A decade before Catherine Raîche became the current highest-ranking female executive with an N.F.L. team, she was a scout for the Canadian Football League.
Back then, it was still uncommon for a woman to hold a job evaluating football players, a role that required Raîche to travel the country looking for talent. In a few instances, she said, when she arrived at a college or a training camp, football staff members there would ask for her business card to confirm her identity.
“When I was asked, ‘Where is the scout?’” Raîche, 34, said in a phone interview, “I would be like, ‘Well, it’s me.