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- Category: Alumni in the Lead
The journey to success of Telfer School graduate Brennan Loh inspires how he supports and empowers the next generation of entrepreneurs.
No two paths to success are entirely the same. Yet some guideposts are more dependable than others. Brennan Loh’s entrepreneurship journey is a reliable route for any budding businessperson to follow.
The Telfer School graduate and top Shopify leader started early, made connections and seized challenges. This path has not only taken him to the pinnacle of Canadian business, but has also guided how he helps the emerging generation of entrepreneurs at the Telfer School through generous donations, purposeful involvement and volunteer activities.
Start your journey early!
Entrepreneurship has always been near and dear to Brennan. As a child, he was motivated to start businesses and create something from nothing. His natural inclination for entrepreneurship was partly the reason.
The other was the inspiration he received from his businessman father, who immigrated to Canada from Singapore. After losing his job, Brennan watched as his father took the risk of becoming an entrepreneur to support their family. It was a proud moment for Brennan, and one that helped catalyze the importance of fostering an entrepreneurial spirit not just in those that want it but who need it to survive.
Motivated to unleash his entrepreneurial spirit, Brennan joined the Telfer School in 2007. He was so eager to hit the ground running that he became a member of the Telfer School’s Entrepreneurs’ Club before he even began his studies. This early and enthusiastic start by the budding entrepreneur was a clear sign of things to come.
The Entrepreneurs’ Club offered Brennan a vibrant and welcoming gathering place, and put him in close contact with fellow entrepreneurs. It especially gave him learning opportunities that enabled him to dare boldly yet fail safely, without suffering significant personal or financial consequences. Brennan so enjoyed his membership with the Entrepreneurs’ Club that he served on its executive team for four years, two of them as president.
“The Entrepreneurs’ Club was a natural fit for Brennan’s entrepreneurial talents,” said Professor Stephen Daze, Dom Herrick Chair in Entrepreneurship at the Telfer School. “From an early age, he knew how to create value for sponsors and motivate team members; and he had a scrappy startup mentality—something that he has carried through to today!”
Make connections to discover opportunities
Entrepreneurial success is never a solo mission. Again, Brennan’s experience supplies a telling example. As part of a third-year course, he and two friends from the University of Ottawa Faculty of Engineering created a tech startup. They called it Avitu. When the school year ended, the entrepreneurial trio decided not to halt their enterprise but to keep their budding business active.
That summer, Brennan and his Avitu partners worked tirelessly out of a hot apartment before being given the opportunity by a uOttawa alumnus to use part of Shopify’s office space to run their company. The alumnus, Harley Finkelstein, a graduate of the combined law and MBA program, was chief platform officer at Shopify at the time.
Brennan took advantage of being in a shared space with Shopify to exchange best practices and discuss business strategies with Harley every week. The dedication and effort shown by Brennan and his business partners impressed Harley and the other Shopify executives so much that they offered them jobs within the company.
Seize challenges and reap the benefits
By the time Brennan graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing in 2011, he was already working over 40 hours per week at Shopify. The combination of school and full-time employment was demanding, but the valuable real-world experience he acquired only served to bolster his confidence and motivate him to take on increasingly greater challenges in the company.
In the decade since he joined Shopify, Brennan has helped the company grow from fledgling startup to e-commerce titan. His rise through the company’s ranks has been equally impressive—going from head of business development, to director of business development, to director of international markets. His varied and impressive portfolio of projects include Shopify media productions and Shopify Rebellion, the company’s e-sports organization.
Today, as the company’s director of brand and marketing partnerships, Brennan says his motivation stems partly from looking back with pride at successful projects he once thought would be impossible to achieve. Despite his impressive resume and achievements, he remains humble and prefers to operate under the radar. Case in point: in the years when he travelled frequently for the company, he would joke that few people at the Shopify head office knew who he was.
An inspiring journey that empowers a new generation
In keeping with his natural humility, Brennan is quick to acknowledge how much the generosity of others helped shape and propel his career. His professors, his classmates, and his colleagues at Shopify each gave him their trust and encouragement.
In turn, Brennan uses his journey to success as inspiration for how he supports and empowers the emerging generation of entrepreneurs at the Telfer School. To help budding business people start early, Brennan volunteers as an informal mentor, inspiring the next generation to seek out the opportunities that will shape their futures. To enable them to make connections, Brennan continues his work with the Entrepreneurs’ Club as an advisory board member. And to motivate and support emerging entrepreneurs, Brennan is a mentor at the Entrepreneurship Hub’s Startup Garage and an angel investor in the technology sector.
Most notably, Brennan funded the Loh Entrepreneurship Experience Scholarship to allow students to dare boldly. The bursary provides students from any faculty at the University of Ottawa with financial and mentorship support in their entrepreneurial journeys.
“We must give students opportunities to fail safely,” Brennan said. “I see encouraging a student to take four months to pursue entrepreneurship with a financial safety net and minimal opportunity cost to their formal education (in other words, letting them earn credits) as one of many possible solutions. I would love to see universities embrace innovative bets on fostering student entrepreneurship.”
As a result of this generous and intelligent contribution, the Telfer School named Brennan the 2021 Young Donor of the Year. The deserving honour is yet one more step along a career path worth following.
If you would like to support the student experience at the Telfer School of Management through a donation, click here to make a gift to the Telfer Nation Fund. For more information, please don’t hesitate to
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Wiam Ben Karroum graduated from the Telfer School of Management with a double degree in Finance and Business Technology Management (MISA) in just April of 2021. She has already secured a full-time role at Deloitte on the Technology, Strategy, and Transformation team, after completing a co-op with the company during her studies.
Not stopping there, Wiam is also actively working with Forget For A Moment Foundation, which is focused on sensitizing healthcare facilities by bringing nature inside their walls. A registered charity since 2012, the foundation was started by uOttawa alumna Jeannine Lafrenière, who went through cancer herself and wished to see something other than magazines in hospital waiting rooms for patients, families, and staff working.
We met Wiam virtually to better understand how her extracurricular involvement in clubs like Women in Management Network (WMN) helped her get involved with the Forget For A Moment Foundation. Like many other Telfer grads, Wiam is now helping to build a Better Canada.
Why was it important for you to be involved in extracurricular activities when you were a student? What did you learn in your time volunteering with clubs?
