Conference Speakers

Michelle Cederberg, MKin, BA, CEP
Helping Individuals and Organizations Do MORE With Less

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Linda Edgecombe, Author of Boost, Powerful Tools to Re-Energize and Re-Engage You
Author and Motivator

Linda Edgecombe’s mission is to get you laughing on the outside while you lighten up on the inside. This “life perspective and accountability specialist”, will use her quick wit, humour, and hilarious real life stories to motivate and show CMAs how they can shift their perspectives on life, work and themselves.

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David Baxter, Senior Advisor
Urban Futures

David Baxter - demographer, economist, and futurist - will enlighten CMAs as he addresses timely issues; forecasts and explains what the future workplace environment, economic climate and the marketing structures will look like; and how to recognize and conquer changes in demographics.

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Anne Taylor, Vice President Client Executive
BFL Canada

Anne Taylor is Vice President Client Executive at BFL CANADA and is in the Enterprise Risk Management Practice with John Wright. Anne is also the Transportation Practice leader in BC and has been in the insurance industry for over 35 years.

Anne has experience in many industry areas such as Wholesale & Retail, Manufacturing, Forestry, Mining, Municipalities and Transportation.

Anne has held many positions on Boards such as Vice Chair of the Insurance Council of B.C., Founding President of the CAIW, Vancouver Chapter, past teacher at the Insurance Institute and a guest speaker for BCRIMA & BC Captives Association.

Anne Taylor is presenting Enterprise Risk Management

Connie Siu, President
CDC Synectics Inc.

Connie Siu is a sought-after consultant and speaker on strategy and operational excellence. She helps clients build high performance organizations for growth and remarkable competitiveness. She consults for both public and private sector organizations across a broad spectrum of industries.

Connie serves on the Board for Entre Nous Femmes Housing Society. She had served as the Treasurer for the British Columbia Institute of Management Consultants and co-chaired the Transportation sub-committee at the Richmond Chamber of Commerce.

Connie is the author of a forthcoming book on effective execution, a subject which she is very passionate about.

Connie Siu is presenting Accelerate Results through Effective Metrics

Dan Dumsha, Senior Consultant
The Humphrey Group

Dan Dumhsa is a Senior Consultant with The Humphrey Group, leading seminars, workshops and one-on-one sessions for clients across North America. Dan is passionate about training leaders to be inspirational through communications coaching. Studying theatre and education at Queen’s University, Dan holds a BAH and B.Ed in Drama and English. Dan balances his corporate coaching work with a career in theatre, film and television in Vancouver.

Dan Dumsha is presenting Communication: Leading in Off-the-Cuff Communications

Dean Warner, CMA, Professor
Okanagan College

Dean is an entrepreneur, educator and serial volunteer. He has a diverse career background including senior management roles in large corporations, sole proprietor of his own small business, CFO of several successful new ventures, a consultant advising small to medium size businesses and a college business professor.

Dean has served on the boards of various charitable organizations including Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Okanagan and the Kelowna Community Food Bank. His areas of interest include implementing sound finance and business practices and building the ‘value proposition’ that non-profit organizations can provide to their various community partners.

Dean Warner, CMA is presenting The Strategic Advantage of Corporate Social Responsibility

Dr. Kyleen Myrah, CMA, Professor of Business
Okanagan College

Dr. Myrah is an educator, professional speaker, entrepreneur and community volunteer. She is a Professor of Business at Okanagan College teaching in the areas of marketing, management and entrepreneurship. She is also President of KyCo Management, a professional speaking and corporate training company speaking regionally, nationally and internationally on topics such as social entrepreneurship, mentorship, leadership, business development, communication and time management.

Believing strongly in the value of community involvement and stewardship, Kyleen has held numerous committee and board positions, judged various business competitions, coached youth sports and is an advisor to the award-winning Students in Free Enterprise college team.

Dr. Kyleen Myrah, CMA is presenting The Strategic Advantage of Corporate Social Responsibility

Greg Campeau, Professional Facilitator
Campeau Learning & Development Inc.

