Dean's Advisory Board
The Faculty of Engineering Dean’s Advisory Board is the primary non-academic external advisory group to the Dean of Engineering.
The Dean’s Advisory Board is a source of intelligence to the Dean on external economic, social, political, and cultural conditions impacting the Faculty’s strategy and plan and identifies opportunities for growth and focus. Its members provide counsel to the Dean on promoting the Faculty of Engineering to its external constituencies and offer advice on building reputation, expanding networks, generating revenue, and issues for which the Dean seeks consultation.
Membership
Michael Pley
Chair, McMaster Engineering Dean's Advisory Board
President, Pley Consulting Inc.
Former CEO. Com Dev International
Michael Pley
Michael Pley
President, Pley Consulting Inc.
Michael Pley retired as CEO of COM DEV International in 2016 after a 30-year career, and is currently supporting technology SMEs and space companies through his management consulting company. COM DEV was one of the leading suppliers to satellite manufacturers and space agencies around the world, having supplied equipment to over 80% of all communication satellites ever launched and many international science and exploration missions.
Michael graduated Summa Cum Laude from McMaster University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Electrical Engineering and Management in 1983. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
In 2006, he was the inaugural recipient of McMaster's Les W. Shemilt Distinguished Engineering Alumni award. In addition to being a member of the Advisory Board to the Dean of Engineering at McMaster since 2002, he is involved in a number of charitable and volunteer organizations. In 2011, he was appointed to the Ontario Manufacturing Council for a two-year term by the Minister of Economic Development and Trade for the province. He is an Executive Committee member of the Board of Directors of the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada and chairs its Space Committee.
Michael has been a registered member of Professional Engineers Ontario (PEO) since 1987. He obtained the Chartered Director (C.Dir.) designation from the Directors College (a joint venture of McMaster University and the Conference Board of Canada) in 2011.
Saud Adi
Saud Adi
Chief Operating Officer, Adi Development Group Inc
Acting as COO, Saud is actively involved in key operations across the company with a specialized focus in construction, engineering and construction operations. With a Construction Engineering Technology designation from George Brown, and Bachelors in Technology and Civil engineering from the University of McMaster, Saud brings a wealth of knowledge to the construction process including building science and design, value engineering, bid procurement, subcontractor trade relations, scheduling, construction logistics, site engineering, and general construction management. Saud sat on the HHHBA board of directors for two consecutive years and continues an active role with the association.
Saud is an active member of the community and has shown continuous support and sponsored local causes and events like Burlington’s Candle Lit Stroll in the downtown, City of Burlington’s Rotary Ribfest, City of Burlington’s Downtown Business Association. As a company Adi has supported and raised funds for various charities and associations including the Canadian Diabetes Association for continued assistance in research, Halton women’s place, Ronald McDonald House, SickKids Hospital, and Frances Rose Foundation.
Doug H. Barber
Gennum Corporation
(retired)
Doug H. Barber
Doug H. Barber (Former Dean's Advisory Board Chair)
Gennum Corporation (retired)
Doug Barber is the founder of Gennum Corporation (1987). The Burlington-based company designs and manufactures integrated circuits.
Barber was President and CEO of Gennum until he retired in 2000. Dr. Barber has been involved with McMaster Engineering since 1968, where he was a part-time Engineering Physics Professor until 1994. After retiring from Gennum, he was appointed Distinguished Professor in-Residence at McMaster in 2001. In addition to being on the Dean’s Advisory Board (since 1995), Dr. Barber is also Chair of the McMaster University Commercialization of Research Results Task Force and is a Board member of the McMaster Centre for Probe Development and Commercialization.
Barber has authored 29-refereed papers and holds several patents on semiconductor devices. Throughout his career he has played an active role in the microelectronics industry in Canada. Dr. Barber is a past Director of the Strategic. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering
Microelectronics Consortium, the Canadian Advanced Technology Association, the Hearing Industries Association and the Alberta Microelectronics Corp. He was a member of the Sectoral Skills Council, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), the National Innovation Strategy, the Ontario Postsecondary Education Quality Assessment Board and Vice Chair of the Ontario Science and Innovation Council. He was a founding co-chair of the National Information Technology Initiative that sponsored empowr Canada Inc. in 2001, and is a past director of the Golden Horseshoe Venture Forum.
