{"id":5064,"date":"2026-04-21T05:09:50","date_gmt":"2026-04-21T11:09:50","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/?p=5064"},"modified":"2026-04-21T05:13:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-21T11:13:57","slug":"businesswoman-nancy-southern-a-story-of-success-and-leadership-at-atco-ltd-and-canadian-utilities-limited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/eternal-5064-businesswoman-nancy-southern-a-story-of-success-and-leadership-at-atco-ltd-and-canadian-utilities-limited","title":{"rendered":"Businesswoman Nancy Southern: A Story of Success and Leadership at ATCO Ltd and Canadian Utilities Limited"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Nancy Southern is a Canadian entrepreneur, community leader, and philanthropist, best known as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of ATCO Ltd and Canadian Utilities Limited. Under her leadership, these organizations have demonstrated sustainable growth<\/a> and embraced modern business practices. Southern is also deeply involved in social initiatives and charitable projects, cementing her reputation as one of Canada’s most influential businesswomen. Read more about her career, achievements, and community work on edmontonka.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Early Life, Family, and Her Path to Big Business in Canada<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Nancy Christine Southern was born in Calgary<\/a> on August 27, 1956, to Ron and Margaret Southern. From a young age, Nancy and her younger sister were passionate about equestrian sports. Lacking proper local training facilities, they had to travel long distances to compete. Realizing that equestrian athletes in Western Canada needed a world-class facility closer to home, Margaret and Ron built Spruce Meadows in 1975. Today, it stands as the world’s premier show jumping venue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In 2025, Spruce Meadows celebrated its 50th anniversary, marking half a century of training top-tier international athletes. As her skills progressed, Nancy rode for the Canadian National Equestrian Team from 1975 to 1982. During her time on the team, she met fellow rider Jonathan Asselin, and the couple soon married.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Southern also took an active role in managing the commercial side of Spruce Meadows. This provided an excellent opportunity to hone her business acumen, covering everything from sales and marketing to logistics and management. It was here that she gained invaluable hands-on experience. As of 2026, Nancy serves as Executive Vice-President and Co-Chair of Tournaments at Spruce Meadows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Career at ATCO and Canadian Utilities<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Southern attended Mount Royal College and the University of Calgary, where she studied economics and commerce. One of her university professors, Dr. Robert Mansell, became a crucial mentor to her in both life and business. Armed with practical and theoretical knowledge in economics and commerce, Nancy’s next step was to learn the ropes at ATCO, the company her father founded in 1947. What started as a small trailer manufacturing business achieved massive economic success by building and installing modular workforce housing for major infrastructure and resource projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After joining the ATCO Board of Directors in 1989, Nancy served as Co-Chair for 16 years before becoming Chair in 2012. In 2003, she was appointed President and Chief Executive Officer of ATCO. During this time, she was responsible for the strategic direction of ATCO, its subsidiary Canadian Utilities, and the entire ATCO Group of Companies. This meant Southern led a global workforce of over 7,000 employees. This included thousands of Albertans who lived, worked, and volunteered across more than 350 communities served by ATCO in the province.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Backed by her team, Southern successfully expanded ATCO’s footprint in international markets. She spearheaded the acquisition of WA Gas Networks in Western Australia in 2011 and guided the company’s return to the Chilean market. Under her leadership, ATCO personnel have responded to a series of natural disasters in Alberta:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    \n
  • The 2013 Southern Alberta floods.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The 2016 Fort McMurray wildfires.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The province’s record-breaking 2023 wildfire season.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
  • The 2024 Jasper wildfire.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n

    During each crisis, hundreds of ATCO employees were deployed to maintain critical infrastructure and set up modular housing for emergency workers and evacuees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Notably, the construction of ATCO’s corporate head office complex relied almost exclusively on Albertan materials, products, and tradespeople. This was a direct mandate from Nancy to ensure the project delivered maximum economic benefit to Albertans.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Social Impact and Influence: Nancy Southern\u2019s Contributions to Society and Women in Business<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
    \"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

