KATHIA BENCHETRIT - ROYAL BANK OF CANADA

KATHIA BENCHETRIT
REGIONAL MANAGER, ADVISOR ENABLEMENT- QUEBEC, RBC ROYAL BANK OF CANADA

​Of Moroccan-Jewish origin, Kathia Benchetrit was born in Canada and raised in a very religious and traditional environment. When she and her family left the country to live in Asia, Kathia was exposed to a new culture and new experiences that opened her mind to the world. Living and studying abroad had a profound impact on her view of people. At the age of 17, Kathia returned to Quebec with an enriched experience where she graduated from Concordia University with a Bachelor's degree in Philosophy.

Kathia joined RBC during her university years. Twenty-four years later, she is still there! For over 10 years, Kathia has led employee resource groups including LGBTQ+ Allies and Generactions - which provides mentoring for younger employees, among others. Kathia is generous with her time and is very involved with the Bank's younger employees. As a visible minority woman, she wants to inspire them to pursue their careers at RBC.

Diversity and inclusion is a cornerstone of the bank's values, and it is in this spirit that Kathia has been involved in a 10-employee focus group to review RBC's diversity and inclusion policies in Quebec. While the bank has made significant progress over the past few years, this remains an ongoing effort as D&I is central to RBC. The reflection task force will drive the implementation of direct measures to address issues of inequality and systemic bias.

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