2025-10-28T09:55:23-04:00

“It is my passion that drives me as an Entrepreneur.”

Deborah Rosati, an award-winning entrepreneur and corporate director, has been described in three interconnected ways throughout her 35-year career: as a champion of corporate governance, a catalyst for change, and a builder of community.

As the founder and CEO of Women Get On Board Inc. (WGOB), a social-purpose company celebrating a decade of increasing women’s representation on boards, Deborah cultivates a community for the next generation of women corporate directors. WGOB elevates the voices of women leaders, board members, and professionals across Canada through education, mentorship, and allyship. It is often called the Power of Three—one woman in the boardroom is a token, two is a presence, and three is a voice.

Deborah is a trusted leader in the boardroom, having chaired boards and several audit committees for public companies, as well as nominating and corporate governance committees. Additionally, Deborah has led and served on numerous special committees with diverse mandates, including those related to going public and private, mergers and acquisitions, restructuring, and special investigations. 

Deborah’s commitment to good governance and board diversity stems from her experiences of often being the only woman in the boardroom. These firsthand encounters have reinforced her belief that increasing women’s representation on boards results in better business outcomes. 

Constantly striving for improvement, Deborah aims to challenge expectations and encourage change. She brings an environmental, social, and governance (ESG) perspective to every board she serves on, believing in the power and responsibility of businesses to improve our world.

As innovative leaders, Deborah and her co-founders, Sherry Shannon Vanstone and Lara Zink, established Women Funding Women Inc. (WFW) to tackle the funding gap faced by women entrepreneurs.

Deborah’s commitment to sustainable change and empowerment, along with her broad governance expertise, financial knowledge, and engaging demeanor, has established her as a sought-after thought leader and speaker. Her perspectives on corporate governance, sustainability, inclusion, and social impact are prominently highlighted on her website, deborahrosati.ca.

“As leaders, we have a civic duty to elevate the next generation of women leaders by advocating for their economic empowerment and financial freedom so they can make independent decisions. We can achieve this empowerment through education, mentorship, and allyship.”

BMO Icon Award

Deborah was humbled to receive The Icon Award from BMO in honour of 10 years of Women Get On Board Inc. As Women Get on Board's National Strategic Partner, BMO has been a longtime champion of the company's work to connect, promote, and empower women to serve on corporate boards with confidence and courage. The award was presented at the final stop of the BMO Celebrating Women on Boards five-city tour in Toronto on October 28, 2025. [...]

Momentum Diminished: Why Canadian Corporate Board Diversity Progress Slowed in 2025

When Osler released their 2025 Diversity Disclosure Practices report this week, the results were stark. According to their analysis, momentum towards gender parity on the boards of Canadian public companies slowed considerably in 2025. Although the overall percentage of women on TSX-listed boards has officially exceeded 30% —reaching 30.5% —this number represents only a modest increase from Osler’s 2024 report.  The bottom line? Progress in increasing diversity among directors has slowed down. The Alarming Slowdown in the Numbers As [...]

The Power of the Pitch™ 2025

On October 17, Deborah will serve as MC for The Power of the Pitch™,  an ecosystem for entrepreneurs to secure funding, earn visibility, and attract extensive media coverage hosted by I Am Unbreakable Global Media. For founders, The Power of the Pitch™ is a launchpad for scaling faster. For investors, it’s early access to Canada’s boldest ventures. For media, it’s a front-row seat to the stories and companies shaping the future of business. Each stage is designed to connect [...]

Deborah, as Founder and CEO of Women Get on Board was instrumental in facilitating my board career by providing advice on criteria’s to be given an opportunity to sit on a board. Deborah has grown WGOB from a Toronto based organization to one that is national. She willingly shares her 20+ years experience of sitting on boards for the benefit of others. She is a mentor, sponsor and promoter of numerous women in their board journey. She provides thought leadership and gives back to her community with the invaluable work on CPA Canada’s advisory committees. I know that my board journey would look a lot different without the support and insight of Deborah and WGOB.”

Wendy Kei, FCPA, FCA, ICD.D, Chair of Ontario Power Generation, member of Women Get On Board, Mentor for the Inaugural WGOB Mentorship Program
Deborah Rosati is Canada’s Connector. She focuses her time, energy, passion, insights and wisdom towards connecting, promoting and empowering women to corporate boards. Deborah unites women and men across the country in an effort to drive diversity and women’s equality in boardrooms. Deborah founded Women Get On Board in 2015, and has since established a community of over 650 women and men who are on their board journey. Through Women Get On Board, panels discussions, podcasts and more, Deborah has elevated the bar for good governance, boardroom diversity, equity and inclusion. Furthermore, through Women Get On Board’s Mentorship program, Deborah is grooming the next generation of corporate directors. Deborah leads with passion and inspires everyone she meets with her relentless energy and commitment to helping people and companies flourish.

Deborah’s authenticity and approach to relationship building is unrivaled in the realm of board diversity and corporate board building.

Alyssa Barry, CPIR, Principal & Cofounder, irlabs, Advisory Council member & Sponsor of the WGOB Mentorship Program

Deborah has a unique ability to see a need, but then to invest the effort to create a vision and an ecosystem to address the need. We came together with a shared vision of helping accelerate gender parity on corporate Boards. From that shared vision, we co-created and co-deliver the Getting Board Ready program, targeted at women looking to land their first corporate Board seat. I have had an inside view to her passion, her collaborative nature, her willingness to pay it forward, her expertise, and her acute business savvy. A well of ideas, she seems to have a sixth sense on how to brand and market, and is a force to be reckoned with.

Andrea Plotnick, Ph.D, SVP Board and Executive Solutions at LHH-Knightsbridge & Co-Facilitator with Deborah on the Getting Board Ready Program

Deborah is an outstanding change advocate and continually connects, promotes and empowers women for board service. She is an exceptional entrepreneur who is able to apply her training as a financial expert and operational knowledge of the ‘nuts and bolts’ of running a business, to educate and empower her young team. I believe unequivocally that Deborah is a deserving recipient of an RBC Canadian Entrepreneur Award and I am honoured to support her nomination.

Donna Price, Governance Coach
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