The Kellogg-Schulich Executive MBA Convocation Program 2024

Kathleen Taylor is an experienced international business leader and corporate director in the public and private sectors. Based in Toronto, Canada, she is well recognized for her leadership and governance skills, and for her multifaceted business expertise across various industries and geographies.

Most recently serving as the Chair of the Board of the Royal Bank of Canada, she was appointed as a director in 2001 and as Chair from 2014 to 2023, helping to oversee a period of significant growth and international expansion for the bank. Prior to this role, Ms. Taylor was the President and CEO of Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, where she was instrumental in building Four Seasons’ global portfolio and international brand over almost 24 years with the company.   

Today, she is Chair of Altas Partners, a fast-growing private equity investment firm, with approximately $10 billion of capital under management and invested with numerous companies across North America. She is also the vice-chair of The Adecco Group (Zurich), the world’s leading talent advisory and solutions company, and serves as a director of Air Canada (Montreal), Canada’s largest air carrier, and Mattamy Asset Management (Toronto). In addition, she is the Chair of the Advisory Board of the Cabot Collection, a developer and operator of golf resorts and residential properties.  

A champion of women and children, Ms. Taylor is Chair of the Board of Trustees for the Hospital for Sick Children and the Immediate Past Chair and a member of the Board of Directors of the SickKids Foundation. She is also a founding visionary and Co-Chair of the Advocacy Committee of The Prosperity Project, a national not-for-profit devoted to the advancement of women in leadership and the economy.

She is a member of the C.D. Howe Institute’s National Council, Co-Chair of their Human Capital Policy Council and a member of the Task Force on the Digital Economy. She is also the Chancellor of York University and serves on the Dean’s Global Advisory Council of the Schulich School of Business. 

Among her many accolades for business achievement are: Member of the Order of Canada; inductee into the Canadian Marketing Hall of Legends; member of WXN’s Most Powerful Women Hall of Fame; recipient of the Schulich School of Business Award for Outstanding Executive Leadership; recipient of the inaugural Medal for Career Achievement from the Hennick Centre for Business and Law; and recipient of the Governance Professionals of Canada Peter Dey Governance Achievement Award. Ms. Taylor holds an M.B.A. from the Schulich School of Business, a law degree from Osgoode Hall Law School and a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) from the University of Toronto. She has also received an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from the University of Toronto, McGill University, York University and Trent University; an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Mount Saint Vincent University; and an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from Huron University College