The province’s first female premier has a breadth of experience in business and government unmatched by any recent premier

---

Frank McKenna says Susan Holt could help New Brunswick “get its swagger back.”

There was certainly that feeling last October when she became the first woman elected premier of New Brunswick. It was the focal point on election night and in the weeks after, celebrated by girls like her own daughters—who made her a Taylor Swift-style friendship bracelet with beads that spelled out MME PREMIER—and leading female politicians like Hillary Clinton, the former U.S. Secretary of State and presidential nominee who sent Holt a congratulatory note after her win.
“I was just stunned that Hillary Clinton had taken the time to sign and send me an encouraging note. It was unreal,” said Holt.

She texted the news to a female business leader in the province, who said she needed to pay it forward and become the same kind of inspiration to girls and young women. “It’s a good reminder of the responsibility. If you know that young girls are watching and [seeing me] as a source of hope or inspiration, then I have to set a good example and create the space for more equity in leadership and in politics in this province, and maybe beyond.”

People rightly celebrate that breakthrough for New Brunswick women, but Holt also brings another unique set of skills to the job: a breadth of experience in business and government unmatched by any recent premier. She did ground-level sales and human resources development early in her career with private-sector companies; led the Fredericton Chamber of Commerce and the New Brunswick Business Council; worked on the Jobs Board Secretariat with the provincial government; and, before taking on the Liberal leadership role, she was a senior leader at private-sector company, PLATO Testing, which recruits and trains Indigenous software testers.

Economic development consultant David Campbell has known Holt since her days at the Fredericton chamber and worked with her at the Jobs Board Secretariat when they were both hired by Brian Gallant’s Liberal government in 2015. He said Holt’s experience with various private-sector businesses, non-profit organizations and government should help her be a more effective premier out of the gate. “It can be a bit bloody in the first year or two,” said Campbell, as a new premier learns to navigate the bureaucracy of the provincial government.

“She’s probably the first premier in my lifetime who actually understands the bureaucracy and how policy making gets done because she’s seen it from the perspective of an advocacy organization. She’s seen it from inside, and now she’s seeing it from the top.”

—David Campbell, President, Jupia Consultants Inc.

Continue reading this story: click below to login/subscribe

Login or Subscribe