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Alumni
Celebrating a decade of giving: alumnus Pamela Yoon makes a difference for students
For the past ten years, Pamela Yoon, a Simon Fraser University Economics alumnus and 30-year veteran of the investment industry, has welcomed undergraduate economics students to her downtown RBC offices for the annual RBC Student Visit. Nearly 300 students have benefited from this inside look at careers in finance.
At a recent 10th anniversary celebration of the RBC Student Visit, chair Brian Krauth thanked Pamela for her generous contributions to the department. Laurel Weldon, Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, presented Yoon with a certificate of appreciation for her ongoing support of FASS students and the next generation of SFU alumni.
Yoon shared advice from her career journey, and Griffith Dias from RBC’s Talent Acquisition department gave a presentation about careers at RBC. Other RBC team members were on hand to meet students and answer questions.
Yoon, who graduated in 1993 with a bachelor of arts in economics, first approached alumni engagement advisor Azam Bhatti in 2014 with the idea of giving economics students more exposure to professional workplaces. The two quickly discovered a shared vision.
“What’s great about working with Pamela is that she truly cares about human development, not just professional development,” says Bhatti. “It’s been a fantastic partnership.”
For Yoon, giving back to SFU has been a full-circle moment. As an undergraduate student, she worked as a cold caller for SFU’s annual alumni donor campaign. “It was good training because it taught me how to have thick skin. It taught me that I could talk to strangers on the phone,” Yoon says. “I tell students, ‘You need to practice. You need to learn how to interact with other people, even people you don't like.’”
Her own career began when an SFU friend helped her land an entry-level role at Scotia McLeod. From there she built relationships, earned promotions and now, as a Senior Portfolio Manager with RBC Dominion Securities, manages a concentrated global equity portfolio and leads a team directly managing $300 million.
“I went in with an open heart and I found my passion,” she says.
Yoon's current role combines wealth management and investment management, focusing on what she calls the psychology of money. “I help clients that have money figure out what money means to them, and what that money is to be used for.”
Yoon reminds students that building a career takes time. “Your degree is only going to teach you probably 10% of what your entire career is going to be. You have to play the long game, be patient and take every opportunity to learn as you go.”
“Your degree is only going to teach you probably 10% of what your entire career is going to be. You have to play the long game, be patient and take every opportunity to learn as you go.”
Building strong, genuine relationships has been key to Yoon’s ongoing career success. “Clients don’t care how smart you are until they know that you care about them,” she says. “When it comes to my clients, I can say, I know who you are. I know your voice. I know your family. I know every one of your kids’ names by heart.”
She calls on her relationships to help her clients in times of need as well. “Who do I know who will answer my call on a Saturday morning to help get a client’s mother into a care home?“ she asks. “Those are the people you need in your network.”
In an uncertain job market where the impact of new technologies like AI remains a question mark, Yoon is convinced it is human skills – like empathy and interpersonal communication - that will be most needed. She encourages students to get out from behind their screens and practice engaging with other humans.
Resiliency is another key skill Yoon hopes students will develop. “You need to feel rejection,” Yoon says. “You need to have little fails. If we learn how to get back up from the small fails, then one day, when the big fail comes, we will know how to pick ourselves up.”
One of the reasons Yoon likes mentoring students is to show young people, particularly women and people of colour, what is possible for them in the field. When she started out in the wealth management industry in the early 90s, as an international student from Malaysia, there were few people who looked like her.
“When I was younger, there were no strong women in business, or at least none who I knew,” she says.
“But our clients are women. Our clients are people of colour. Our clients are immigrants,” Yoon says. For her, it’s important to have representation in the profession as well.
Yoon established the Pamela Yoon Award in Economics in 2019 to support high-achieving economics undergrads intending to pursue a career in finance. She gives back because knowing that she’s helped people brings her joy and a sense of fulfilment.
Julia Rapaport, host of the event’s fireside chat and winner of the 2025 Pamela Yoon Award, expressed her gratitude to Yoon while hosting the fireside chat. “I am honoured to have received this award and so grateful for this opportunity to learn from you,” Rapaport said.
"When I was younger, there were no strong women in business, or at least none who I knew."
Audrey Radstake, the award’s first winner, spoke as well. “This award gave me both the confidence and the practical tools that I needed after graduation to start my career in finance. I’m grateful for that support,” she said. Radstake is now an analyst with Connor, Clark & Lunn Financial Group.
Guilia Crovini and Colten Northrop, two more previous winners, sent a video from Luxembourg, where they both work for PricewaterhouseCoopers. “We are very grateful for the impact Pamela has had on our careers,” they said. All of that relationship-building has paid off. Pamela has been invited to – and will attend - their wedding in Italy next summer.
The department is incredibly grateful to Yoon and to RBC for their support of economics students, and we look forward to many more years of partnership and growth.