Barber has received many accolades in recognition of his contributions to the industry and the fields of science and technology. These include the APEO Engineering Medal, the University of Saskatchewan C.J. Mackenzie Distinguished Graduate Award, the Professional Engineers of Ontario Gold Medal, honorary doctorate degrees from McMaster, the University of Saskatchewan, and the University of Waterloo, the 1996 Hamilton Engineer of the Year, the 1999 Ontario Technology Entrepreneur of the Year, and in 2006 he was made an Officer of the Order of Canada, one of the highest honours a Canadian can receive.
Nitin Chopra
Managing Director, Neotribe Ventures
Nitin Chopra
Nitin is passionate about enterprise software and mobile. He is looking at investing opportunities in application, platform, and infrastructure software. Nitin is a big advocate of open-source technologies and is a member of open source initiative.
Nitin has lived and worked in Canada, Germany, USA, and India, and has conducted business globally. In his role as a product manager in BlackBerry’s enterprise software team, Nitin engineered relationships with leading software vendors and drove products from concept to launch. During his years in Germany, Nitin built a distribution channel for BlackBerry’s Unified Communications product with channel partners across Europe and Asia-Pacific. Prior to that, Nitin also worked in product marketing at a semiconductor company, PMC-Sierra.
Nitin earned an MBA from Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University and Bachelor of Engineering in Electrical Engineering from McMaster University. Nitin is an avid hiker and has had the privilege of hiking mountains in North America, Europe, and Asia.
Chris Crozier
Founder and CEO
Chris Crozier
Chris Crozier, P.Eng.
Chris Crozier is founder of CF Crozier & Associates Inc. and provides overall strategic and financial leadership to the firm. As CEO, he supports the development of strategic direction of the company and supports senior management. Chris has instilled a core value of mentorship in the firm and guides leadership development and industry engagement.
As a consulting engineer with 25 years in the field of municipal site servicing and water resources engineering, Chris is a technical and project director resource for both offices. Widely regarded as an authority in water resources and land development matters, with notable experience in pre-engineering and approvals, Chris has cultivated long-standing relationships with regulatory bodies at the municipal, provincial and federal level. He has appeared often before the OMB and in a consultative role at Public Meetings and Public Information Sessions.
Chris is an advocate for active community engagement. Past and current involvements include serving on the Collingwood Economic Stability & Development Services Board; involvement in mentorship programs with The Centre for Business and Economic Development; business fundraising chair for Home Horizon’s transitional housing and past president of the Georgian Triangle Development Institute – a not-for-profit association that fosters communication and cooperation amongst the diverse players in the development community.
On a personal level, Chris has a long association with junior sports in the area as a soccer and hockey coach.
Paul Gilbert
Chief Executive Officer
Paul Gilbert
Paul Gilbert
Chief Executive Officer, Quanser
As the CEO of Quanser since 2002, Paul Gilbert oversees the strategic development of solutions geared towards improving the quality of engineering education and research in the global academic community. Paul is passionate about bringing hands-on experiments into universities, enabling students to gain real world experience and graduate as the strongest and most influential generation of engineering leaders.
Paul regularly travels around the world delivering keynote presentations and meeting with senior engineering educators. He is also as an active participant with global academic leadership organizations, including IFEES, GEDC, WEEF, IUCEE, and ASEE.
Paul has over two decades as a CEO or President in SME companies in North America, with global experience in Business Development. He brings wealth of international experience developing global partner relationships and major R&D oriented projects in the packaging, aerospace and energy management sectors.
Paul holds an MBA from the Richard Ivey School of Business in Canada as well as a Bachelor of Mechanical Engineering from the University of Southampton, U.K.
In addition to his day job, Paul has been an active youth mentor in a number of programs designed to develop young minds and promote STEM education. Currently he is active with the NEXT 36 Entrepreneurial Development program. Paul is also an avid cyclist and together with his team has raised over $250,000 for the Princess Margaret Cancer Centre in the last 5 years with the Ride to Conquer Cancer.
Duncan Hannay
Retired President & CEO
Street Capital Bank of Canada (Now RFA Capital Holdings Inc.)
Duncan Hannay
Duncan Hannay
Retired President & CEO, Street Capital Bank of Canada
Duncan Hannay is the former President and Chief Executive Officer at Street Capital Bank of Canada and Street Capital Group Inc. Prior to joining Street Capital in September 2017, Duncan held the position of Chief Operating Officer at FINASTRA, the third largest fintech provider in the world. Duncan has more than 25 years of experience building and growing businesses in the financial services and technology sectors with roles including: President, Global Lending Solutions at D+H; Senior Vice President and Head of Marketing at Scotiabank; Managing Director and Head of Online Brokerage at Scotiabank; and President and CEO at E*TRADE Canada Securities. Duncan holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree from McMaster University and has also completed the Strategic Management in Banking, Business Administration and Management program at INSEAD. In 2010, he was inducted into the McMaster University Alumni Gallery, and in 2013, was named Strategy Magazine’s “Marketer of the Year.” Duncan currently is a past Chair of the Board of Directors of Covenant House Toronto, Canada’s largest shelter for homeless youth.