“Getting involved in multiple student-led clubs at Telfer helped me develop myself personally and professionally. I had a chance to gain more leadership and communication skills and it gave me the opportunity to discover my interests and passions outside of taking classes! I fostered meaningful relationships with like-minded students that helped and supported my growth through the university experience and beyond.
I also launched the podcast “Words with WMN” during the pandemic! Being part of the Women in Management Network (WMN) allowed me to meet incredible women leaders and made me realize where we stand on the topic of diversity and equality today and how much work is yet to be done. I was able to give back to my community and be part of causes bigger than myself, which ultimately brought me to the Forget For A Moment Foundation.”
As a new grad, what was the best thing you took away from your Telfer experience?
“The best thing I took away from Telfer is my now refined ability to network and maintain genuine connections. Overall, I had a wonderful experience, from trying new things and exploring the community to being involved in clubs and the Profession of Management Consulting Program (PMCP). I learned the power of saying “yes” and continuing to get involved past graduating. Telfer made me realize I am interested in things I didn’t even know about so the curiosity and opportunities I took away are so important.”
Wiam actually joined the Forget For A Moment Foundation as a Campaign Coordinator in her last year of university, thanks to the suggestion from Omer Livvarcin, her professor of Digital Enterprise. Currently busy raising funds for the living wall in the Orléans Health Hub, the foundation works to finance the construction of natural structures inside healthcare facilities and to help pay for their first year of maintenance. And they’re not doing it just because plants look beautiful. Numerous studies have proven that simply looking at plants in healthcare surroundings helps patients, families, and staff reduce stress.
The Foundation seeks to give the sick, their relatives, their caregivers and staff, a natural, healthy, and delightful garden to provide a momentary break from their fear, pain, and stress.
Wiam is working with interested individuals and companies to join the partnership program or donate directly through the website. The Foundation has a goal of systematically including nature in the designs of 10 hospitals, long-term care facilities or nursing homes over the next decade.
Wiam’s passion for this cause shines brightly and it’s a perfect example of Telfer’s mission to create profound social change through the Better Canada initiative. In addition to this wonderful project, we also asked Wiam about her future:
What are your plans for the future? Anything in particular you are looking forward to?
“My plans are to continue working with WMN founders to expand the network and to be involved with the Forget For A Moment Foundation to grow it to a national level. I am also excited to start my full-time journey in Technology consulting!”
We are so proud of all Wiam’s accomplishments and we are so happy that her involvement in Telfer Nation was able to provide her with confidence and leadership skills to pursue non-profit work alongside full-time employment. We are also proud to see an alumnus connect with our mission to Build A Better Canada. We wish Wiam the best in her future endeavours.
- Category: National Indigenous History Month
At the age of 19, Audrey-Claire Lawrence (EMBA, 1997) started her teaching career in Rouyn-Noranda over 850 km away from Québec City where she has been living. Little did she know, this was only the beginning of a lifelong journey that would lead her to rethink Canada’s health and educational system.
Teaching in a remote region of Québec brought on a lot of firsts for Ms. Lawrence. Due to the lack of school past grade 6, Cree students were flown in from different communities in the James Bay area; ‘It was an interesting environment to be in,” remembers Lawrence. “The North was quite different then Québec City. At school, you could see kids were divided between Cree and Town Children, but the class they integrated very well.”
One day, a dentist sent by the Department of Indian Affairs and Northern Development (now Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs; Indigenous Service) came into her students’ class for what was presented as a routine visit for the Indigenous children. Lawrence (born Swaffield) was confused at the time, knowing there was already a dentist in town, but giving the official statement from the dentist, she sent in her first student. She was shocked when the young girl returned: “She came back green and looked terrible.” The dentist had explained that he needed to pull out 7 teeth to treat the young girl's cavities. After that, Lawrence immediately refused him permission to touch any more of her students and had the principal send the dentist away. “I simply didn’t understand the logic given how a local dentist could have taken care of the kids,” she added.
The consequence of this event sent Lawrence on a journey to understand the “system” regarding Indigenous relations in our education and health systems. Of Cree and Inuit Ancestry herself, she was already attentive to the Indigenous rights cause, but from that day, she knew she had to take a stand.
Starting On a Mission
After completing further degrees, Lawrence became an experienced facilitator, motivational speaker, and organizational development specialist. She has worked in management positions in government, education, and healthcare, most notably as Director of Educational Services at The Ottawa Hospital (Civic then) and as Director of Education for the Canadian Association of Medical Radiation Technologists.
She has also served in leadership positions in national, provincial, and local organizations involved with organizational development, libraries and concerns affecting Indigenous communities throughout Canada, including in Quebec, Ontario, and Nova Scotia. Author of several journal articles and study guides, Lawrence has presented at numerous conferences on cultural safety, humour in the workplace, stress and change management, and before retiring had her own consulting practice supplying facilitation and event services, customized to the needs of her clients.
In addition to her MBA from the University of Ottawa, Lawrence also holds an MA in Sociology and Organizational Behaviour from the University of Calgary, an Honours BA from McGill, as well as a Teaching Diploma in Later Childhood from MacDonald College. She is a Myers-Briggs Facilitator and has extensive experience in the provision of training and leadership programs.
Developing Critical Thinking Skills
Lawrence has extensive experience in policy analysis, report writing, and strategic planning. She attributes her success in these fields to her time at Telfer EMBA, which was known as the Faculty of Administration at the time.
“One of the classes I remember the most was held by Professor Raj Gandhi,” she recalled. “As he introduced his class on cost-benefit ratio, he said jokingly, that the biggest mistake we did was to put our money on an MBA when we should have bought a house. It’s a simple example, but it gets you thinking about how to develop your critical thinking as well as doing cost benefit analysis.”
Lawrence shared how the program helped her to further shape her skills: “My MBA helped develop my critical thinking as well as negotiations with teammates to get things done.” She noted that it helped one to be a system thinker so one can change the state of things: “When you have good people, but a lousy system, the barriers are too strong to do anything, the world is already too complex. When you get to fix the system, thinking and see what can be leveraged, that’s when change can happen.”
