iON is delighted to shine the Employee Spotlight on our Staff Accountant, Kate Pavlovska. Kate joined iON as part of the Wirefire acquisition of May 2021 and we’re very glad to have her on our team!

Meet Kate Pavlovska

Born and raised in Ukraine, Kate’s education laid the foundation for her career success. She earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance from EUFIMB, a university with such a long name that they prefer to go by its acronym. She later earned an MBA from the University of Windsor in Canada.

In Ukraine, Kate worked as a financial analyst and in various operational roles before serving as an Investor Relations Manager in the farming sector. She joined an event technology company in September 2015, and eight months later she and her husband, Bogdan, welcomed their son Mark into the world.

Shortly afterward, Kate and her husband decided they wanted a change of scenery. Their love of the outdoors drew them to Canada, and they moved to British Columbia (B.C.) in June 2017. After initially renting in Port Moody, they bought a home in Coquitlam where they live to this day.

Kate’s first job in Canada was with Wirefire. She joined the team in April 2018 as an Operations Support Coordinator and within a couple years was promoted to Business Operations Manager. From day one she appreciated how Wirefire focused on customer satisfaction and the well-being of its staff. The company was dedicated to being good for people and the planet, and its leadership followed through on that pledge.

In 2021, iON acquired Wirefire, and Kate transitioned into the role of Staff Accountant within iON’s Finance team. She finds being in a more function-specific role suits her, as it comes with improved opportunities for growth and professional development.

According to Kate, the transition to iON was quite easy because the cultures were very compatible. She finds her iON teammates to be friendly, always willing to help, and driven to providing good customer experiences.

Things Kate Likes About iON

Being in a role where there are opportunities to develop new skills is important to Kate. Her current role at iON provides her with that.

Kate appreciates how iON empowers its team to improve processes and procedures. She likes how the company doesn’t just define growth in terms of financial success, it also sees the personal growth of its team members as a primary goal.

Finally, Kate feels there’s a real sense of team at iON and that she can rely on her colleagues for help and support when needed. This sense of teamwork fosters an environment where she feels empowered to contribute ideas because she knows her colleagues are in her corner.

Beyond Work

Kate believes the move to B.C. was the right choice for her family. She loves the outdoors and appreciates the public infrastructure and amenities of her new home city. She also likes how British Columbians take care of their community, such as volunteering for shoreline cleanups and food bank donation drives.

That said, Kate wishes her parents lived in Canada permanently so she could visit them more often. She would also love to see more reasonable Lower Mainland real estate prices, as she’d relish the opportunity to have a home with a full back yard and garden. And finding a restaurant in Vancouver that specialized in delicious Georgian food would also be nice.

Her family loves spending time outdoors and enjoys camping, mountain biking, hiking, and kayaking. They like to hit the slopes in the wintertime and enjoy having world class ski resorts so close to home. Although her husband switched from snowboarding to skiing since the move to B.C., Kate prefers to stick with one plank instead of two. Their son, Mark, can safely make his way down full-length green runs and even some blue runs. Not bad for a six-year-old!

Year round, Burke Mountain is the family’s closest go-to spot for hiking and biking. Other favourite spots include Seymour Valley in North Vancouver, as well as the nearby Traboulay Loop that winds through some nature areas perfect for biking and features great launch points for kayaking.

And how does Kate find the frequent rain in B.C.’s Lower Mainland? “It was a bit of a challenge at first,” she says, but now that she’s got all the gear (proper jackets, boots, etc.), she ventures forth into the great outdoors no matter how wet it is outside. With irrepressible positivity like that, it’s easy to see how Kate has become an invaluable member of our iON team!