Catherine Clark: You’ve had such an interesting career, and you’re obviously a champion within RBC for encouraging conversations that empower women – something that’s very near and dear to Jen’s and my heart. Is that something you grew into, or were you always this way? Were you that little girl who was always pushing back against injustice and trying to make things better?
Sue Noble: I mean, I think it’s a good question. I would say it’s definitely always been top of mind for me. I think part of it comes from my upbringing and my family.
I had a mother who actually worked when, back in my day and age, it wasn’t always common. A lot of the moms tended to be homemakers. My mom had a pretty interesting career. She went to university in the UK and studied math and physics, then came to Canada. Back in the ’70s, she started as a coder and worked in geographic information systems.
I remember it started to click for me because she always worked, and she always encouraged us to march to our own beat and do whatever it was that inspired us. As I started getting into the workforce, I began to realize what a champion she really was and how inspirational that was.
I remember one conversation I had with her. I asked, “How many other women work with you?” She kind of looked at me and said, “Well, to be honest, the women are mostly the secretaries.” That was the moment I really realized she was a bit of a trailblazer, and there was so much I could learn from her.
Watching how she carried herself with so much positivity – she never felt bowed down by it. She never talked about being the only woman in a very male-dominated industry at the time. She never talked about that. And I thought, wow, that’s so inspirational. She just kept marching forward.
Ever since I really started to understand where she came from and how she approached being a woman in a male-dominated world, I’ve felt like that’s something I can continue to follow in her footsteps.
Jennifer Stewart: Sue, I was going to ask you who your role model was, but I think we already know. Is it safe to say it was your mom?
Sue Noble: Yeah, I think so. And obviously, over your career, you reflect a lot on these moments and points in time. My grandmother as well – she also worked. At the end of the day, I like to give her a lot of credit. She’s no longer with us, but she was actually a seamstress, and she really ran her own business. She designed clothing back in the UK.
I think, wow, she was an entrepreneur. We would never have defined her that way at the time, but in today’s day and age, if you’re running your own business and designing clothing for women, you’re really an entrepreneur. So yes, I would absolutely say that both my grandmother and my mother are two inspirations to me today.
Catherine Clark: You talked about your mom not complaining and not really talking about the fact that she was the only woman in her particular role, surrounded by men. Your grandma was obviously a remarkable person too. Sometimes women, as they get higher up the chain, talk about a sense of loneliness. I’m wondering if you felt that at any point in your career, or if that relentlessly positive attitude your mom passed down to you was a benefit – or if it made you feel like you shouldn’t complain.
Sue Noble: That’s actually a really good question. At the end of the day, I wouldn’t describe it as loneliness. I think it’s more of an inner strength.
It’s not a feeling of not complaining – it’s a feeling of “you’ve got this.” Watching her, even when I was younger, I would go to her and say, “I don’t know if I can make this team,” or “I don’t know if I’m really cut out to do this.” You’d go to her with those moments.
I remember her being very, very British – and she still is – and she would always say this expression: “Oh, fiddlesticks.” That was her way of saying, “You’ve got this. Don’t second-guess yourself.”
So I don’t know that it was really loneliness. I think there are always moments of self-doubt at any point in your career as you’re building. You think, “Do I really have this?” I’ve moved around a lot in my career, so you go into new places and new roles and start to wonder, “Do I really know what I’m doing here?”
Growing up with that mindset – this notion that you can figure anything out if you really put your mind to it – I wouldn’t say it was loneliness. I think it was really about building that resiliency and trusting that what got me here will continue to carry me forward.
That’s the inner strength I would describe.
Jennifer Stewart: Did you always want to go into banking? And if not, what attracted you to that sector?
Sue Noble: Yeah, that’s a great question. No, I definitely did not have plans to be a banker. I really wanted to be in the medical profession. I went to school and did an undergraduate degree in physiology, and that was my plan.
After I graduated, I wrote my MCAT. I knew I had to go back and write it again, so in between figuring all of that out, I started working. I began working in financial services – not in banking, but in insurance – and I surprised myself by how much I enjoyed it.
I don’t think I really understood what working in a big corporate world would look like, and I really started to enjoy it. I was in a client-facing role, and I loved being around people. I loved the client interactions. But I didn’t know anything about business. I remember sitting in town halls where they would talk about the profitability of the business and how much money we were making, and I had absolutely no idea what any of that meant.
There was actually a moment when my roommate at the time – this is a very true story – took me to a “Women and Wine” event. She was doing her MBA and invited me along. At that event, a senior executive from a bank gave the keynote address. She talked about how she had built a 25-year career and had been able to move from operations to marketing to client-facing roles to product management.