Lawrence is now a thriving member of the Telfer alumni community: “I enjoy seminars and the continuing learning opportunities offered by the University. I think I might be holding the record as the alumna with the longest time attending learning events” she said candidly. She continued: “If you have a good experience, it will build a lifelong learning objective, and I simply enjoy learning.”
The Career After the Career
Officially retired and living in Ottawa, it would be impossible to think that Lawrence would have left everything behind. She has been involved in the community through volunteer work at a few health and organizations and libraries, including serving as Chair of the Canadian Health Care Educators Association, the former President of the Ontario Library Board Association (OLBA), the former Chair of the Cumberland Public Library (now part of the Ottawa Public Library), and the Vice-Chair of the Southern Ontario Library Service Board and Volunteer Leadership Development Program (VLDP) of Volunteer Ottawa.
“I surely know how to keep myself busy. My husband would tell you that I’m spending more time volunteering now than I worked during my career,” exclaimed Lawrence.
Most recently, Audrey had served on the Public Witness for Social and Ecological Justice Committee. She now serves as the Indigenous Co-Chair for the All My Relations Circle for the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa for work on Reconciliation and has been on the Algonquin College Board of Governors since 2017.
Standing Up for Distance Learning in the Indigenous Community
Audrey has long been aware of the needs for financial support for university and college students and especially for Indigenous students, so she set up a special bursary for Indigenous learners at Algonquin College in 2019. Then upon hearing that there was no bursaries for online students, she recently in May 2021 established the Audrey Lawrence AC Online Bursary, the first bursary for learning distance which will be awarded to full-time and part-time online learners in financial need, following a second gift of $15,000 from Lawrence.
The Online Bursary will encompass two $6,000 bursaries for full-time learners, with one preferably directed toward an Indigenous student. Additionally, three $1,000 bursaries will also be awarded to part-time students.
As a former teacher to Cree students at the very beginning of her career, it simply seems natural for Lawrence to give back to the community and encourage distance learning: “As I went on through my teaching career, I’m glad I could count on correspondence courses (distance learning process at the time) to complete my degree. I am very sensitive to the needs of distance learners,” she said.
Audrey mentioned that even if it has been a few decades ago, the gap in providing essential services, such as education, to the Indigenous community is still very much a topical issue. “Over the past 20 years, not much has changed,” she said. “Gaps are being identified, but little is done to shorten them in the end. We bring infrastructure to the communities, but we do not take the time with them to ensure the facilities have operational support - and that’s a big issue.” She concluded: “Apart from the mea culpa, we need to learn from the past to make positive action and the most important thing to do is to ask the community what and how it should be done above all.”
- Category: Community Engagement
A new Telfer study shows that traditional families with businesses often treat their children differently based on gender, including in succession planning and entrepreneurial education. We talked to two women raised in entrepreneurial families to learn how gender bias can affect women’s careers and experiences in entrepreneurship. They also shared some advice for family businesses.
Emma O’Dwyer
Emma O’Dwyer, regional manager at Family Enterprise Canada, has seen bias first hand in her own family. She says she was not given support even though she earned “two MBA degrees from prestigious universities, gained outside experience, and built a professional network beyond the family business.” She often wonders if this stopped her from building the confidence to take a more entrepreneurial path.
O’Dwyer says that gender bias can damage both daughters and sons. “Today, I see that a lot of men who are expected to inherit the family firm or start their own business receive pressure to be successful.” She believes that “forcing sons to lead the family firm restricts their opportunities to gain experience outside the walls of the family business and develop the business knowledge they need.”
Susan St. Amand
Susan St. Amand is the founder and president of Sirius Group Inc. and Sirius Financial Services. Like O’Dwyer, St. Amand always had an interest in the business world. “My dad and a group of local entrepreneurs would meet for coffee every day, and I loved it when I was able to join them to hear their stories.” This led her to studying business.
Even though St. Amand gained experience and education in entrepreneurship, her brother was still the one expected to take over the business on her father’s retirement. “It was just not common for women to run or inherit a family business, so I was not considered.” This didn’t deter St. Amand from pursuing a career in a large finance organization, before starting her own business. But despite her success, St. Amand was often asked when she would sell her business and fulfil a more traditional female role.
Advice to families to challenge gender bias
O’Dwyer and St. Amand shared some suggestions to help families challenge gender bias and prepare the next generation to succeed in the family firm and beyond:
- Treat children as equally as possible and make sure the expectations and pressure are the same for all.
- Identify what the children need to do and experience, and what support they need to build their skills and succeed in any career.
- Great things come from failing and learning. Let the next generation try things, fail, learn, try again and repeat to succeed, within a safe environment.
- Your legacy as a family does not and should not be limited by the business, no matter how many generations it has existed. Let the next generation find their passion and explore the world outside your walls — you’ll be surprised what happens.
- Introduce children to role models and mentors across genders very early in life.
- Engage them in conversations about the business and about finances. Don’t assume children aren’t interested in numbers, investments or business because of their gender.
- Use stories to share knowledge and make information accessible.
- Teach children how to make decisions and take responsibility early on. Being comfortable with risk is critical to feeling confident and independent.
O’Dwyer reminds parents who run a family firm: “You play an important role in the success of the family and the business.” St. Amand highlights the need to question rigid norms: “Families are members of communities and communities share cultural norms that are embedded for generations. It takes strength and courage to be disruptive and time to evaluate the results.”
Susan St. Amand, TEP, FEA, ICD.D is the founder and president of the Sirius Group Inc. and Sirius Financial Services in Ottawa, and chair of Family Enterprise Canada. Learn more about her work with multi-generation families.
Emma O’Dwyer is a regional manager at Family Enterprise Canada.
- Category: Latest News
Successful in her career, Maria McKay (Telfer MBA, 2012) is a caring mentor and a true agent of change for her clients in the public sector and for the Black, Indigenous, and People of Colour (BIPOC) communities and beyond. Maria is a Senior Manager in KPMG's People & Change Advisory Services Practice. She grew up in an environment where differences of opinions and ideas were encouraged and seen as a strength. Throughout her life, she lived according to the values of promoting good, both for herself and others around her, by standing up for what’s right and supporting people to do the same.