Greg has enjoyed working with Professional Organizations, and North America’s top Private and Public Corporations since founding Campeau Learning & Development Inc. in 1991.
With over 20 years of training success, Greg finds a way to connect with his audience as they explore and experience challenges, then learn time-proven strategies in an interactive presentation.

Greg is well known for his thought provoking workshops on Time Management, Winning Edge Negotiation Skills, and Leading People to Peak Performance.  He has also authored the book “Productivity Power”.

As a former business instructor at BCIT (British Columbia Institute of Technology) and sales management professional with Cadburys & Nabisco, Greg has the experience and practical knowledge to inspire people and help them make important strategic changes.

Greg Campeau is presenting Time Management

Hana Carbert, Principal
Scorecard Consulting

Hana Carbert is the Principal of Scorecard Consulting, a management consulting company, focused on business improvement.  Her clients have included leading organizations in both private and public sector, from multi-nationals to smaller companies.  Prior to establishing her own firm, Hana held senior financial management positions in industry.

Hana holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, a MA, and was the CMA National Gold Medal winner.  In 2002, she was awarded the prestigious Fellowship award by CMA Canada. 

She has worked extensively in strategy formulation and implementation and brings to the session a practical perspective based on over 30 years of experience. 

Hana Carbert is presenting Strategic Planning in the Workplace

Ian Cook, Director, Research and Learning
BC HRMA

As the director of research and learning for BC HRMA, Ian has led the growth of the HR Metrics service. Previously he held roles in operational management, sales, consulting and founded his own business. His specialty is linking HR practices to business outcomes. Through the metrics work and his research group Ian is continuing to develop the complex area of demonstrating HR’s contribution to business results and is a regular presenter on the financial return of HR practices. Ian holds a Masters in Politics and Philosophy from Edinburgh University, an MBA from Lancaster University and is a CHRP.

Ian Cook is presenting Measuring the Value of People

Janis Riven, Lecturer
John Molson School of Business, Concordia University

Janis Riven, based in Montreal, has a growing consulting practice on governance and compliance matters with clients encompassing publicly listed and closely held companies, as well as various types of not-for-profits, and is currently a Lecturer at the John Molson School of Business, Concordia University, where she teaches Corporate Governance and was instrumental in developing an international sustainability certification program for investment professionals.  She is a well known speaker both in Canada and abroad at conferences on corporate governance, and has acted as a facilitator for boards and board committees of a number of different organizations seeking to improve their effectiveness.  Ms. Riven’s last corporate position was with RBC Financial Group where she served as Vice President, Compliance and Secretary for RBC Insurance. 
Ms. Riven is Immediate Past President of Chartered Secretaries Canada, the Canadian division of the Institute of Chartered Secretaries and Administrators (ICSA), an international teaching organization focussed on governance. Currently President of the Quebec Branch of ICSA Canada,  Ms. Riven is also a member of the Quebec Bar, a Fellow of the ICSA, and holds a number of board positions.

Janis Riven is presenting Corporate Governance of Corporate Social Responsibility

John Wright, Executive Vice President
BFL Canada

John Wright is the Executive Vice President for BFL in Canada and is based in Vancouver.  John’s insurance career began 25 years ago after obtaining his CMA training in the Accountancy field. He has had numerous senior roles in the insurance industry. Prior to joining BFL, he was the Chief Operating Officer of Canada with an International broker.

John is known for his considerable team building skills and he is primarily responsible for the continued successful expansion of BFL Canada’s interests in Western Canada and developing BFL’s ERM platform.