Art Heidebrecht
Dr. Arthur Heidebrecht
Provost Emeritus, McMaster University
Dr. Art Heidebrecht has recently retired in 2016 from McMaster University after being involved since 1974 when he was appointed Professor of Civil Engineering. He was Dean of Engineering for eight years and was Provost and Vice-President Academic for five years. Art is also professor emeritus of Civil Engineering at McMaster. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Art played a pivotal role in establishing the Bachelor of Technology Program, which was launched in 2006. The B.Tech program is offered in partnership with McMaster and Mohawk College, with graduates receiving both a college diploma and a university degree.
Most recently, Art held the position of the Director of the Booth School of Engineering Practice at McMaster.
In addition to being a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board, Art is a Board Member for IEC, and is a Scientific Advisory Board Member for Sustainable Development of Energy, Water and Environment Systems (SDEWES).
Stephen Howe
Chief Technology and Information Officer
Bell Canada
Stephen Howe
Stephen Howe
Chief Technology and Information Officer, Bell Canada
Appointed Chief Technology and Information Officer in February 2022, Stephen leads the Network and Technology Services team responsible for designing, building and operating Bell’s industry-leading broadband fibre, wireless, satellite and media networks as well as application development, infrastructure and cloud management.
Stephen joined Bell in 2006 and has led the rollout of both the Bell Fibe all-fibre network in 7 provinces and a national 4G LTE wireless footprint that now covers more than 99% of the Canadian population, and guided the launch of the Bell 5G network.
A network executive in Canadian telecom for the past 25 years, Stephen holds a Bachelor of Engineering Physics degree from McMaster University and an MBA from Cornell University. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Waguih Ishak
Division VP, Research Director
Waguih Ishak
Waguih Ishak
Division VP, Research Director, Corning West Technology Center
Dr. Waguih Ishak joined Corning in 2007 to head the newly formed Corning West Technology Center in Palo Alto, California.
From 2005 to 2007, Dr. Ishak was the Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Avago Technologies, where he led the R&D efforts for new products in Consumer Electronics.
From 2003 to 2005, Ishak was the Vice President and Director of the Photonics & Electronics Research Lab (PERL) at Agilent Labs responsible for the R&D programs in photonics, high-speed electronics, sensors, semiconductor tests, wireless communications and consumer electronics.
From 1995 to 2003, Ishak was the Director of the Communications & Optics Research Laboratory (CORL), working on photonics and integrated electronics.
From 1987 to 1995, Ishak was the manager of the Photonics Technology Department, responsible for R&D programs in photonics for applications in measurements, communications and computer interconnects.
Ishak has authored approximately 80 journal and conference papers, and four chapters in the Handbook of Electronic Instruments.
He is a Fellow of the IEEE and was named an inventor on seven US patents. He is on the Technical Advisory Boards of USC, UC Santa Cruz, UC Santa Barbara, UC San Diego, Santa Clara University, NRC, and Panorama Venture Capital.
Ishak received a B.Sc. E.E. from Cairo University in 1971, a B.Sc. Math from Ain Shams University, Egypt, in 1973, and M.Sc. E.E. and Ph.D. E.E. from McMaster University, Ontario, Canada, in 1975 and 1978, respectively. In 1999, Ishak completed the Stanford Executive Program at Stanford University.
Shaffiq Jaffer
Vice President of Corporate Science and Technology Projects
Shaffiq Jaffer
Shaffiq Jaffer, BSc, PhD
Vice President of Corporate Science and Technology Projects in North America (NA), Total
Dr. Shaffiq Jaffer joined TOTAL SA nine years ago, as the Vice President of Corporate Science and Technology Projects in North America (NA) with as mission to find and fund novel ideas and technologies that will lead to breakthroughs to meet future energy demand. He is engaged across the research community: academia, startups, and private research companies, focused on building long lasting relationships at the institutional level that creates strong value for TOTAL and its partners. Research programs have been established across a broad range of research areas: development of energy resources (unconventional oil and gas, biofuels to photovoltaic), conservation and energy efficiency (digital and shared economy), materials engineering (PV, Catalysts, biomaterials, composites) and innovative production processes (electrification of industrial processes). Currently, his priority is to help build TOTAL’s largest future research program, focused on Carbon Capture, Utilization and Storage (CCUS) and lead an external scientific advisory board to help guide research priorities. Prior to TOTAL, he has worked for P&G and Koch-Glitsch in research and engineering roles. He was educated in Canada at University of Alberta (BSc) and McMaster University (PhD).