Maria was adopted as a small child by two people she considers to be her original allies: “I am very lucky to have been raised by thoughtful, humanist parents,” shared Maria. Her late father was a United Church Minister who shared his beliefs about social justice and inclusion with her growing up: “My dad grew up in New Glasgow and told me about a teenage experience he had there when a Black woman refused to leave a Whites-only area of the local movie theatre, and the disgust he felt at the violence against her that ensued. I only figured out who this incredible woman was in 2016 when Tim Harper of the Toronto Star wrote a story about the heroine, whom he suggested should be put on our new $10 bill (Viola Desmond), which was the same story my dad had told me as a child. My dad would have been absolutely thrilled at the ultimate decision to put Ms. Desmond on our new currency! This early experience may have been part of the reason why Martin Luther King and the US Civil Rights Movement had such a profound influence on my father, and was why he chose to study in Boston, where my parents met me.” Despite hopes to the contrary, Maria’s parents were powerless when she was on the school ground, and she had many early, difficult personal experiences of exclusion and racism. However, this opened Maria’s eyes to observe human behaviour from many different angles and led to her interest in the study of groups and organizational values and norms, or cultural anthropology.
After completing her Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Cultural Anthropology and History, and later her Master of Library and Information Studies (MLIS) in Canada, Maria’s career took her back to the United States East Coast and the cities of Atlanta and Boston. She worked at McKinsey & Company as a Research Analyst and as a Strategic Market Intelligence Analyst at EY. Her strong strategic research and analysis capabilities combined with her interest in working with others made a career as a management consultant seem like a perfect fit. At least, that’s what Gregory Richards, Director of Telfer’s Executive MBA program, thought back in 2011 when Maria showed interest in pursuing an MBA.
Telfer MBA: A Life-Changing Decision
Maria decided to come back to Canada and pursue her Master of Business Administration (MBA) at Telfer. We have Gregory Richards, Cognos Professor of Performance Management at the time, to thank for it: “At the time, we interviewed everyone who applied to the MBA program. Maria had non-consulting experience at McKinsey and EY,” recalled Professor Richards. “After talking with her, it struck us that she had the analytical, interpersonal, and problem-solving skills to become an excellent consultant. I think we might have asked her why she hadn’t considered consulting before given her professional background.”
Maria shared how she chose to pursue her MBA at the University of Ottawa: “Greg Richards is a big part of the reason why I picked uOttawa. I wanted to study with an expert in strategy and performance management and my big brother strongly recommended Greg. I also did not have a long history of having had Black professors as I only had two as an undergraduate at U of T . In my MLIS I did not have any Black professors, but the school was incredibly supportive of my interests including my final project, a comprehensive bibliography that detailed the history and experiences of Black American librarians. I learned a great deal from all my professors at Telfer, and especially Gregory Richards and Gerard Brathwaite-Sturgeon, who is an expert in organizational behaviour and HR. And in the end, Greg was right, and I ended up doing very well in my consulting course.”
A proud mentor and teacher, Professor Richards saw Maria excel in the program: “Her work in the MBA program showed her capabilities to not only solve problems, but to work collaboratively even with people she found to be difficult sometimes. It is good to see that she has become an accomplished consultant post-graduation.”
Maria now has close to twenty years of professional experience. She helps people and organizations to identify desired outcomes and to determine how to realize value through structural cultural and operating model changes. She lives according to the spectrum of belonging that celebrates diversity and inclusion, and she also pushes for anti-racism, equity, and justice. Above all, Maria is passionate about serving clients and other people, and she’s been recognized for her ethics and support of students, professional peers, and newcomers to Canada. Her contribution to the Telfer MBA Mentorship program after graduating is no surprise to all.
A Passion for Mentorship and Coaching
Maria is a mentor in the Telfer MBA Mentorship program, providing useful advice to Telfer MBA students. The program allows current MBA students with the opportunity to interact with an accomplished professional to build their network and seek career advice. “A program like the Telfer MBA mentorship program couldn’t function without people like Maria,” exclaimed Caroline Hannah, Relationship Manager at the Telfer Career Centre. "Maria was a mentor before even joining the program. It all came naturally to her. Throughout her MBA, and following, she would welcome having coffee chats and meetings with students as she enjoyed those connections and guiding others. That’s passion for mentorship.”
Maria does indeed have a strong inclination for mentorship: “I am always on the lookout for somebody who needs my help as a mentor or coach: clients, colleagues, friends, strangers on planes, business school friends. If someone asks me for help, it may be just once or several times, I try to say yes if it makes sense and I have something of value to offer to them,” declares Maria. “I try to be a confidence lifter for others, and especially women and racialized people, as they build their feelings of self-efficacy and self-worth while also building a professional network.”
Mentees of Maria’s start with the end in mind by doing an exercise called ‘the life I want,’ and then they align their personal and career aspirations to their own desired future state. She helps to guide them on setting and achieving goals, and she engages in discussions with them about philosophies on management practices, work-life integration, and professional success. The mentor/mentee relationship might evolve from there, depending on the needs expressed by each mentee.
“A wise business leader shared with me her perspective on the difference between a mentor and a coach. When you are mentor, others learn by direct or indirect ‘osmosis’ when you share your own experiences and hope it inspires them. As a coach, you try to establish conditions for others to see what might be possible and what could be different through their own exertion of energy and effort and then support them as they build their own plan. What happens next is up to them in terms of how much they want to practice their craft and what actions they are willing to take, or which sacrifices they are willing to make to work toward their future life; so sometimes I am a mentor and sometimes I am a coach,” explains Maria.
She has enjoyed her experience as a mentor at Telfer, including helping students get started in their careers: “There is a component to my work at Telfer that involves communication training for newcomers related to learning how to do business in Canada and translating cross-cultural experiences. I have also been able to help some students make connections to employers and make decisions about job offers,” added Maria. “It’s an honour to help them with this, and to have others trust me enough to let me help them think about their future. I’m grateful for this experience, and I’m so glad Caroline Hannah brought me in with open arms.”
Standing Up for Herself to Help Others
With a successful career in consulting and dozens of mentees she has helped, it can be concluded that Maria has always found it easy to help others and advocate on their behalf. During her undergraduate degree she marched on campus and fought against discrimination in a group called ‘United Coalition Against Racism.’ However, it wasn’t until the tragic events surrounding the death of George Floyd in May 2020 that Maria rediscovered her activist roots and the courage to speak out more publicly again against racial injustice.
