Edwards alumna recognized for business leadership with YWCA Women of Distinction Award

Heather Adams (BComm'05) is the co-founder and CEO of Rock & Bloom, a Saskatoon-based brand consultancy she has grown from a two-person startup into an internationally recognized firm grounded in strategy, creativity, and purpose. With a background in marketing, communications, and human resources, she leads with a people-first approach that drives both business success and meaningful community impact.

In May, Adams was recognized for this work with the Business and Entrepreneurship Award at the YWCA’s 44th annual Women of Distinction Awards.

Here are five things to know about Heather Adams:

Receiving this award is an honour. As an entrepreneur, one of the hardest things to do is to remind yourself to celebrate your wins. It’s so easy to move on to the next target, the next goal. Being named a YWCA Women of Distinction Award recipient in Business and Entrepreneurship fills me with a sense of pride. This award is representative of the resilience, dedication and constant growth it requires to run a business.

A defining part of entrepreneurship has been learning to lead through uncertainty while continuing to grow. Whether it was through the global pandemic or shifts within the business, there have been moments where we’ve had to make difficult decisions, navigate rapid change, or step into opportunities before feeling fully ready.

Early in my career, I believed strong leadership meant always having the solution. Over time, I’ve learned that great leadership is grounded in clarity, adaptability, and surrounding yourself with people who challenge and strengthen your thinking.

In a particularly challenging year, we were transparent with our team about the state of the business and the need for difficult decisions. In sharing honestly, instead of team members questioning my leadership, they instead jumped at the chance to support and help turn the tides.

From an early age, I think I always knew that I wanted to own my own business. The cross-section of classes I took created a well-rounded view of what I might experience in the professional sphere. This learning gave me the foundation and confidence to guide my future steps.

Notably, the Edwards School of Business is known for the group work required to get projects across the finish line. How those groups operate are a microcosm of how you may lead and operate a team in your career.

Business is ultimately about people. Whether you’re building a company, leading a team, or developing strategy, success comes from understanding human behaviour, building trust, and creating value.

Edwards also gave me the confidence to think bigger, to see entrepreneurship not just as starting a business, but as creating opportunities, building community, and driving meaningful impact.

At Rock & Bloom, we support organizations in telling meaningful stories, building community, and creating impact. This responsibility is not taken lightly.

Some of the work I’m most proud of has been alongside nonprofit and community organizations whether it's bringing critical programming to schools or building capital investments for Saskatoon and surrounding communities. These teams often work with limited resources, yet their impact is significant. They deserve the same level of strategic thinking, creativity, and brand quality as any major organization.

I hope our work continues to help elevate the standard for how purpose-driven organizations communicate, connect, and grow. Most importantly, I hope our work encourages others to think bigger about what’s possible here.

Saskatchewan is full of incredibly talented, innovative people, and I believe we should be building businesses and brands with the confidence to compete anywhere.

A lot of people wait until they feel more qualified, experienced, or certain before taking a leap. The reality is that entrepreneurship is often figuring things out in real time. Confidence usually comes after action, not before it.

I also encourage people to build a strong circle. Behind every successful entrepreneur is a community of people offering support, perspective, encouragement, and occasionally telling them they’re not overreacting! Resilience is equally important. While talent matters, consistency, adaptability, and a willingness to keep showing up are often the most significant factors over time.

Responses have been edited for length and clarity.

Article originally published at https://edwards.usask.ca