He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Chandra Kudsia
President, Mantrix Inc.
Former Chief Scientist, VP, Principal Engineer - COM DEV
Chandra Kudsia
Dr. Chandra Kudsia
President, Mantrix Inc., Former Chief Scientist, VP, Principal Engineer - COM DEV
Dr. Chandra Kudsia earned his M.Eng. in electrical engineering from McMaster in 1966. Chandra received a Bachelor of Science in physics in 1961 from Delhi University. He earned his Ph.D in electrical engineering in 1979 from Concordia University. He went on to become one of the founders of COM DEV International Ltd., a global designer and manufacturer of space hardware, located in Cambridge, Ontario. He started there as principal engineer in 1976 and retired in 2001 as chief scientist, and is regarded as one of the world’s foremost experts in microwave design, particularly for satellite application. Prior to the founding of COM DEV, he worked as a Senior Engineer with RCA Limited.
His passion for space science has been recognized by his many awards and citations, including: the A.G.L. McNaughton Award & Medal, the highest honour given by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), for outstanding contributions to the field in Canada; the McCurdy Award, given by the Canadian Aeronautics and Space Institute (CASI); one of only 20 Aerospace Communications Awards, which is sponsored by the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) to recognize outstanding contributions in the field of aerospace communications.
Chandra currently acts as President for his own company, Mantrix Inc., which provides full service environmental management and engineering consulting with multi-disciplinary teams of engineers, scientists and technologists. He founded Mantrix Inc. in 2001. He has also been an Adjunct Professor with the University of Waterloo since 2001.
In September 2008, he was appointed to the Board of Governors of the Conestoga College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning in Kitchener, Ontario. Chandra is a Fellow of IEEE, AIAA, EIC, CAE, and IETE.
He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Faizel Lakhani
Faizel Lakhani
CEO, CyberSecuriti.ai
Faizel is the CEO of CyberSecuriti.ai, a company that integrates into the Security Ops, DevSecOps and Development ops to provide API security natively in the workflow that all teams works in today.
Faizel formerly was CEO of Guavus : a Thales Company. Guavus is a streaming analytics and artificial intelligence company based in Silicon Valley, Montreal Canada and Gurgaon India. Prior to Guavus Faizel was the President, COO and Board Member of SS8; a network intelligence company. Prior to SS8, Faizel was the vice president of Data Loss Prevention at McAfee, where he was responsible for the DLP business worldwide. Faizel joined McAfee through the acquisition of Reconnex, where he was the vice president of products and marketing. Prior to Reconnex, Faizel held executive leadership roles in product and marketing at ConSentry, Caspian Networks and Nortel Networks.
Faizel holds an MBA from The University of Ottawa, an MS in Engineering from Carleton University, and a Bachelor in Engineering from McMaster University.
Joe Liburdi
President
Joe Liburdi
Joe Liburdi
President, Liburdi Group of Companies
After graduation in 1967 from University of Windsor with a B.A.Sc. degree in Engineering Materials, Joe Liburdi was employed by Westinghouse for twelve years as Manager of Metallurgy.
He was responsible for metallurgical support in the development, design, manufacture and service of gas and steam turbines. In 1979, Liburdi Engineering Limited was established to provide independent support for turbine users. Using an interdisciplinary approach, Liburdi has pioneered the development of life assessment techniques, HIP rejuvenation of superalloys, automated welding of turbine blades, powder metallurgy joining processes, erosion resistant PVD coatings, and CVD coatings for internal/ external oxidation protection. Through continued investment in research and development, the company has become a recognized leader in advanced welding and coating systems for the manufacture and refurbishment of turbine components. The innovative processes and techniques developed by Liburdi have resulted in the awarding of several patents and numerous technical publications. A member of McMaster Engineering Dean’s Advisory Board, Liburdi has a long-standing affiliation with McMaster University. This mutually beneficial relationship is based on a shared regard for the importance of research and development in establishing a strong technical base for the business, while providing challenging opportunities for new graduates.