“One of the leaders at my firm told me last June: ‘You don't have to worry anymore about being labelled an ‘Angry Black Woman’ when you raise important issues – just be yourself,’" said Maria. “I honestly thought I would have to wait until I retired before I could voice strong opinions about racism, bigotry, misogyny, able-ism, and to loudly support Black Lives Matter, Indigenous Lives Matter, LGBTQIA2+, and Mental Health movements amongst others because I did not think the mainstream world would listen. What I realized in the last year is that there are so many people around the world who are as ready for change as I am and that if I speak from the principles of honesty, authenticity, integrity, and love for my fellow humans, there is nothing to fear from speaking the truth on any stage, private or public.”
Inside her firm, Maria is an active member of KPMG’s Black Professional Network and an ally in the National Indigenous People’s Network. She is also a change management leader who seeks to help organizations prepare for a future of work that is ‘inclusive by design.’ “The digital business transformations that were being planned or were underway before the pandemic are necessary to modernize how work is carried out to enable workers to do their jobs more safely and enable the large-scale shift to hybrid and remote work. However, when we introduce automation and AI to enable changes, many of the workers most at risk are women and BIPOC staff. If our guiding principle is to ‘leave no one behind,’ then we must use data and analytics to assess the impact of emerging technologies on workers by race, age, gender, and location before we change anything – and then build a people-centric path to the future for all, especially considering the differential impact of COVID by race and gender,” stated Maria.
According to Maria, without the support of others, it would not be possible to make changes in one’s personal life or career, and that is why she is so invested in being a mentor and coach to others. While she has experienced many challenging periods throughout her life, she has always had people who advocated on her behalf and helped her, so passing it forward comes naturally. It is also why she tries to live by the adage (exact origins unknown), ‘We are not put on earth to see through people – we are put on earth to see one another through,’ Maria concluded: “One of the greatest privileges in my life is to have mentees share their hopes and aspirations related to the life they want with me. It is fulfilling beyond words to serve others by helping them articulate their own vision, plan the required steps to get there, and then cheer them on as they make moves toward achieving their dreams.”
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Curious, motivated, and creative, Joy Xu is a brilliant student in Telfer’s B.Com. program specializing in accounting. Passionate about mental health in the workplace, Joy is inspired by leaders and organizations that promote and prioritize the culture of employee well-being.
Understanding the crucial importance of community engagement, she decided to get involved with the School by engaging in the highly competitive Capital Markets Program. This led her to an investment banking internship with RBC Capital Markets during the Summer of 2020 as well as being the Portfolio Manager Leader for the program this year. Further, she has competed in several case competitions over the last couple of years including first place wins at the Jeux de Commerce Central Competition (for the Human Resources Management team) as well as the national Diversity and Inclusion competition hosted by the Telfer School.
Joy is also a member of the Telfer Accounting Club, of which she was the President during 2019-2020. Within this role, she led the team in organizing their annual September networking event with accounting companies, and created an initiative that focused on mental health within the accounting field.
According to Joy, the many extracurricular activities offered by the School have opened up countless opportunities and allowed her to become more involved while applying her knowledge acquired in the classroom. She states, “Overall, I had the chance to explore new interests, attend conferences from inspiring leaders, and develop my skills both professionally and personally. " While Joy will be graduating soon, she plans to stay active within the Telfer community.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
The Dean’s Philos Award recognized individuals who have demonstrated outstanding philanthropic achievement and social commitment. This award was established in 2004 on the Telfer School of Management’s 35th Anniversary.
We’re both grateful to have grown up in, been educated in and live in a bilingual and multicultural country that has a deep Indigenous heritage. Because of our good fortune, we’ve long believed we have an obligation to give back to our community. When Dan was a student at the Telfer School in the early 1980s, the concept of corporate social responsibility made a lifelong impression on him. Later on, the Jewish principle of tikkun olam, which in Hebrew means repairing the world, became a beacon to guide our life together.
The idea behind tikkun olam is to do something small every day to mend the damage you see around you. While we’re fortunate to be able to contribute financially to causes we value, we believe our society sometimes pays too much attention to big donations. A million-dollar gift may get the headlines, but Canadians should also be excited by the idea of a million working people parting with some of their hard-earned money to fund causes and charities important to them.
Here’s what we mean. The Royal Ottawa Centre for Mental Health gives out Inspiration Awards each year. One winner a few years ago was a woman who had been treated at the Royal and decided to give back. A new Canadian who worked as a cleaner, she managed to volunteer her time and contribute $500 a year to the organization. Her shining example shows us that the truest measure of giving is not size but giving in a manner that is most meaningful and appropriate to the giver at that stage in their life.
This way of looking at giving is especially relevant to Telfer School students and recent graduates. Yes, you’re just starting out on your business careers and, yes, the coronavirus pandemic is playing havoc with the economy; yet you still can give even though you don't have much, if any, extra money. At the same time, the pandemic has laid bare many breaks in our worlds—small and large, figurative and literal—that cry out for repair.
Start simply, and start now, by finding time in your day for acts of kindness. And if you have options about how to handle a difficult situation, choose the kindest one. Adopt this attitude as you enter and rise in the business world. Show your best personal qualities—fairness, generosity and empathy—in your workplaces. Use them to make your organization more inclusive, your company’s relationships with customers and partners more rewarding, and your business’s operations more sustainable and responsible socially. Tikkun olam.
This is a summary of the interview conducted on September 16th, 2020 with Dan Greenberg and Barbara Crook.
- Category: Student Announcements
The 2020 CEOx1Day program, organized by Odgers Berndtson, has finalized its placements with four of Telfer’s Bachelor of Commerce students in the semi-finals. This challenge includes a selection process, and the top winners will win a day to spend with any CEO participating in the program. After several rounds of a competition selection process, one Telfer student made it to the top two Ottawa finalist spots.
We would like to congratulate the following BCom students for their progression to the semi-finals round:
- Ciara Carey: 4th-year, International Management
- Farah Osman: 3rd-year, Marketing
- Joy Xu: 4th-year, Accounting
- Rylan Williams: 4th-year, International Management
Fourth-year BCom student, Ciara Carey, made it to the finals, and will be spending a day with Sasha Suda, Director & CEO of the National Gallery of Canada, on February 26th.
