At Search Smart, we’ve had the privilege of watching leaders grow alongside the organizations they serve. Five years ago, we placed Nabila Mohammed as Chief Financial Officer at Cystic Fibrosis Canada. Since then, her role — and impact — has expanded significantly, reflecting both the organization’s evolution and the trust placed in her leadership.
As she approaches her fifth anniversary, we spoke with Nabila to reflect on leadership, growth, and what it really means to lead change in a community-driven organization.
Nabila’s impact is perhaps best captured by those she works most closely with:
“Nabila is a leader whose impact has grown with the trust placed in her. She brings rigor, a calmness, and systems thinking to complex environments, while staying grounded in the people and community we serve. Her ability to integrate finance, data, technology, and culture has strengthened CF Canada’s resilience and elevated our ability to operate with more clarity. Nabila is a wonderful team player and I am lucky to work with her.”
— Kelly Grover, CEO, Cystic Fibrosis Canada
This summer marks five years since Nabila Mohammed joined Cystic Fibrosis Canada as Chief Financial Officer. While she entered with a clear finance mandate, her portfolio has grown over time to include data, technology, and people & culture — an evolution driven by organizational need and continued confidence in her leadership.
A CFO Role That Expanded With Trust
Joining the charitable sector for the first time, Nabila quickly learned that context matters.
“The CF community is a passionate one, and CF Canada has had great success working alongside the community to deliver life-changing impact.” she said. “You have to understand that context and recognize that even small changes have significant influence on how people work and feel.”
During her time at CF, Nabila’s role expanded in deliberate response to organizational priorities. She retained oversight of finance, IT and operations, while growing to oversee the data and information systems within her first year, and later people and culture. This shift allowed her to move from execution into deeper, more integrated strategic leadership, significantly strengthening operational maturity and organizational resilience during her tenure.
“One of the hardest leadership lessons is realizing you can’t do everything at once. You have to focus on what matters most — and pace change respectfully.”
Leading in a Community, Not a Silo
Coming from a regulatory environment, one of the biggest adjustments was moving away from prescriptive leadership. “In a charity, the community has a role. You can’t operate in a silo — sustainable impact requires listening, collaboration, and shared ownership.”
With more than 65 years of history and a previously chapter-driven model, CF was not fully centralized when Nabila arrived. Her approach focused first on building trust both internally and externally, then on alignment — bringing systems, reporting frameworks, and operations together under a more integrated model, while respecting what already existed.
What She’s Most Proud Of
When asked what she’s most proud of, Nabila points to four areas:
- A new strategic plan that clearly articulates a compelling case for investing in CF Canada’s long-term impact
- A transformed financial and data foundation, including integrated data systems and a more intentional, data-driven mindset across teams
- Significant maturity across all the programs she oversees, moving beyond processing toward more strategic, forward-looking collaboration
- Strong engagement of her portfolios in the success of the organization, reflecting a culture of shared ownership
“We’ve done a lot of strengthening, modernizing, and creating the conditions for long-term scalability and success” she said. “Now we’re reaping the benefits, and we are well-positioned to move into a more strategic and innovative phase.”
Why She’s Stayed. What’s kept her at CF for five years?
“The progress. And the culture.”
She describes an organization defined by kindness, empathy, curiosity, and openness — one where people are hired for values alignment as much as capability. “There’s no ego here, just a desire to do the best we can for the CF community. The leadership team is open and honest. You know what to expect, and people appreciate that.”
On Leadership and Listening
Nabila doesn’t cite a single role model. Instead, she draws from strong leadership around her — leaders who make tough decisions, step in when needed, and step back to create space for their teams to lead.
“I write everything down. I reflect. When I’m with someone, I’m really listening — to what’s being said and what isn’t.”
She’s especially intentional about mentoring younger professionals:
“I would not be where I am if I didn’t have great mentorship, opportunities to grow and develop, and the ability to learn from constructive feedback. I think it is important to pay that forward, giving people opportunities to learn, grow, adapt, and make mistakes. Take all the opportunities you get in your career – you never know where it will take you.”
Despite her title, she remains grounded.
“I’m just a member of the team, and I take seriously the responsibility that comes with leading at the executive level.”