John Wright is presenting Enterprise Risk Management

Kathi Irvine, Principal
KLI Associates

Kathi Irvine, MA (Organizational Leadership) is the principal of KLI Associates, an organizational development consulting firm that partners with numerous organizations in Canada and the United States to support business sustainability and employee development.  Kathi uses her extensive knowledge of organizational change, leadership, and employee engagement to create a highly interactive learning environment integrating theory and practical application for managers and leaders at all levels in an organization. 
Kathi is an advocate for community involvement; she is the Chair of the Board of Directors for Big Brothers of Greater Vancouver, is a board member of Peace it Together and volunteers with Vantage Point Vancouver. She is a member of numerous professional associations and is faculty with The Banff Centre (Leadership Development) and Langara College (Continuing Studies). More information can be found at http://www.kliassociates.ca

Kathi Irvine is presenting Organizational Change, the Ongoing Leadership Challenge

Lesley-Ann Marriott, Principal
Marriott Management Group

Lesley-Ann Marriott, CEC, PCC, is a Certified Executive Coach with advanced credentials held for the proven coach; Professional Certified Coach.  A former Executive in the food industry, Lesley-Ann has over 20 years of leadership and management experience.  She has facilitated 100’s of corporate partnerships at the most senior levels of the world’s largest food companies – Coca-Cola, Procter & Gamble, and Nestles. Contracts in excess of $50 million and managing sales of over $2.5 billion were negotiated based on dynamic, collaborative partnerships.

Today, Lesley-Ann’s client’s include a roster of Executive Directors, Board leaders, Vice President’s, CEO/CFO’s & other leader’s who are tasked with the following challenges – strategic development, launching new business, managing conflict in their teams, managing global/cross-cultural teams, improving the effectiveness of their board, identifying & developing their star performers, creating a team that is engaged in the company vision – helping them build innovative leaders at every level of their organization.  
She is Associate Faculty at Royal Roads University, Victoria, BC & assists in developing coaches in the Certificate for Executive Coaching program.

Lesley-Ann has the expertise to guide individual/organizational performance and specializes in coaching leaders who are intent on creating high performance teams.  She is a trained facilitator in the Heart of Coaching workshop, a proven process for creating coaching cultures. Lesley-Ann is the principal of Marriott Management Group – a consortium of expert coaches and leaders, each with excess of 20 years experience.

Lesley-Ann Marriott is presenting Coach Approach to Leading - Core Coaching Skills

Lisa Martin, Executive Pathfinder and Leadership Coach
Lisa Martin International

An Executive Pathfinder and Leadership Coach, Lisa Martin partners with clients to help them maximize their return on effort (ROE) and achieve greater success and significance by identifying and removing their hidden barriers and leveraging their greatest assets.

A bestselling author, sought after speaker, and veteran business executive, Lisa has been providing the principles, strategies and personal support that delivers organizational growth, individual career development and improved career/life harmony or more than a quarter of a century. Her unique perspective, skill set and experiences have enabled her to successfully come alongside numerous top level executives helping them create alignment and increase their own level of leadership to empower their teams to achieve consistently higher levels of performance.

Lisa has been a corporate executive and has founded three highly successful companies. Her executive consulting and coaching firm, Lisa Martin International, regularly attracts Fortune 500 clients such as Best Buy,  HSBC and PwC. In addition, as a co-creator of the innovative Top Talent Edge™ methodology, she helps organizations consistently harness the power of their rising star talent.
She is a frequent speaker to audiences throughout North America, ranging from university campuses and international companies to prestigious conferences. As a thought leader, Lisa is frequently profiled in the media and is a favorite source for editors and writers who seek expert commentary.

She resides in Vancouver, Canada with her husband and young son who inspires and exhausts her daily.

Lisa Martin is presenting Make Your Performance Shine

Mark Cunningham, Founder & CEO
Indicee

Mark is a thought leader and entrepreneur who’s committed to using technology for good, not evil. Current Founder & CEO of cloud BI company, Indicee, Mark’s been involved in the BI industry since 1991, when his family business began building the world’s first Windows-based reporting tool, Crystal Reports. Following Crystal’s acquisition, Mark went on to launch several new ventures, building an enviable customer list along the way, including Nike, Pfizer, Xerox, Microsoft, and Nortel.