The CEOx1Day Challenge
Odgers Berndtson, a global executive search firm, started this program as a world-wide initiative that connects third and fourth-year students with top CEOs. To find the next generation of Canadian business leaders, Odgers Berndtson has selected 20 students to shadow some of Canada’s top CEOs.
Students discover the inner workings that build company success, such as fostering a culture of collaboration and innovation.
CEOx1Day has brought in new companies to match with students for the program’s 7th edition, including:
- Capital One Canada
- Facebook and Instagram Canada
- Sephora Canada
- Absolute Software
- Total E&P Canada
- National Gallery of Canada
- Toronto Zoo
Odgers Berndtson works with a broad range of clients and integrated talent solutions. The CEOx1Day program was the organization’s way of investing in the development of Canada’s future leaders.
This Year’s University of Ottawa Finalist
Ciara Carey, this year ‘s finalist, shared the details on her journey from application to final placement. She listed some of the opportunities that led her to feel more prepared going into the various competing rounds:
“I feel extremely fortunate for the different opportunities and teams I’ve gotten to be a part of throughout my Telfer undergraduate experience (BSA, JDCC, etc). I’ve learned many hard skills as a result of my involvement; however, what I’m most thankful for are the soft skills I have developed.
Coming into university after having played competitive basketball rigorously, I thought I understood work ethic and teamwork, but these extracurriculars ended up being a whole other test of what it means to be part of something bigger than yourself. They taught me to self-reflect, work on seeing the bigger picture, and how to act with humility. Most importantly, I’ve learned how to be a better teammate.
Due to my extra-curricular involvement, I had many experiences that I could pull from to demonstrate my leadership abilities, that I wouldn’t have had otherwise.“
Application Process
The application process for this year started in early October 2019, which the Canadian Association of Business Schools (CABS) added as a requirement for all Jeux Du Commerce Central (JDCC) delegates. After the application, an online leadership assessment was conducted by Hogen Assessments. Next, the applicant is drawn for a telephone interview with an Odgers Berndtson executive search professional. The last step was a half-day semi-finalist evaluation at the Odgers Berndtson’s office. Challenges, workshops, and exercises were used to assess the interpersonal and communication skills of the candidates, as well as their teamwork skills, problem solving abilities, and leadership potential.
The Motivation to Apply
As a JDCC delegate and this year’s JDCC Coordinator, Ciara submitted an application to the program, as she “thought shadowing a CEO for a day would be an amazing experience. After reading the descriptions of the CEOs offered in the region, I was excited by the idea of spending a day with Sasha Suda and learning about her journey.” Ciara shared, “I am especially interested in learning more about how the National Art Gallery operates in general, and the leadership abilities that are needed as a CEO. Furthermore, I’m curious about the organization’s strategic goals and the role Mrs. Suda plays in achieving them. I would also love to hear about her personal journey, and her opinion about the impact that art has on the community.“
Tips for Future Applicants
Applying to a program of this magnitude can be intimidating at first, but certainly worth while. With the right tips, you can work towards hopefully obtaining a finalist position. Ciara shared her advice for students applying for next year’s CEOX1Day program:
“An obstacle you might face is an internal struggle deciding to actually apply. Similarly to when underclassmen ask me for advice about getting involved in Telfer, my biggest advice for folks interested in CEOx1Day is to ‘just go for it!’ Don’t be afraid to put yourself out there and don’t be afraid to ‘fail’ (everything is a learning opportunity). For CEOx1Day, I think it definitely helps to be honest and authentic, especially when it comes to the Hogan Assessment portion of the selection process.”
Ciara also shared that she is happy to get in contact with any students that may be looking for advice for their future application!
We hope Ciara has an insightful day at the National Art Gallery, and look forward to learning more about her experience.
- Category: Telfer Announcements
The Gee-Gees celebrated the 2018-19 class of Academic All-Canadians on Wednesday, November 20. The annual reception celebrates the student-athletes on varsity, varsity club, and competitive club teams who competed for uOttawa while also achieving an annual GPA of 8.00 or higher, or studying at the graduate level.
In 2018-19, over 220 student-athletes achieved this prestigious recognition. Each one represents a story of commitment, dedication, and passion for athletic and academic success. For Brendan Jacome, a Finance major on the men’s hockey team, it’s a story of hard work and recognizing one’s strengths.
Brendan Jacome is a 24-year old from Caledon, Ont. Now in his fourth year at uOttawa, Brendan is a key player for the Garnet and Grey on the ice and brings his competitive spirit to his course-work as well.
“Roughly half of my classes are math-based and that is one of my strengths. If I don’t get a question I have a desire and a drive to find the right answer, so I’ll sit and I’ll work on it until I get it,” explains Jacome. “I have to make sure I fully understand that before I move on. You don’t treat it as a chore, you treat it as something that’s going to make you better.”
Getting better is a process that happens academically and on the ice. “If you work really hard at something, and you have a goal set out, there’s a good chance that you’ll be able to achieve it. I think that’s a very valuable outlook that can carry over to many situations.”
At Telfer, Brendan enjoys interacting with his classmates while also having his hockey teammates to support him. “I have people in my group from all over the world. It’s cool to see how we do things differently sometimes but at the end of the day, everyone is focused and wanting to do well. I also have some great professors with good real-world experience and they are very engaging.”
“Lots of guys on our teamwork really hard on their school and a lot of my roommates are in finance too. Our coaches also want to make sure that we succeed. If we have to miss something because of a conflict with the school they are understanding.” There are eight members of the men’s hockey team who earned Academic All-Canadian status in 2018-19.
On the ice, Brendan achieved an interesting statistic last season: he did not take a single penalty. Partly in recognition of that, but also as a nod to his overall quality of play (Brendan was fourth on the Gee-Gees in points and third in goals scored and is an excellent penalty kill player), he won the national award for Most Sportsmanlike men’s hockey player.
“My role is to go out and score points, not to agitate guys. I’m more useful for my team on the ice than in the penalty box! But I like to work hard and make sure I play a good game in all facets.”
That ability to be multifaceted has also been recognized on campus. Brendan won the Gee-Gees President’s award for outstanding commitment to academics and community involvement in addition to athletic performance. With an AGPA of 8.38, he is also active in team efforts to help the local hockey community with clinics and is a visible advocate for the Movember, Hockey Gives Blood, Do it for Daron, and Pride activities that the Gee-Gees take part in.
