, a condition that causes fragile bones, Hayes has experienced close to 100 fractures. Her condition has not stopped her, and she has gone ziplining in Slovenia, swimming with sharks in Bora Bora, and on safari in Kenya.

According to Hayes, "When people see a disabled traveller, they often assume the story is about limitations. My story is actually about redesigning the map."

Hayes also shared some interesting statistics on accessible travel. Globally, 1.3 billion people are currently living with disabilities. Travellers with disabilities take 40 million trips a year, spending $120 billion globally.

They rarely travel alone, typically bringing two to three additional companions along with them. With one in six of the global population set to be aged 60 and over within five years, that market is only growing.

Hayes also defined ableism for the room - the discrimination and social prejudice against disabled people that assumes worth is tied to productivity.

Her advice to the travel trade: question your assumptions about disability, seek input from disabled travellers, represent them in your marketing, and build accessibility into your policies and partnerships from the start because you cannot serve a community you do not understand.

"Disability is the largest minority and it's one any of us can become part of at any time. Accessibility needs to be built in from the start, not added as an afterthought," shared Hayes.

As for next year's event, Faulkner hinted to PAX that it will promise a little more pampering "and really leaning into the break that everyone deserves."

To see more pictures from the event, "like" and visit PAX's Facebook page here. 

Don't miss a single travel story: subscribe to PAX today!  Click here to follow PAX on Facebook.