Maxine Kashton (BA 84, CPA, CMA), comes from a family of UWinnipeg graduates. “There was never a question that you wouldn’t go to university,” said Max, who attended UWinnipeg at the same time as her brother and mother.
Max intended to go into nursing and complete a two-year program. She started university by taking psychology and biology, when she quickly realized she didn’t like biology and therefore probably would not be a good nurse. At a crossroads, she decided she wouldn’t register for a second year. Her mother was horrified.
My mother always told me that education is never a burden.
Max Kashton
“My mother always told me that education is never a burden,” said Max. “And I’ve carried that with me all these years.” Instead of giving up on university, Max found her answer in pile of magazines in a doctor’s office.
“I often tell people when they don’t know what to do, to imagine yourself in a doctor’s office waiting room. What magazine are you going to reach for?” For as long as Max could remember, she always picked up business magazines. So she switched to economics and never looked back.
Max credits her time at UWinnipeg as instrumental in her career. “University teaches you a different way to think. I graduated, and I didn’t suddenly walk into the job, but I thought differently than everyone else and I stood out because I had a degree.”
While studying economics, Max worked for an insurance company doing data entry in an administrative role. As she became familiar with the industry, her curiosity was piqued with underwriting. She asked a colleague how to get that job, and learned she needed a degree, any degree.
“I remember having that conversation and the guy pointed to another employee and said, ‘he’s a zoologist’. University will not guarantee you the job, but it will guarantee that you’ll come out thinking a different way. I am always thinking at the next level, or with a different perspective.”
Throughout her 40-year career, Max held a variety of titles including corporate regional manager, business owner, chief financial officer, mom, and chief executive officer. “Even though my career wasn’t linear, my degree elevated me in my role and understanding.” She obtained her CPA and CMA designation while working.
“Not only did my degree elevate my career, but was a path to achieving my designation,” said Max. “I can say given I am a CPA, people typically assume I am an Asper graduate and when the opportunity presents itself, I proudly let them know I did my undergraduate degree in economics at UWinnipeg.”
Celebrating and supporting women
At one point, Max decided she would like to be the CEO of an organization. When the opportunity came to helm the Manitoba Women’s Enterprise Centre (WeMB), she took it. “WeMB culminated in all the things that I feel strongly about. Entrepreneurship, business and helping women. Having gone through many decades of women in the workforce and how it changed over the years. I wanted to help elevate women.”
WeMB is a non-profit that supports women in business. Max said that women are a small population of the whole entrepreneur space and face different challenges and barriers, especially when it comes to funding their business. “There are still some unconscious biases towards women. Women in business are underrepresented, but they will help grow the economy.”
Being a woman is a superpower.
Max Kashton
Having worked most of her career in a male-dominated sector, Max believes being a woman is a superpower. “I’ve never seen it as a closed door. I always play to my strength and being a woman is one of them. I don’t undervalue it. I know gender is a tough subject, but for me it served me well.”
One person who supported and influenced Max over the years was her mother, Marion Adams (BA 92). “If there is a woman that inspired me, it was my mom. She started her degree at UWinnipeg in 1982 and graduated in 1992.”
Marion Adams (BA 92)
Marion, also known as Fighter Marion, attended university while working for the Department of Defense as a secretary for the fighter pilots. “Mom was always about education and taking courses. By the time she got back to a big city, she decided she was going to complete her degree, which she did in psychology and sociology.”
Max said juggling full-time work, parenting, and going to school was hard for Marion. But through it all, the university library was her most favourite place to be. “Everybody knew my mom at university. Even though by the time she graduated she was ready to retire, she was very proud.”
While Max herself has not fully retired, in January 2025 she transitioned into a new role with the Women’s Enterprise Organizations of Canada (WEOC), continuing to support women. “I got to a point where now I’m at the other end of my career and want to slow down a bit. I wanted to stay in the space and still continue to help women entrepreneurs.”
March 8 is International Women’s Day. The University of Winnipeg is honoured to have alumni like Max Kashton, and many more, making outstanding contributions through their work in the community.