Brendan anticipates completing his studies at uOttawa this spring. Both the hockey world and the world of finance have opportunities awaiting.
“I’d like to go on and play pro hockey next year. More than anything though I just want to help the team win this year. Right now I am taking it one year at a time and I’ll see what happens. I have had some good internships in the last couple of summers with good firms in the commercial real estate field. I left on good terms and have good relationships, so those doors are open for the future for sure.”
- Category: Appointments and Honours
Dean François Julien and Vice-Dean of Programs & Executive Director of the Telfer Centre for Executive Leadership (CEL) Julie Beauchamp are pleased to announce the appointment of Guy Laflamme and Jean Desgagné as Executives-in-Residence at the Centre.
The Centre for Executive Leadership is part of the Telfer School of Management, and is focused on delivering innovative executive development programming for our clients. The Centre’s clients include public, private and not-for-profit sector organizations in the Ottawa region, across the country, and internationally.
Guy Laflamme
Guy Laflamme is an international keynote speaker with 25 years of experience in high-visibility marketing and production roles for a variety of organizations including the Department of Canadian Heritage, the National Capital Commission, and Casino du Lac-Leamy, among others. He completed his MBA from the Telfer School of Management in 1989, and taught at the Telfer School as a Part-Time Professor for 15 years. He has received the Trudeau Medal in 2005, the highest honour given by the Telfer School of Management to its alumni.
In 2018, Laflamme was a recipient of the Alumnus of the Year Award, which recognizes the outstanding achievement of a University of Ottawa alumni member within the last year. This year, we asked Laflamme to take the role of Honorary Chair for the 50th anniversary of the Telfer School of Management. Laflamme led the Ottawa 2017 project, celebrating 150 years of Canada. The $40 million dollar program of major events and festivities brought in $300 million dollars for the city of Ottawa. That success earned him a nomination to the Order of Ottawa and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Tourism Industry Association of Ontario. Radio-Canada and LeDroit named him “Personality of the Year” for his vision, boundless imagination, determination and enthusiasm.
Jean Desgagné
Jean Desgagné who has recently been appointed as CEO of Stablecorp Canada and as a Board member of CAA Insurance and Echelon Insurance, was formerly the president and CEO at TMX Global Solutions, Insights and Analytics Strategies. As a Chartered Professional Accountant and a proud graduate of Telfer School of Management (BCom ‘86), he currently serves as a member of the President's Advisory Council for the University of Ottawa, and Chairs the Dean's Advisory Board (Toronto) at Telfer.
As the first donor of its capital fund, Desgagné also contributed to the creation of the Telfer Financial Research and Learning Lab. He also acts as a mentor for the Telfer Capital Markets program, serving as a judge of multiple finance competitions over the years, as well as a notorious speaker at countless events.
Desgagné and his wife started the Desgagné-Soden Family Scholarship Fund for female commerce students, in 2009. “While I applaud all the work that goes on to get women in senior roles,” he says, “I’m acutely aware that we need to get the pipeline going at the beginning.” “It’s a win- win for the students, for the school, and for me,” he says. “I can look back and say I did something good here.”
He also received the Trudeau Medal from his alma mater in 2009, as well as the Queen's Jubilee Medal in 2002 in recognition of his service to the community.
- Category: Telfer Announcements
The Telfer MBA was a huge catalyst for change in the career of our graduate Mélanie Potvin, who is now project manager of the Orléans Health Hub at Montfort Hospital.
After graduating from the University of Ottawa with a bachelor’s degree in physical therapy, Mélanie began her career in the health care system. Following several years working in clinical services at the Montfort Hospital and in the Ottawa community, she landed a job in the field of occupational health and safety. This position exposed her to the administrative side of the health care system, sparking a desire to learn more about management. That’s when she decided that an MBA was what she needed to boost her career.
During the application process, the Telfer School of Management contacted Mélanie to determine whether she was interested in completing her MBA in French. The opportunity to benefit from scholarships for this program, but especially to use her mother tongue, really appealed to her and she jumped at the opportunity to do her graduate degree in French.
Thanks to her experience in the healthcare system, and Telfer’s MBA and MHA (master’s degree in health administration) courses, Mélanie has learned how to work on the system and its various challenges. Her educational and practical experiences have provided her with the skills needed to manage complex projects.
Beyond project management, Mélanie has also developed her skills in oral presentation, leadership, human resources, and other management disciplines that are important in her new role.
Mélanie can now proudly say she has what it takes to make an impact at work and in her daily life.
Learn more about the Telfer MBA.
- Category: Telfer Announcements
Alexander is a PhD candidate at the Telfer School of Management, in the Health Systems specialization. His research interests lie in applying analytics and management information systems methods to health-related issues, more specifically to the area of mobile health technologies.
He holds a Master’s degree in Systems Science with a specialization in Environmental Sustainability from the University of Ottawa, and an undergraduate degree in Biology from Carleton University. His master’s thesis focused on the formal definition, measurement, and simulation of coastal community preparedness for severe environmental events.
Following his Master’s degree, Alex worked as an independent management consultant and researcher while also teaching part-time at the Telfer School of Management. He has had the opportunity to work on topics that include: applying real-options analysis and financial modelling to the solar energy industry in Ontario and modelling how organizations use social media in order for them to anticipate problems that may arise later on. Alex also has an interest in fisheries management and has been involved in several projects with government and private industry on the management of Canadian fisheries and coastal areas.
Alex is a member of the Canadian Association of Management Consultants’ Eastern Ontario Chapter Council where he is responsible for marketing and social media. During his free time, he enjoys travelling, playing volleyball, and riding and restoring his many bicycles.
Alex holds the Lilian and Swee Chua Goh Doctoral Scholarship, the first admission scholarship created by donors for PhD candidates at the Telfer School of Management.
Find out more about the Telfer PhD program.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Corey Ellis is the Co-founder and CEO of The Growcer, a company he started three years ago with the goal of providing a tool for northerners to grow food. As Co-Founder and CEO, Corey leads sales, community engagement and business development activities, maximizing social impact in the communities The Growcer operates in. In addition, Corey oversees the research and development function of the organization, ensuring continuous improvement in customer offerings.