Mark is a strong advocate of cloud computing who brings a unique perspective on how IT delivery has changed over the last 20 years.

Mark Cunningham is presenting Cloud Computing

Mark Patterson, Partner, Audit and Assurance Group
PwC Vancouver

Mark Patterson is a Partner in the Audit and Assurance Group of PwC Vancouver.  Mark has worked with a variety public companies including resource sector clients ranging from junior mining exploration to major producers.  Mark has experience with acquisitions and business combinations, debt and equity financings, and clients with US, Canadian GAAP and IFRS reporting requirements.  Mark regularly facilitates internal and external training courses on IFRS and audit-related technical topics and is a member of PwC’s IFRS service team.

Mark Patterson is presenting IFRS Technical Accounting Update

Samuel Dergel, CFO Expert
CFO Executive Search

There are few people that understand the Chief Financial Officer better than Samuel Dergel. He is known as “The CFO Expert” and is an active blogger and social media leader. Samuel specializes in CFO Executive Search, working with the San Francisco office of Stanton Chase International on mandates across North America. Samuel is a Chartered Accountant, Certified Public Accountant as well as a Certified Personnel Consultant, and a graduate of McGill University.

Samuel Dergel is presenting The Road to CFO

Sasja Nieukerk, BA, MA-Leadership, Learning and Leadership Facilitator, Certified Coach
Inspire Canada

Sasja is a dynamic speaker, facilitator, coach and trainer with Inspire Canada, the only North American firm that specializes in combining community engagement with team and leadership development. She is well known for her work in transformative learning and leadership development, communication and conflict resolution, having developed and delivered workshops that have proven to be extremely popular and highly effective in breaking down barriers to successful working relationships. Sasja is well versed in working with both unionized and non-unionized environments and has achieved great success in providing win-win situations for all parties, rooted in her belief that creating effective and positive relationships happens one conversation at a time.

A vibrant and inspirational speaker, she has delivered keynote speeches and presentations for the Conference Board of Canada, Alberta Human Resource Management Association, University of British Columbia, Interior Health Authority, Athabasca Health Authority, and various organizations and associations within Alberta, British Columbia and Saskatchewan.

Sasja holds a Master of Arts (MA) with a specialization in Leadership Development and Training from Royal Roads University in Victoria. She is a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach and a member of the International Coaching Federation. Additionally, Sasja is qualified in Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) and is a certified facilitator for Clear Leadership, a leader in the field of training and development for
organizations, teams and leaders.

Sasja Nieukerk, BA, MA-Leadership is presenting Taming the Bull, Hunting the Elephant

Stephanie Sharp, President
Ferax Consulting Corp.

Over the past 30 years, Ms. Sharp has advised more than 300 clients on a range of finance transactions valued in excess of $15 billion, including establishment of over 40 new entities.

Ms. Sharp works closely with clients such as BC Hydro, Vancity, ICBC and the Province of British Columbia to enhance the value of their organizations by identifying and mitigating financial risk by implementing appropriate financing, procurement, organizational and governance processes and structures.

Since 1980, Ms. Sharp has acted as Finance Advisor, Lead Negotiator and Procurement Process Monitory/Advisor for a wide variety of initiatives from debt and equity financing (private and public markets), venture capital, mergers and acquisitions, and initial public offerings; to advising on appropriate financial structures for carving out and outsourcing public sector operations and identifying and evaluating options for large procurement projects.

Stephanie Sharp is presenting Captivating, Brilliant, & Bold: Inspirational Finance

Val Carter, Director
The Success Centre Inc.

As a certified professional in both human resources and learning & development, and with over 20 years’ experience, Val’s knowledge is based in the real world. She likes to create a buzz around professional development. Her sessions are practical and full of easy-to-implement tips and techniques.

In addition to consulting with a wide variety of organizations, Val delivers programs for the University of Calgary Continuing Education department, has held board positions in HR and adult learning associations, and has published articles in HR magazines.

Val Carter is presenting How Am I Doing? Performance Management that Works

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