Christine Kincaid (BCom’84) of Mediaplus wins the Telfer R. Trudeau medal 2024

Christine Kincaid (BCom’84) became an owner of Ottawa’s Mediaplus Advertising after just two years of working there. She’s proudly held the title for almost 35 years now.

Today, in addition to her role as a partner, Christine is the Vice-President and Chief Operating Officer at the agency. Throughout her impressive career, she has developed and implemented high-performing local, national, and international campaigns for an array of clients across the many sectors that represent the local economy.

Christine has played an integral role in building Mediaplus to be one of the most respected full-service advertising agencies in Eastern Ontario.

Beyond business prowess, Christine is a dedicated volunteer in the community. She works with the Centretown Community Food Centre to address food insecurity in the center of the city, helps empower girls as a leader with Girl Guides of Canada, and works with street outreach for unhoused community members through Ottawa Innercity Ministries. Additionally, she previously served as president of the Canadian Cancer Society for Eastern Ontario.

And that’s not all. One of Christine’s core values is education; she gives back as an Executive Mentor for Telfer students and has mentored entrepreneurs through Invest Ottawa. In 2017, Christine received Telfer's Dean’s Philos Award for her work in the community and her generous philanthropy. She also recently gave generously to the 40th class campaign led by Rob Ashe, former Cognos CEO and IBM executive, in support of experiential learning for Telfer students. Christine also served as a member of Telfer’s Dean Advisory Board and is called upon to judge case competitions including the International Business Case Challenge at Telfer.

For Christine’s philanthropy, meaningful community work, and unwavering dedication to her alma mater, Telfer is proud to honour her with the prestigious R. Trudeau Medal this year.

Navigating decades of change

Christine Kincaid is a force to be reckoned with. She graduated from uOttawa with an Honours Bachelor of Commerce, specializing in Marketing and Industrial Relations. Then she worked as a Product Manager at a technology company before joining Mediaplus in 1988.

In 1990, she began her journey as an entrepreneur, borrowing to invest to become an owner of the agency she had only recently joined. She helped steer the young company, founded six years earlier in 1984, through the dot com boom, the turn of the millennium, the financial crisis, and ever-evolving technologies. Not to mention taking on a partner role in an industry with historic gender imbalances.

Today, Christine manages Mediaplus’s client and media services while retaining her role as the lead strategist on cornerstone accounts. The company works with Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B) clients in technology, sports, home building, communications, tourism, culture, and professional services. Christine credits her BCom as the foundation of her successful career, where she has been navigating change since day one.

“I use my degree every day”

Christine used all facets of her marketing education when she became a business owner. “I like that courses such as accounting, finance, computer science, and programming were mandatory, even though I specialized in marketing,” she says. She started her career in high-tech and the courses unexpectedly came in handy.

“And later as a manager, my education gave me an understanding of all the areas of the business, from operations and logistics to tech and finance,” says Christine. Once she transitioned to an owner role, she leveraged her knowledge in all areas of management, including HR: “I would say to current Telfer students that you will be challenged in pursuit of the degree but it is very interesting. You are going to get a job at the end of it and the sky’s the limit.”

Women in leadership: education develops confidence

Academic knowledge is just one piece of the puzzle that uOttawa’s BCom gave Christine. Another piece was equality.

“Telfer helped form who I was as a business person. I didn’t feel any gender role separation during my education; it was balanced and fair,” says Christine. When she started working, Christine looked up to everybody, regardless of gender, and learned something from everyone: “Everyone was my mentor, the people I reported to, and those I managed. I’ve always been open to learning from everyone around me, including my children who’ve taught me so much.”

Her confidence came from her education at Telfer—she graduated feeling secure and well-prepared for the real world. Great jobs and supportive leaders fed her confidence even before she became a business owner.

Christine has always had the drive to take on the next challenge. And she clarifies that a career isn’t a straight path, there are always pivots and swerves to maneuver as you make choices.