Corey is an alumnus of Enactus, an international leadership development organization focused on the next generation of socially-conscious entrepreneurs. His unique perspective as a social entrepreneur has helped him understand how to enable community-level impact through profitable market-driven business models.
The Growcer is a social enterprise that empowers remote Canadian regions to grow fresh produce locally using modular hydroponic systems. Growcer systems are specifically designed for Arctic regions, enabling local food production with a steady stream of affordable fresh produce grown in outdoor temperatures as cold as -52°C. Our company also provides ongoing services to allow local entrepreneurs to own & operate their own systems, and additional supports to enable better nutrition for the community, including meal packages, a series of food education and kitchen literacy tools, and an automation system that cuts labour requirements by over 80%.
Watch the Growcer Impact Video.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Why not use a strong leadership to create inspiring, socially and environmentally innovative businesses? Proactive, Anie Rouleau didn’t have to ponder this question long.
A Montrealer born to a business-oriented family, Baléco’s Founding CEO knows how to do business without compromising her values and convictions. That’s why she chose to redefine the notion of clean by creating a line of ecofriendly home and body care products designed for conscious living.
In 1992, Anie graduates from the University of Ottawa with a degree in Business, majoring in Finance. She joins Hydrocom International, the family business. Quickly made Vice-President, she leaves Quebec to start Hydrocom USA in Birmingham, Alabama. When the family business is sold, she is offered the role of President for Maclean Power Systems’ Canadian branch, before becoming President at Société de Gestion du Commensal.
Trilingual, open to the world, Anie runs on new challenges. Her values guide her choices. Fervent defender of local sourcing, she sits on different committees, including Made in Montreal. Women leadership and ethics being causes close to her heart, she is a mentor for young women in business. She is also part of Quebec entrepreneurship promotion groups.
Anie strongly believes that a business’ social values are no obstacles to its profitability and financial viability. That is why she is a BCorp ambassador, giving conferences on this new business model. HEC, UQAM, and ETS also invite her as a guest speaker to discuss the importance of including one’s values at the heart of one’s business management.
Mother of two, Anie is driven by her desire to protect future generations. By investing in innovation and eco-design within an industry which sets his sight far from sustainable development issues, she seeks with Baléco to define tomorrow’s business as a transparent entity, respectful of its employees, the community and the environment.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Tammy Labelle was appointed Chief Information Officer (CIO) on March 12, 2018 at Public Services and Procurement Canada (PSPC).
In her new role, Tammy is driving the evolution of the PSPC information management and information technology strategy. As CIO, Tammy leads the maintenance of technology operations and key government-wide projects in support of government priorities and departmental service improvements. In addition to her role as CIO, she is also responsible for common Government of Canada services such as shared human resources, information management (GCdocs), shared case management services, finance (FreeBalance and Integrated Financial and Material System) and the Shared Travel Services program.
Before that, Tammy was Assistant Deputy Minister of the Integrated Services Branch where she led several government programs and initiatives, including public opinion research; publishing and depository services; the Canada Gazette; Electronic Media Monitoring Services; advertising; MyGCHR, GCSurplus, seized property management, the Canadian General Standards Board, as well as the PSPC Client Service Strategy.
Tammy has extensive experience in developing and implementing large-scale business programs, computer applications and infrastructure systems. She joined the department in February 2014 as Director General of MyGCHR, where she led the successful implementation of MyGCHR, a new human resources system, across the federal government.
Additionally, Tammy was appointed by the President of the Treasury Board to the Board of Directors of the Federal Public Service Health Care Plan Administration Authority, effective June 2016.
Tammy has a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Ottawa and is a certified information technology project management professional.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Passionate about helping others achieve their goals
I’m an extrovert by nature, I love working with people and having a chance to impact their lives. It’s something of a recurring theme in my life.
It’s what I liked about Telfer: the opportunity to meet other professionals, to be mentored. That connection is really important — it rounds off the hard work and gives you the foundation to grow in your life and career. I can think of so many times where a past connection through Telfer has come back to be part of my life as a client or as a mentor.
In fact, it was through their Connexions work-study program that I ended up at BMO Nesbitt Burns. I stayed for 13 years – and returned after six years elsewhere – because I’m passionate about helping families achieve their goals. I get a real sense of accomplishment out of hearing someone say “I feel comfortable about my retirement because you helped me get there”. That’s really impacting someone’s life and that’s something to celebrate.
It’s also why I volunteer. The Executive Mentorship Program allows you to take a student under your wing and help them with career counselling, networking, and answering questions in a safe environment. It’s very rewarding. As was chairing Telfer’s 24th Annual Golf Tournament: We set up a family scholarship for a student from Northern Ontario, where I’m from. We raised enough for it to be endowed immediately.
I’m honoured and humbled by this award, and thankful for opportunity to be able to give back and help the next generation.
- Category: Alumni in the Lead
Consistent contributions on many fronts
I started in Commerce, but in 1969 I discovered a new program existed – Masters in Health Administration – and I never looked back.
There’s no question that formal education gives you credentials and opens doors, but it’s only the base. You build on that foundation with your experience, your successes and, especially, your failures. If you make no mistakes at all, you’ve probably not done much.
I got a lot of satisfaction in my first 10 years at the old Ottawa General Hospital, and when I became CEO of what was then the Hull Hospital. However, my impact was limited to one city, one hospital, and I knew there was something bigger I could do, so I took a low level government job in Indigenous Health.
I jumped into that and I saw how basic the services were for Indigenous peoples in some places. It stimulated me into thinking about the country as a whole. You can’t just think of your own narrow mandate or perspective — you have to see and understand other points of view, even if you don’t necessarily agree on everything. Respect and collaboration are key, especially for tackling today’s more complex public policy issues.
This eventually served me well as Associate Deputy Minister and Deputy Minister in my work with minority language communities across the country, resulting in organizations that continue to make a big difference today. I’m very proud of that. It was the main reason I was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2016.
I feel partly humbled and partly grateful for this recognition. I didn’t realize I’ve been contributing for over 40 years! It’s like compound interest — no matter how small the contribution, if you are consistent and faithful and stay the course, it can be appreciated to an extent you never thought possible.
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Student Voices
The following article was written by a member of our student community. The views and opinions expressed in this blog are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Telfer School of Management. For more information or to flag inappropriate content, please