Alumni Digest.

Community · Alumni Digest original

Ophelia Chang builds support into leadership

The UTM commerce graduate connects her work in risk management with lessons learned while helping students settle into campus life. Published in Alumni Digest as verified reporting from the University of Toronto.

The UTM commerce graduate connects her work in risk management with lessons learned while helping students settle into campus life.

In the September issue
Woman wearing beige blazer smiling.
Ophelia Chang, a UTM commerce graduate working in risk management and governance. Photo: Lindsay Roberts. Source image retained for editorial review; rights clearance is still required before any broader reuse.

The context

Where the work begins

As a residence peer academic leader at U of T Mississauga, Ophelia Chang helped students handle unfamiliar surroundings and academic demands. One memory is especially concrete: a shopping trip to prepare students for their first Canadian winter. She also helped develop programming on communication and workplace expectations before graduation.

The takeaway

What follows

After earning her commerce degree in 2009, Chang used Career Centre support to find her first accounting position. Audit and IT audit followed, then risk management. She describes building a leadership dashboard and investigating the causes of incidents in her director role. Her Women in Risk and Governance initiative extends that work through mentorship and resources for underrepresented professionals.

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