Staff Spotlight: Maryam Bakhshifatasami
We are continuing our series highlighting the team members at Terra and the experiences and perspectives they bring to our work.
In this Staff Spotlight, we’re introducing Maryam Bakhshifatasami, Accountant at Terra, who brings a wealth of experience in finance and accounting.
Background and Path
Maryam began her career with Schlumberger, a global oil and gas company, in 2009 and spent 15 years with the organization before joining Terra Housing. She started as a Tax Accountant in Iran and, after a year and a half, accepted an internal opportunity to join the company’s financial services hub in Malaysia. Over the next 13 years, Maryam progressed through roles including Tax & General Accountant, Management Accountant, Senior Financial Analyst, and ultimately Finance Lead.
Throughout her career, Maryam developed extensive experience working in a highly diverse, multinational environment, collaborating with colleagues, finance teams, and business stakeholders across multiple countries, cultures, and time zones.
Her journey reflects both strong career progression and the ability to succeed in a complex global service environment, where collaboration, cultural awareness, adaptability, and effective use of enterprise financial systems were essential to delivering reliable financial support across the organization.
Following COVID-19 and the shift to remote work, Maryam immigrated to Canada with her family in 2022 and continued working remotely for Schlumberger. With family already living in Canada and having visited Vancouver previously, Maryam and her family decided to make Vancouver home.
Knowing that settling in BC would likely mean changing industries, Maryam took time to learn about the Canadian tax system and gain experience working with small businesses and startups in Vancouver.
As she settled in Vancouver, Maryam also became increasingly aware of the housing challenges facing the region. “You hear about it in the news, when you talk about BC, or when you talk about Vancouver.” As she considered the next stage of her career, she began thinking about how she could use her experience to directly impact her community and “make other people’s lives better as well.”
That’s when Maryam found Terra Housing. Terra’s 40-year history, focus on affordable housing, and connection with Lu’ma Development Management stood out to her. Less than three months into her time at Terra, she knew she had found a team and community she wanted to be part of. “I want to work with them. I want to be with these people,” she recalled.
Role at Terra
At Terra, Maryam works across corporate and project accounting. “There is no typical day,” she said. She works directly with the Director of Finance, processes costs and billing, reconciles accounts, updates project budgets and cash flows, prepares claims, and works with clients, funders, contractors, architects, and Terra’s Development Managers.
One of the most meaningful moments for Maryam was visiting ALT Hastings as the project neared completion. After supporting the project for a year and a half, she saw the numbers and spreadsheets she had worked with take shape as a completed building. “I felt proud that I was even a small part,” she shared. “When you see it in real life, you feel proud. You’re like, ‘Okay, I was part of it. I helped make this happen.’”
For Maryam, the connection between the work, the people she works alongside, and the people Terra’s projects serve that makes her role meaningful. “The people I’m working with and the people I’m working for” are what stand out most.
We asked Maryam what advice she would offer to someone interested in development and affordable housing. Her advice: be ready for change, stay flexible, and be part of the solution. “It’s meaningful work,” she shared.
Learn more about Maryam here.