I remember going home – I was engaged at the time – and saying to my fiancé, “I figured out what I want to do. This is it. I want to do my MBA, I want to work at a bank, and I want to have a career that’s really interesting, that allows me to continue to grow and learn across many different areas.”
That was kind of it.
I was very fortunate. After graduating from my MBA, I entered RBC in a leadership rotational program. It allowed you, over two years, to work across four different parts of the organization. That was really good grounding for me, because you come in thinking, “Okay, I’m here now, but I still don’t actually know what I want to do yet” – and that’s okay. It allowed me to keep learning and stay curious.
A big part of it is just figuring out what really resonates and clicks with you. I think that’s part of everyone’s career journey – learning about yourself and how you can contribute. I often talk about what really energizes you, and that’s always been a bit of a guidepost for me in my career: paying attention to my energy and figuring out what really excites me every day.
You spend a lot of time at work, so it’s been really important for me to feel excited and energized every single day I come to work. I’ve been given a lot of opportunities to figure that out in my almost 20 years at RBC.
Catherine Clark: Now, what I find really interesting about that is that the career you’re in now seems to have come about a little bit by serendipity, right? Someone invited you to an event, you heard an inspirational speaker, you were questioning your path, and that speaker really inspired you to choose the career that has defined your professional life for the past couple of decades.
How do you think about that? How does it affect how you talk to other people – especially young women – about the careers they may choose? Or, when someone asks you to speak at an event, does that influence whether you say yes, knowing the impact it had on you?
Sue Noble: I think absolutely. For me, it’s about role models and feeling connected and inspired by people who are further ahead in their careers. Today, that’s incredibly important to me. I feel very fortunate to have had that moment where I saw that senior leader.
Career planning and growth are important, but I often say a lot of it is just about trusting your gut and instincts, and not being afraid to put yourself out there. You don’t know what’s possible unless you’re given opportunities to learn from others. That’s why giving back is so important.
I mentor a lot of people today at the bank, and I’m always very open about sharing my career path – the ups and downs, the lessons learned. Having honest conversations is key, because it’s easy to look at someone more senior and think they’ve always had it all together. The reality is, that’s not the case. Everyone experiences failures, self-doubt, and pivots along the way.
Creating authentic spaces – one-on-one conversations, small groups, mentoring circles – where people can share different perspectives is so valuable. I also love what we call reverse mentoring. Every time I have a conversation with someone earlier in their career, I learn something too. It’s an incredible way to help the next generation of leaders come forward, while continuing to grow yourself.
Jennifer Stewart: At the retreat we just had – that The Honest Talk posted about – Arlene Dickinson talked about “mentoring in the moment.” Committing to a schedule and meeting with someone every month can be daunting, especially for really busy women. But taking those opportunities you just spoke about – those key moments to share your lessons – I think is incredibly valuable.
Has your personal definition of success changed over time? And what does it look like to you today?
Sue Noble: I think when you’re younger in your career – or I was, anyway, maybe not for everyone – I tended to be very laser-focused on the career itself, the impact you’re having, and the work you’re delivering. My definition of success back then was much more about projects, deliverables, and organizational impact.
Today, it’s so much more about teams and communities. I really find it’s a much broader perspective. The more you can help others on their journey, the more gratification you get from watching them succeed. For me, today, the most rewarding part of my career is seeing others succeed, and that’s what energizes me every day.
Catherine Clark: Is there one thing you wish you’d known 10 or 20 years ago, when you were just starting out?
Sue Noble: There are so many things; it’s hard to narrow it down to just one. But I’ll share a couple.
If I could go back, the first thing I’d tell myself is that this is a long game. Early in my career, I had a sense of impatience, a tendency to rush. I think it ties into what you mentioned about being in the moment – enjoying and getting the most out of every experience. I was very driven, very impatient. If I could go back, I’d say, “Why the rush? Spend more time building relationships, digging in, learning, and staying curious.”
The second thing is self-care, which I’m very focused on today. It’s interesting because I went to a very academic high school, where they ingrained the importance of physical activity. Even though we weren’t particularly strong in sports, we were expected to run, swim, and exercise. Now, later in my career, I reflect a lot on that and recognize how interconnected mental health and physical health are. Taking time for yourself as a first priority is critical.
In my younger years, I didn’t prioritize self-care as much. Now, I would go back and make sure I focused on it – both for my well-being and to be the best version of myself, personally and professionally.
