Flying high in the world of international business

Although Mairead Lavery has spent much of her career reaching for the skies, she may not have anticipated that her dreams would come true in quite this way: a high-flying job as vice-president of finance at Montreal-based aircraft maker Bombardier.

Yet it seems the flight plan was set early on. Back in the 1990s, while working as an accountant with Ernst & Young in Belfast, Lavery seized opportunities to learn about the world of international business. Soon she had moved to a consulting role, specialising in the area of mergers and acquisitions.

Her time at Ernst & Young provided her with plenty of experience of different industries and business models. One of her first clients was local aircraft maker Short Brothers, which had just been taken over by Bombardier.

Lavery remembers feeling “intrigued” by the company and the more she got to know her client, the more she felt attracted to the sector.

“Most people get on a flight and are fascinated that this piece of metal lifts into the air, yet we still get on board,” she laughs. Even today, in the age of no-frills flying, “it’s still a huge thrill”.

She soon found herself craving an active role in the industry. “I wanted to make a difference, rather than just make recommendations,” she says. “I wanted to get my hands dirty.”

When Short Brothers asked her to come on board as a financial manager, she didn’t have to think twice.

A mere 15 months later, Lavery was asked to join parent company Bombardier as a financial controller, a role that saw her assume financial oversight for thousands of staff worldwide. Two years later she moved to Montreal and was promoted to the positing of director of financial reporting.

It was a major step up and Lavery felt she may have reached the high point of her career. However the Belfast-based manager who had put her forward for promotion had other ideas. Aware of her potential, he pushed her to aim higher.

“He asked me what my next career move would be,” says Lavery. “I’d just been promoted and was still trying to figure things out, but said: Okay, I want to be a vice-president of finance. He laughed and replied: ‘That is so obvious.’”

Lavery was now starting to think bigger.

“It started opening my horizons,” she says. “I realised that when you’re at a remote location, you don’t see all the thought processes behind the decisions and who the decision-makers are.”

In 2007, Lavery was promoted to vice-president of strategy, a role that saw her bringing her accounting experience into an entirely new domain: management. This was her first foray into uncharted territory.

“It was really funny,” she says. “People were looking at me, saying: ‘You know how to lead people, you know how to strategise.’”

Despite Lavery’s trepidation, the move turned out to be the making of her, allowing her to work with company leaders, influencing key decisions.

“I could now see what was going on. If I’d stayed in finance, I’d have been a technical expert, but now I’m a better manager,” she says.

In 2009, Lavery moved into structured finance, helping customers to find financing for their purchases. The timing – a year on from the global credit crunch – could not have been less propitious, but Lavery quickly identified China as a target and started building a network from scratch.

The experience was exhilarating.

“It was an open environment, so fast-paced, with a true desire for knowledge,” she says.

She learned how to court Chinese financiers, taking her time to build a network and understand the country’s objectives. Her strategy paid off, yielding a staggering $14 billion in finance.

Now happily settled in Montreal, Lavery has a strong appreciation of North American business culture.

“You have to recognise and be open to diversity,” she says. “I came here as a European woman from a different culture, a different system, with a different perspective. That was celebrated when I came here.”

She counsels potential wild geese not to place too much emphasis on expectations.

“Sometimes you have to go with the flow. Do not expect to have the same situation as back home,” she says.

“Sometimes we don’t know the twists and turns beforehand, but we have to have an intent, an idea of where we want to go.”

Having achieved her intent, Lavery certainly appears to be enjoying the ride.