Innovation Advisory Board

The Innovation Advisory Board

The George Brown College Innovation Advisory Board (IAB) was established in June of 2008 to provide strategic advice and direction to Research & Innovation at George Brown College. The IAB is a multi-sectoral industry, entrepreneurial, and academic stakeholder group whose primary role is to provide a current and effective link between the Research and Innovation office at George Brown College and the key sectors it serves. The IAB members help ensure our responsiveness to industry research, innovation and commercialization needs. The IAB helps to ensure programs and projects are well-aligned with industry needs, that GBC Research’s public profile is enhanced in the respective sectors, and that students have access to the best opportunities for field experience during their studies and employment after graduation.

In 2015, all our Innovation Advisory Board Members received the Innovation Advisory Board Digital Badge. This badge commemorates the invaluable contribution and forward-facing vision of our IAB members.

Paul L’Heureux
CEO, Crystal Fountains 

As CEO of Crystal Fountains, Mr. L’Heaureux has a wealth of experience in SME success. He has led Crystal Fountains from a Canadian focused firm of architecturally specified products in 1989 to a micro-multinational, with customers around the globe. He was successful in transforming Crystal Fountains from a project-based business to a firm with a wide product line and diversified customer base. Paul’s experience includes strategic positioning, export marketing, operational efficiency and HR. Paul is the volunteer chair for the Speech & Stuttering Institute, a growing Toronto non-profit, providing clinical service, training professionals throughout the province of Ontario and engaging in research to unearth the root causes of speech related challenges. Paul speaks often and is articled about design best practices, public health and safety, water feature innovation as well as setting strategy.

Erik Landriault
Director, Innovation, Saint Elizabeth Health Care

Erik serves as the Director of Innovation for Saint Elizabeth Health Care where he works across the health system to accelerate the uptake of new models of care and technological innovations. Previously, Erik worked for the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs as Senior Commercial Advisor where he advised digital health, medical device and pharmaceutical companies on their North American growth strategies. Erik has held a variety of government roles at the provincial, federal and international level with organizations such as Cancer Care Ontario, the Canadian Institutes for Health Research, and the World Health Organization. Beyond his day-to-day role, Erik maintains his involvement in the health system through participation on a number of governance activities. Currently, Erik is the Board Chair of Access Alliance Multicultural Health and Community Services that works to improve health outcomes for immigrants, refugees and their communities across Toronto. Erik also serves on a number of health and innovation-related boards and committees, such as the CSA Group Strategic Steering Committee on Health Care Technology and Systems. Erik has an MSc in International Health Management from Imperial College London and an HBA from the University of Toronto.

Donna Lee Rosen, Honors B.A., M.Ed., DSocSci
Professor, George Brown College, School of Hospitality and Tourism Management
(ex officio member: Chair, Research and innovation Advisory Board)

Donna founded MaJic Communications in 2006, where she has been involved in research on climate change for Enbridge Oil and Gas, creating and developing marketing programs and strategies to include branding and rebranding of several corporations. A company subsidiary, MaJic in Motion, is dedicated to the promotion of increased awareness and socially responsible tourism options for the conscientious, savvy traveller. Donna’s expertise in Cultural Intelligence through her M.Ed with Central Michigan University has allowed her to work to enhance diversity in destination marketing and co-publish several papers in the promotion of the Canadian wine industry. Having recently completed her Doctorate in Social Sciences, Donna’s dissertation examined the impact of social media engagement on tourism through the lens of millennials touring the Canadian landscape.

Ted Maulucci
Chief Information Officer for the Tridel Group of Companies

Ted Maulucci is the Chief Information Officer for the Tridel Group of Companies and has been with the Tridel Group for over twenty years, leading the information technology group for the last fifteen years. He has an undergraduate degree from the University of Toronto in Mechanical Engineering and a Masters in Business Administration from the Schulich School of Business with a specialization in Real Property Development. Mr. Maulucci is passionate about contribution and advancing innovation across Canada through partnerships and collaboration. He has been recognized with several international and local awards for IT leadership, IT application development for the real estate industry, smart buildings, and innovation. Some notable awards are the “Top Ten Best in Class CIO’s in North America” by Computerworld, CIPA Gold Award of Excellence for application development in the real estate industry, Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal for promoting Canadian innovation, and the Mid-Career Award from the University of Toronto for industry and social contribution in an engineering career.

James (Jim) A. Metcalfe P.Eng.