“Telfer challenged me, and encouraged me to step up and keep it up,” Christine says. Today, she relays the message to her mentees, urging them to bring their dedicated studying momentum to work. “I am always so impressed by the students' drive, ambition, and enthusiasm.”

Christine recognizes the landscape is often different for women, and helps them as a mentor to address impostor syndrome or self-esteem issues.

Advertising back then versus now

“When I started, artists with easels created advertising illustrations and mock-ups by hand,” recalls Christine. In the late 1980’s, the process was very manual with text pasted into physical art boards. Making changes was onerous and costly. “The artists employed at the time were very gifted with their hands but were able to make the transition when computers replaced easels and sketch pads.”

Always early adopters of technology, Mediaplus invested in new developments, opening up a whole new world of possibilities. And while tech doesn’t necessarily allow ideas to come faster, it facilitates their expression. The agency produces more mock-ups in the same time frame, giving clients more choice and saving money in the process.

A key factor in their success has been their collaborative approach, working alongside clients as custodians of their budget. This commitment signifies that Mediaplus is dedicated to long-term partnerships and a view to the bottom line that ensures the return on investment (ROI) of advertising dollars spent. “This is a fundamental value of our agency,” Christine says, “Everything we do needs to produce results. Technology has been an ongoing game-changer for our industry—including now as we carefully watch advances in AI.”

Student experiential learning: let’s learn from each other

It’s not just technology that has evolved in forty years; the Bachelor of Commerce program has also changed. Through the years, Telfer has added many student experiential learning activities, from case competitions to capstone team projects. Christine is glad for the change, supporting the activities with generous philanthropy.

“We didn’t have that in school back then, this connection to the business community that I see now. I love how that’s evolved. We were a little isolated back in the day. Now the school has built fantastic bridges to the business community and I am happy to walk across the bridge and work with students,” says Christine.

A dedicated Executive Mentor, she has supported the program from its inception, learning from the students in the process, and boosting their confidence. Christine has also recently worked with a group of Telfer students during a marketing case competition and was voted “Coach of the Year” by the students.

Community work: supporting women in leadership and fighting social injustice

Christine is a Community Guider with the Girl Guides of Canada, helping young women in leadership feel empowered. The program focuses on building courage and confidence, and introduces the girls to positive female role models at an early age.

On top of her ongoing community work, Christine also pivoted to fighting social injustice and addressing imbalances in our society. She helps those in extreme poverty or confronted with food insecurity right here in Ottawa. Christine has participated in the development of the City of Ottawa Poverty Reduction Strategy to get to the root of the cause. She does board-level work but she is also trained in street outreach.

“I’ve lived downtown since I was a student. I see the plight of people that are street-involved or unhoused,” says Christine. “Just last night I was out doing my work. It’s hands-on and challenging but so important.” She meets people where they are, addressing basic needs like food and water, and engaging with them as a friend.

After years of committee-level work, Christine wanted to do something more hands-on and to see the direct impact of the donation dollars on this vulnerable community. She is clear that both donating and being on the ground are absolutely critical for social justice. And that you don’t have to be on a board to make a difference. You can make the world a better place by contributing to your community even on a basic level.

Advice to current Telfer students

“Adapt as you go. Be true to yourself and stay focused: find the thing you are good at and stick with it. But at the end of the day, you have to be happy,” says Christine.

This advice extends past the next generation of business leaders; Christine tells her team the same thing. As a manager, she wants her employees to have balanced lives, so they can go home at the end of the day and not think about work. And when they are at work, to enjoy what they do.

It certainly was not always this way in the advertising business, which has typically been characterized as a high-pressure “hustle” culture.

“Day in and day out, put in your hours, work hard at work but then go home, focus on yourself and your family, and come back the next day recharged. In the early days of the agency, it seemed we often went down to the wire but we have since figured that out. It’s all management and getting ahead of deadlines so our team can have a balanced life,” says Christine.

Telfer is honoured to award Chris Kincaid (BCom’84) one of our R. Trudeau Medal Winners of 2024. We cannot wait to see how much more she will accomplish at the helm of Mediaplus and in her vital hands-on work in our community.