    ATCO’s longstanding commitment to the Canadian Armed Forces and its veterans reached new heights under Nancy\u2019s leadership, providing military camp services, logistics, and operational support. She championed the company’s involvement with the Homes for Heroes Foundation, which saw ATCO build tiny home villages for veterans struggling to reintegrate into civilian life. ATCO has also been a top employer of reservists in Alberta for years. Additionally, members of the Lord Strathcona\u2019s Horse (Royal Canadians) suffering from PTSD participate in riding programs at Spruce Meadows as part of their rehabilitation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nancy is an unwavering advocate for women in business, both within Alberta and beyond. The boards of directors for ATCO and Canadian Utilities feature a significantly higher percentage of women than the average TSX-listed company. In turn, ATCO supports Women + Power, a community built to help women in Alberta\u2019s energy sector achieve both professional and personal success. In 2015, at the invitation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Nancy Southern joined 100 other global leaders at the G7 Forum for Dialogue with Women.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nancy is proud to carry on her father\u2019s commitment to fairness\u2014championing diversity, equity, and inclusion, while driving forward environmental, social, and governance (ESG) practices. Through its partnerships with Indigenous communities, the ATCO team is setting an example for other regions on how to achieve economic reconciliation that will deliver benefits for years to come. Nancy has overseen the development of nearly 50 partnerships with Indigenous groups across Canada, including dozens in Alberta. Together, these joint ventures generate approximately $150 million in real economic benefits every year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    In 2012, Southern was bestowed the title of Honorary Chief of the Kainai Nation. She was also recognized for her entrepreneurial spirit and her dedication to building mutually beneficial relationships with Indigenous communities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

    Nancy has served on the boards of directors for organizations including:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      \n
    1. Shell Canada.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    2. Bank of Montreal.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    3. BMO Financial.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    4. American Society of Corporate Executives.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    5. U.S. Business Council.<\/li>\n\n\n\n
    6. Business Council of Canada and the Rideau Hall Foundation, among others.<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n

      In 2020, Nancy Southern was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II British Empire Medal (BEM) for her service to British equestrian, military, and commercial interests in Alberta. Nancy is also a recipient of the Queen Elizabeth II Platinum Jubilee Medal (Alberta).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Nancy’s business achievements and societal contributions have been recognized by numerous institutions. In 2023, she was named Energy Person of the Year by the Energy Council of Canada. That same year, she received the Americas Award from the Canadian Council for the Americas. In 2022, she was honored with the Canadian Business Leader Lifetime Achievement Award.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

      Nancy and her husband live near Spruce Meadows, where they run Attach\u00e9 Stables.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

      Nancy Southern is a Canadian entrepreneur, community leader, and philanthropist, best known as the Chair and Chief Executive Officer of ATCO Ltd and Canadian Utilities Limited. Under her leadership, these organizations have demonstrated sustainable growth and embraced modern business practices. Southern is also deeply involved in social initiatives and charitable projects, cementing her reputation as […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":402,"featured_media":5041,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1036],"tags":[3820,3795,3814,3815,3817,3816,3818,3821,3801,3819,3813,3822,3792,3591],"motype":[1045],"moformat":[127],"moimportance":[34,33],"class_list":{"0":"post-5064","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-style-and-beauty","8":"tag-alberta-economy","9":"tag-atco-ltd","10":"tag-calgary","11":"tag-canadian-business","12":"tag-canadian-energy-sector","13":"tag-canadian-entrepreneurs","14":"tag-canadian-equestrian-sports","15":"tag-canadian-philanthropy","16":"tag-canadian-utilities","17":"tag-corporate-governance","18":"tag-nancy-southern","19":"tag-social-initiatives","20":"tag-spruce-meadows","21":"tag-women-in-business","22":"motype-eternal","23":"moformat-longrid-korotka","24":"moimportance-golovna-novina","25":"moimportance-retranslyacziya-v-agregatori"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5064","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/402"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5064"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5064\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":5065,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/5064\/revisions\/5065"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5041"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5064"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=5064"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=5064"},{"taxonomy":"motype","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/motype?post=5064"},{"taxonomy":"moformat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moformat?post=5064"},{"taxonomy":"moimportance","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/edmontonka.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/moimportance?post=5064"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}