Mr. Metcalfe has been a practicing consulting engineer for 44 years. He has worked in Ontario, across Canada and in 15 countries and lived for 10 years in the Gulf Region of the Middle East. In addition to his career as a consulting engineer, he has also managed significant real estate and business investments in Canada for offshore investors. Mr. Metcalfe has been an active supporter of Canada and Middle East relations having been a founder and member of the Executive of the Canada Arab Business Council and its chair from 1998 to 2002 and then while living in Abu Dhabi a member of the Executive of the Canadian Business Council and then its Chair in 2007 and 2008. Mr. Metcalfe although retired from consulting engineering in 2010, he serves on two Advisory Boards, one as Strategic Advisor for the Gulf Region with TORYS a leading Toronto and New York based legal firm and one with Crystal Fountains Inc. a Concord based designer and manufacturer of large interactive fountains and water features.

Mark Nesbitt
Vice President, Corporate Services, George Brown College
(ex officio member: Chair, Research and innovation Advisory Board)

Mark Nesbitt manages the tangible assets of George Brown College, including finance, facilities, capital development and security, and leads process improvement. Mark is also the co-chair of the cross-college Sustainability Committee. Prior to joining the George Brown team in 2013, Mark worked closely with the college’s corporate and academic executives as a consultant for 14 years. His belief in the George Brown mission, and his desire to further that mission, brought him onto the management team. Mark enjoyed a successful career as a management consultant for over 34 years, with roles of increasing responsibility in the firm Veritas Consultants Inc., and in the profession. Mark became president of Veritas in 1986 and led a management team buyout of the firm and its evolution into Vertex Consultants in 1993. Mark has served as chair of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants and has been a board member and committee chair of the International Council of Management Consulting Institutes. Mark also served four years as president of International Management Development (IMD), an international group of consulting firms. He has been a frequent speaker on management consulting and the challenge of professionalism. Mark has an MBA from Harvard Business School, and a B.Sc. (mathematics) and BA (psychology) from Carleton University.

Simone Philogène
Chief Communications & Marketing Officer, CCNM

Simone Philogène is Chief Communications & Marketing Officer at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine (CCNM), Canada’s premier institute for education and research in naturopathic medicine. A trilingual communications and marketing executive with multi-sector leadership experience in the private, public and not for profit sectors, Simone is a versatile and creative strategist who has developed reputation and risk management strategies for some of the world’s most respected brands and organizations at the regional, national and global levels.

Simone is a member of the Programs and Quality Committee of the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada (SSHRC) and was a member of the 2013, 2014 and 2015 SSHRC Impact Awards jury.  These awards recognize the highest achievements in SSHRC-funded social sciences and humanities research, knowledge mobilization and scholarship. Simone has a BA in Canadian Studies and History from the University of Ottawa, an MA from McGill University and is an alumnus of The Judy Project, the Rotman School of Management’s executive development program for women.

Michael Smith
Senior Vice President, International Operations, Marketing and Business Development

Michael presently carries out a dual capacity as Senior Vice President of International Operations and Business Development/Marketing for EllisDon. In this role he works with International and Canadian industry leaders to develop planning, procurement and practical solutions for design and construction programs globally. Michael started with EllisDon in 1980 as a Field Engineer and progressed through site supervision and management of both small and large construction projects. His experience in project supervision and senior management responsibility led to his promotion to V.P. for two of EllisDon’s major operating centers – Eastern Ontario followed by the Pacfic North West (USA). Michael’s extensive construction experience has enabled him to effectively listen to his client’s needs to build procurement models, construction teams and project management systems and deliver excellent outcomes in all of his operating centres. Additionally, Michael is on the Board of Directors for EllisDon Corporation. As an active member of the board, he works as part of a strong team to ensure shareholder value and development of strategic growth for the company.

Dr. Adi Treasurywala, PhD, BSc
President ArrowCan Partners

Since 2005, Adi Treasurywala has been the President of ArrowCan Partners a unique service model that helps connect the best researchers in Canada with the best industry receptors globally. He has extensive experience in the innovation economy to date, including serving as the Chief Operating Officer at University Of Toronto’s Innovations Foundation. In this capacity, he doubled as the Director of Business Development U of T, managing the operations of the whole foundation and directly guided all of the Technology Transfer Teams and acting as CEO for several startup companies. He also sits on the board of Youth Science Ontario as well as Life Sciences Ontario’s Toronto Biotechnology Initiative (TBI) and acts as an advisor in business development to Nycomed Canada, a privately held pharmaceuticals company. He has a PhD in Organic Chemistry from the University of British Columbia and a Bachelor of Science (BSc), Math, Physics and Chemistry from the University of Toronto.

