Betty DelBianco, Law’84, who has been successfully combining law with business for 35 years, is this year’s deserving recipient of the H.R.S. Ryan Alumni Award of Distinction. The award, for which she was nominated and selected by fellow graduates, recognizes her significant contributions to the legal profession and to Queen’s Law. 

She joined multinational electronics manufacturing and supply chain solutions company Celestica Inc. as General Counsel in 1998 following several years in the law department of Bell Canada. As her portfolio expanded over the years to include oversight of human resources, corporate communications, and sustainability, she was promoted to Chief Legal and Administrative Officer. 

To succeed in the business world, DelBianco believes it is important to build relationships at all levels of an organization. “I have found it true on many occasions over the years that you can learn something from anyone – no matter their age, level, particular job, or background,” she explains. “If you listen to people with an open mind and a willingness to change your mind, you will make better decisions.”

In addition, “It is so much easier and faster to get things done when you know the people you are dealing with, or the best person to call if you need information, or a decision, or whatever,” she says. “And having good relationships at work just makes it more fun.”
 
With Celestica operating in some 20 countries, DelBianco has done a great deal of international travel for her work. “The challenges of managing legal and business issues in multiple jurisdictions with very different cultures has been one of the more interesting aspects of my role. I have had the good fortune to have had some amazing experiences and to get to know many fantastic people across the globe,” she says. 

Those travels, along with lending her expertise to guide other organizations, have also broadened her network – another key to success that she promotes. 

As a corporate director of Economical Insurance and Chair of its Human Resources and Compensation Committee, DelBianco’s background in law and business has proven very useful. “Economical is a mutual insurance company that is in the process of demutualizing and going public,” she explains. “I joined Celestica just before its IPO (initial public offering), so I have been through that process. My experience with the many aspects of the governance of a public company and with such areas as executive compensation has served me well in my role at Economical.”

She is a long-time member and past president of the Association of Canadian General Counsel (ACGC), an invitation-only association of 50 general counsels from Canada’s leading companies. Over the years, she has learned a tremendous amount from peers who are dealing with similar types of legal and business issues and formed a valuable network of colleagues to whom she can turn for advice.  

DelBianco has always been a strong supporter of Queen’s Law. As a dedicated and active Dean’s Council member for a decade (2009-2019), she demonstrated tremendous fundraising leadership while helping to shape the school’s future with her strategic guidance. During her time at Queen’s, she made many lifelong friendships. “We have stayed close over the years and continue to socialize and travel together,” she says. It was my passion for Queen’s Law that led to my serving on the Dean’s advisory council for 10 years, a role that I very much valued and enjoyed. It was a privilege to see up close the evolution of the school over that period.”

When asked how her time at Queen’s Law prepared her for this type of work, she responds, “Many of the skills I learned in law school have been valuable not only in my legal role but on the business side as well. For example, the ability to identify the key issues in a complex set of facts, to consider a problem from several perspectives, to support a position with a well-reasoned argument.”

Since her law school days, she has earned national recognition, including receiving a Canadian General Counsel Award for Litigation Management in 2016 and being named to Canada’s Most Powerful Women: Top 100 Hall of Fame by the Women’s Executive Network. 

A life-long learner, she completed an Executive MBA at the Ivey School of Business when she was working with Bell Canada. “I had a toddler at the time and had another baby while I was doing the program, so I really learned a lot about time management!” she exclaims. Within the last decade, she also completed a leadership program at Harvard Business School and Directors’ Education Programs at Rotman and at Stanford Law School.

Once she retires at the end of this year, DelBianco plans to focus on her board work and to continue being actively involved with the Queen’s Law community. “My niece just graduated from Queen’s Law and her experience was similar to mine,” she says. “I am very happy that the sense of community and support that I experienced over 35 years ago continues to this day.”

What’s the main piece of advice she gives to young people who are starting out in their careers? “Get out of your comfort zone,” she says. “That is not something that comes naturally to me and on occasion, I have had to be forced out of my comfort zone - for example, by being asked to take on responsibility for an area of the business I was not familiar with. And every single time I have made the leap – voluntarily or with some prodding – good things have happened.” 

She has also noticed a gender difference when it comes to trying something less familiar. “Women in particular are bad at not putting their hands up if they don’t think they have 100 percent of the qualifications or experiences for a particular task,” she explains. “Men tend to jump right in if they have any of the qualifications.”

DelBianco encourages, “If you have an opportunity that scares you, take it.”