Growing up in Ontario as a refugee from Vietnam, Cindy (Mach) Mitchell felt and heard one consistent message: be as Canadian as you can.
"I'm very proud of my Vietnamese heritage and the traditions that have been taught to me, but when we came to Canada, there was this immense pressure to fit in to succeed," said Mach, who's been at TD for 17 years and currently works in Global Technology & Solutions as a Business Manager.
Mach was five when her family, led by her grandfather, fled Vietnam by boat to escape the war. After spending several months in a refugee camp in Thailand, Mach’s family settled in London, Ont., after they were sponsored by a local church.
There are photos and family stories of the journey to Canada, but Mach remembers none of it personally.
What she does remember is the pressure to assimilate, be responsible, put others before herself, and never take risks.
Navigating a dual identity
The focus on fitting in gradually distanced Mach from her cultural roots. She said she often felt like the least Vietnamese person in the room.
"There were periods in my life where I wanted to be more Canadian and then there were moments where I wished I were more Vietnamese,” she said.
While she lost most of her mother tongue, Mach said she never fell out of love with Vietnamese food.
"My kids joke that the only Vietnamese words I can say are food words," she said. "I sort of unknowingly abandoned my culture."
From early on in her life, Mach felt the weight of the demands to fulfil both professional ambitions and Vietnamese community standards.
"I was taught that at work, success looks like financial stability and visible achievements,” she said.
"While at home, community standards look like being a homemaker, conforming to cultural beauty standards, and playing into the role of service."
Mach spent her whole life negotiating her cultural identity, finding ways to blend her heritage with Canadian values, and redefining what success and fulfillment meant to her.
But there was tension when Mach felt she didn’t belong in either world. It wasn't until later in her career that she began to intentionally reconnect with her cultural identity.
"I started to unpack and reclaim aspects of my identity after meeting other Pan-Asian colleagues at the Bank," she said.
Finding identity and community at work
At TD, Mach met other Vietnamese Canadians who faced similar internal conflicts.
"I realized many of us were dealing with the same imposter syndrome and feeling like we were living between two different worlds," she said.
Motivated by that shared experience, Mach became a founding member and now co-chair of the TD Vietnamese Employee Network (VEN), an employee resource group (ERG). She created a space rooted in connection, representation, and belonging.
What started as a way to build community evolved into something more profound: a journey towards visibility — not just for others, but for herself.
"I hope I can help other Pan-Asians at TD understand their value, advocate for themselves, and pursue executive roles, or whatever success they might have previously considered out of reach," she said.
Through VEN, Mach also began to reflect on legacy. Having helped build the foundation of this ERG, she is now passing the baton to make space for new voices; while continuing to uplift the TD community she helped shape.
"I benefited first-hand from the collaborative community built by the Pan-Asian ERGs. There's a sense of pride in what we've built," she said. "And also, responsibility: to carry it forward, and to ensure others feel confident stepping into that leadership."
Though her leadership, Mach is passionate about helping others — especially Pan-Asian women — recognize their value, advocate for themselves, and step into spaces where they can be visible and heard.
Learning how to have compassion for herself
Today, Mach is in a new chapter. She’s focused on self-reflection, self-compassion, and choice.
As a single parent raising two biracial teenagers, she wants to lead by example, supporting others to shape a broader vision of success that’s inclusive, meaningful, and uniquely their own.
Mach is exploring what it means to be a Vietnamese Canadian woman who shows up authentically.
"At work, it looks like elevating and empowering others to know that they deserve a seat at the boardroom table just as much as the kitchen table, where they are the CEO, CIO and CFO of their home," she said.
Her growth is also reflected in her achievements. Mach is a co-organizer of the TD Lunar New Year Gala, an annual event that brings Vietnamese, Korean, and Chinese traditions to more than 1,600 colleagues.
She's also been honoured twice with the League of Excellence Award at TD, which recognizes top-performing colleagues who have delivered exceptional performance over the past year.
For Mach, success is no longer just about personal achievement. She wants to help open doors for others.
"I hope that by sharing my story and continuing to lead with authenticity, it makes it easier for other Pan-Asian colleagues to see themselves in spaces they may not have once imagined," she said.
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