He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Angela Pappin
Chief Transformation Officer
Angela Pappin
Angela Pappin
Chief Transformation Officer , ArcelorMittal Dofasco
Ms. Angela Pappin was appointed Vice President, Technology in 2014 after having held senior roles throughout technology including General Manager, Metallurgy and Quality, Business Unit Manager of Tin Plate Products, Business Unit Manager of Cold Roll and Tin Technology. She began her career with ArcelorMittal Dofasco in 1988 as a Tin Plate Products Stream Senior Engineer. Angela’s career has included cross functional appointments including market and product development, engineering, energy management, manufacturing and corporate strategy. Angela is a member of the ArcelorMittal Dofasco Corporate Community Investment Fund Committee and a past Chair of the American Iron and Steel Institute’s Metallurgical Committee on Tin Mill Practice. She holds a degree in Mechanical Engineering from McMaster University.
She is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Sonia Sennik
Sonia Sennik
Executive Director, Creative Destruction Lab (CDL)
Sonia Sennik is the Executive Director of Creative Destruction Lab (CDL), a seed-stage program for massively scalable, science-based companies. Sonia is responsible for the CDL’s strategic, operational and programmatic leadership, coordination and oversight to ensure the success of the Lab and its ventures across ten university-based locations in Canada, US, UK and France. The organization operates sites at the University of Toronto, University of Oxford, Georgia Tech, HEC Paris, University of Wisconsin-Madison, University of British Columbia, University of Montreal, University of Calgary, University of Washingon, and Dalhousie University. Sonia is also the Executive Director of the CDL Rapid Screening Consortium, a not-for-profit organization focused on developing a cost-effective system for reopening the economy during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Having spent a decade managing large-scale capital projects (up to $500M) at Hatch Ltd., a leading global engineering firm, Sonia is well-established in guiding interdisciplinary teams of professionals working on multiple, complex projects. Their particular areas of interest include process optimization, finessing workplace culture, mentoring future leaders and actualizing the potential of their ideas.
In 2020, they founded the Sonia Sennik Resilience Fund at McMaster University to award an annual $8,000 entrance scholarship for an engineering student who has shown grit and strength of character in their life – whether that’s at school, at home, on the athletic field, or in their creative pursuits. This commitment grew into a $300,000+ endowed fund with more than 40 start-up founders, CEOs, world-leading scientists, engineers, and economists contributing to the effort.
Most recently, Sonia was named as Canada’s Top 40 Under 40, selected from hundreds of nominees by a respected and independent advisory board on four key criteria: Vision & Innovation, Leadership, Impact & Influence, and Social Responsibility.
Sonia previously served as vice-chair of the board of directors for ParticipACTION – a 50-year-old organization dedicated to helping Canadians sit less and move more. Sonia was the head coach of Rugby Ontario Senior Women’s Team from 2016 to 2018, winning bronze, silver and gold at the Canadian Rugby Championships. Sonia is a proud graduate of the MBA program at Rotman School of Management and was the first-ever recipient of the Social Impact Award. Sonia received the Rotman Emerging Leader Award to recognize their influential leadership talent to motivate, mentor and inspire others to reach their potential. They also hold a B.Eng degree from McMaster University.
Howard Shearer
Chairman
Howard Shearer
Howard Shearer
Chairman, Hitachi Canada Ltd.
Howard Shearer is currently Chairman of Hitachi Canada Ltd. Previously, he served as CEO and President of the company. After joining Hitachi Canada Ltd. in 1984, Howard rose through the ranks to the position of President and CEO in 2001, and held that position until 2012. He has had a place on the Board of Directors since 1999. Prior to this, he served as Vice-President & General Manager of Hitachi Canada Ltd.’s Semiconductor division. Howard has been involved in both the high tech and energy sectors having also been employed by Texas Instruments and Murata Erie.