Miriam Tuerk, BSc Elec Eng
Clear Blue Technologies Inc.
Current Chair from 2014 – Present

Miriam Tuerk, an entrepreneur and business visionary with over 20 years of experience, is Cofounder and COO of Clear Blue Technologies Inc. She advises venture and private equity firms, is an advisor to the ICE practice at MaRS Discovery District, and was Entrepreneur in Residence at the Toronto Public Library. Infobright, eRoute and Procuron are 3 examples of her strong ability to analyze markets and create businesses that will win within challenging competitive landscapes. Miriam is energetic, passionate and has an open leadership style that inspires loyalty and commitment and creates an open productive dialog for teams to execute and successfully evolve as businesses grow from concept to scale to maturity.

Peter Ventin, P. Eng., MBA
President, Conor Pacific Development Inc.

Peter has 20 years of experience in the project/program management of both infrastructure and facilities development programs on a global basis. His roles have included project/program management, financial analysis, administration of staff and specialty sub-consultants, technical leadership, site supervision, participation in public consultation and schedule/quality management. He currently serves as President, Conor Pacific Development Inc., where he is responsible for the management and operations of the real estate holdings and drilling operations in Ontario, the US and Caribbean. In 2011, he joined the MaRs Cleantech advisory group to provide guidance and assistance to Ontario’s Cleantech startups/innovators and new technologies to develop viable business interests in both domestic and international markets. He has a Master of Business Administration from the Richard Ivey School of Business, a Bachelor of Civil Engineering from McGill University.

Lillian Nolan
Student Innovation Advisor, George Brown College

Lillian Nolan is the current student member of the Innovation and Advisory Board, helping to give a student perspective on industry and college initiatives.  Lillian is in her 4^th and final year of the Bachelor of Technology: Construction Management Program.  Lillian has a diverse professional background in commercial real estate (land development), civil construction, and has spent the last year entering the world of commercial high-rise. Ms. Nolan is currently employed with First Gulf Corporation as a Project Administrator, working on the Globe and Mail Building at 351 King Street East.  Lillian has lived in 3 different countries, Canada, France and Mexico, and is bilingual in English and Spanish.

Dr. Rick Huijbregts, PhD., M.A, B. Tech.
Vice President, Strategy and Innovation, George Brown College

As Vice-President, Strategy & Innovation, Dr. Rick Huijbregts oversees strategic planning and partnership development to ensure George Brown College remains well positioned to evolve and adapt for the digital and rapidly changing future. Among his many career accomplishments, Rick spent 12 years with Cisco, most recently as Vice-President of Digital Transformation and Innovation at Cisco Canada. He was awarded the Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012 for his transformational work in municipal innovation in Canada. That same year he was named one of the “Top 35 People to Watch” and recognized with a Digie Award by Realcomm. Prior to his VP role, Rick was General Manager for Cisco Canada’s Smart + Connected Communities practice and he was Managing Director Americas, Digitization – IoE (Internet of Everything) and Industry Solutions Acceleration. Rick holds a bachelor’s degree in construction management, a master’s degree in real estate development and project management, and a doctoral degree with a specialization in real estate technology and investment management.

Peter Catford 
President and CEO, HINext Inc
Member from 2008 – 2014; Chair from 2009 – 2011

Peter Fenwick 
Business Executive
Member from 2008 – 2011

Julie Gaudet
RN, BScN, MN (Admin.)
Member from 2008 – 2015

Gordon Gow 
Gordon W. Gow and Associates Incorporated
Member from 2008–2013; Chair from 2008 – 2009

Andrew Jenkins
Volterra Consulting
Member from  2010 – 2015

Nancy Lefebre
Saint Elizabeth Healthcare
Member from  2015 – 2017

Marjorie McColm 
George Brown College
Member from 2008 – 2011

Dan McGillivray
Urban Energy, Ryerson University
Member from 2008 – 2015

Lynn Nagle
President, Nagle and Associates
Member from 2008-2010

Carlos Paz-Soldan
Tenet Computer Group Inc.
Served as Chair from 2012 – 2014
Member from 2008 – 2015

Peter Pennefather 
Professor, Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy
University of Toronto
Member from 2008 – 2013

Elizabeth Speers
George Brown College
Member from 2008 – 2015

Kevin Stolarick
Martin Prosperity Institute
Member from 2008 – 2015

Niall Wallace 
CEO, Infonaut
Member from 2008 – 2014

Vanessa Williamson
Ontario Centres of Excellence
Member from 2014 – 2017

John-Allan Ellingson 
Student Innovation Advisor
Graduate, George Brown College
Member from 2013 – 2014