Howard received his Bachelor's Degree in Electrical Engineering from McMaster University in 1977. He is very dedicated in his community involvement, as he serves on the board for large array of foundations and societies. In addition to being part of the McMaster Dean’s Advisory Board, he currently serves on the board for GE-Hitachi Canada Ltd., Metrolinx, Canadian Nurses Foundation, Independent Electricity System Operator (IESO) in Ontario, Canadian Nuclear Association, Energy Council of Canada, University of Toronto Governing Council and Japan society. He also serves on the Special Advisory Council to the League for Human Rights, B'nai Brith Canada. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Kurt A. Strobele
Chairman of Board
Hatch (retired)
Kurt A. Strobele
Kurt A. Strobele
Chairman of Board, Hatch (retired)
Kurt A. Strobele is currently chairman of the Hatch Group of companies. Hatch is a global engineering, technologies, and execution company with 11,000 employees working in three sectors: Metals, Energy and Infrastructure. During Dr. Strobele's tenure as Chairman and CEO (2003-2011) Hatch grew from 3,500 employees to 11,000. Service organisations were added in Brazil, Peru, the Middle East, Russia, and India. Kurt has held several senior positions within Hatch, including, Vice-President of Computer Systems; Vice-President of Engineering; Managing Director of Industrial Minerals; and Managing Director of Light Metals, which included scale-up and commercialization of new processes.
Kurt has been with Hatch since 1973, when he joined the firm after receiving his Ph.D. in Mechanical Engineering, from McMaster University. He had received his B.Sc., Engineering, Cum Laude, from Witwatersrand University in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 1968. He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Kurt has 40 years of design and project management experience and as a leader of scale-ups for innovative processes and technologies around the world.
He is a Fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
Gina Succi
Executive Vice President
Gina Succi
Gina Succi
Executive Vice President, Westhill Innovation Inc
Gina Succi has over 30 years of experience in civil/structural and materials engineering, product development and construction project management. Upon graduating from McMaster University with a Bachelor of Engineering, she began her career working at Dofasco Inc in Hamilton, Ontario. Over the next 18 years, Gina worked in various capacities including leading engineering, product development teams, sales and marketing of steel-based products, and in the development of composite technologies that utilized a steel component. She is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.
She left Dofasco in 2005 to pursue other interests working as a Director of Sales in the logistics industry and as Product Manager for Weir Minerals, a global mining equipment manufacturer. While in mining, she created platforms for growth for the company, and lead teams that designed and manufactured equipment to process tailings in the Oil Sands as well as traditional precious metals mining worldwide.
Gina has several patents and continues to look for opportunities to develop new products in various fields and applications. She is now co-owner and Executive Vice President of Westhill Innovation. Westhill Innovation is a leading-edge composite materials designer and manufacturer of light-weight metal- skinned, and environmental/energy sustainable products for the commercial and recreational transportation sector.
Gina lives in Ancaster with her husband Morris and their four children. She enjoys spending time with her family in addition to her many hobbies, which include art, painting, mountain-biking and writing a cultural blog.
James Suttie
Chair & CEO
James Suttie
James Suttie
James is 73 years old, a Graduate from McMaster in Chemical Engineering. He has been an active skier, golfer, tennis player and is currently an avid motorcyclist adventure rider, travelled throughout South America, USA, Yukon, Europe and Morocco. He climbed Kilimanjaro in 2010.
He is currently Chair & CEO of GOLFTEC Canada, the leading golf instruction and club fitting business in Canada, teaching 24% of all lessons in Canada with 20 centres across the country. GOLFTEC Canada hold the franchise rights for Canada from GOLFTEC LLP, with over 200 centres in the USA, Canada, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore.
James has held a variety of senior positions in several well respected organizations. He was President & CEO of two software firms, and has fulfilled the role of Chairman in three organizations. Before founding Selkirk Financial Technologies in 1988, he held a variety of senior management and marketing positions at Gulf Canada, Noranda Mines and IBM Canada.
Robert Tong
Vice President and General Manager of the Mobile, Computing, and Cloud Division,
Robert Tong
Robert Tong
Vice President and General Manager of the Mobile, Computing, and Cloud Division, ON Semiconductor
From fledgling start-up to foreign-owned subsidiary, Robert Tong has spent 30 years navigating the waters of Waterloo Region’s tech sector.
Starting with Cambridge-based satellite company COM DEV in 1981, Tong joined Dspfactory, a spinoff of hearing-aid leader Unitron in Kitchener, in 1999. He grew the company from $250,000 to $15 million in annual sales by 2004, when it was acquired by U.S.-based AMI Semiconductor. AMI was then purchased by ON Semiconductor, a multinational based in Phoenix, in 2008.
As vice-president of ON’s medical division, with operations employing about 50 in Waterloo and 140 in Burlington, Tong has come to know the unique aspects of heading up Canadian operations for a parent company based abroad.
Mr. Tong holds a Bachelor of Engineering degree in Electrical Engineering from McMaster University, Masters of Engineering from Waterloo University and MBA from Wilfred Laurier. He is a fellow of the Canadian Academy of Engineering.