Dr. Richard Gorrie is an associate Director with the Centre for Open Learning and Educational Support at the University of Guelph responsible for overseeing Educational Design, Development and Technologies. Richard has taught, researched, studied, worked and played on Canadian University campuses for more than 30 years. Some of his current research interests include universal instructional design, mediated history, and IT support as therapy.
Session: Delivering Digital Innovation to Develop Talent: Lessons Learned to Enable Lifelong Learning
Iain Klugman is the President and CEO of Communitech, one of the leading enabling organizations in North America. Iain has overall responsibility for operations of the organization including regional, provincial and national mandates, innovation programs for companies covering each stage (ranging from entrepreneur development and support, to big tech company support) and a national focus on digital media and mobile computing.
Previously, Iain was the CEO of a provincial Crown corporation, Executive Director of Communications with the CBC, Director of Global Branding and Advertising for Nortel, and held numerous roles with the Privy Council Office and Industry Canada. Iain began his career as an entrepreneur and has never lost his passion for tech and start-ups. He sits on numerous local and national boards that include the business, academia and social sectors.
Iain holds an MBA from Laurier University, an MPA degree from Dalhousie University, an HBA from Laurentian University, and has completed the Advanced Program in Human Resources at the Rotman School of Management.
Session: From Great Ideas to Companies and Jobs: Commercialization Models that Work
Jeff brings with him more than 20 years of successfully leading Canadian Technology companies through Canadian and US venture capital financings, Cross-border IPO’s and international M&A activities. Jeff’s senior financial leadership has helped companies from angel stage financings through to profitability and international expansion.
Jeff is currently the COO of East Valley Ventures, a start up company focused on working with the ICT entrepreneurs in the Maritimes. East Valley Ventures is focused on the entrepreneur to help create a cohesive extraordinary team; assist with idea iteration(ideation) and finally on capitalizing their company. Prior to this Jeff was the Chief Financial Officer for Radian6, and helped guide the company through its successful acquisition by Salesforce.com in May 2012.
Jeff is passionate about innovation and commercialization of technologies with great Canadian teams. Jeff has worked with and held CFO roles with companies such as Deloitte, IMagicTV, Q1 Labs and Genesys Laboratories Canada. Jeff is a graduate of St Francis Xavier University and a Cahrtered Accountant.
Jeff lives in Saint John with his wife Cathy and three children Matthew, Jamie and Stuart.
Session: Entrepreneurship + innovation = success for Canadian business
Alain has been Director General, Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) Branch of Industry Canada since July 2009.
Alain has been with Industry Canada since December 2003 and has held a number of positions as Director General working on manufacturing and services sectors policies, S&T, and the Security and Prosperity Partnership for North America among others. Alain was also Director General, Communications and Marketing Branch for the Department, and a member of the Department’s Executive Committee.
Previously, Alain worked at Health Canada, and spent numerous years in both the Privy Council Office (Intergovernmental Affairs) and the Prime Minister’s Office, with responsibility for economic, trade and international policy files.
Session: Delivering Talent for Digital Innovation in Canada: Setting the Stage
Currently the Executive Director – Business Development & Innovation Steve builds and leads OCAD University’s Imagination Catalyst, a student and alumni-centred incubator and accelerator initiative that aggregates existing innovation capacity among students, alumni, and faculty members.
This role develops and operationalizes the Imagination Catalyst’s two activity streams:
- Product Track: placing inventions in receptor industries, provide matchmaking and IP transfer services between OCAD U talent and companies, support inventors and entrepreneurs and their ideas with patenting or copyrighting products or services, provide brand & product development advice as well as prototyping and licensing support, and
- Start-Up Formation: support students, especially those in their graduating year, recent graduates, and faculty in forming companies. Assist with patenting or copyrighting inventions, providing all manner of business formation advice, brand development, business plan development, and prototyping support. Organize a mentor system, matching companies with appropriate angel or venture capital funds.
In his previous role as General Manager, Digital Programming and Business Development at the CBC, Steve was responsible for all aspects of the growth, revenue and development of CBC’s digital programming and services, while fostering business development and strategic partnership opportunities for all CBC network radio and television. He was also responsible for strategic planning (including ventures, mergers and acquisition); production and operations of all CBC’s digital programming and services, as well as revenue responsibility for CBC’s digital specialty channels and the international sales of all programming and archival material.
He has also provided strategic planning and business and product development consultation to leading corporations internationally, such as TVO, American Film Institute, Director’s Guild of Canada, Digeo, BCE, PBS, the BBC and Channel 4 in the United Kingdom, as well as government and regulators such as the CRTC and the United Kingdom’s Department of Culture’s Future Media Inquiry Group and the Independent Television Commission.
Billinger has extensive experience of the media and technology landscape in the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom, having worked for platform and software/ middleware providers, as well as content originators, media companies and distributors in these countries.
As a writer, producer or director he received a BAFTA nomination for best Children’s Documentary, a Prix Europa Nomination and a Recommendation for the Japan Prize. He was awarded the prestigious Royal Television Society Award for Innovation and received an RTS Nomination for an innovative graphic history of the crisis in Bosnia.
Billinger has been an Evaluator/Lead Advisor of business models and deals for projects seeking funding with the Bell New Media Fund, as well as acted as a mentor for start-up technology companies on business and strategic development as part of the Banff Centre’s Interactive Project Lab Accelerator program in conjunction with Bell Globemedia’s Content Innovation Network, the American Film Institute, Vortex (part of The International Film Festival Rotterdam). He held a similar role with the Ontario Media Development Corporation and the Canadian Film Center’s Interactive Project Lab.
He has delivered keynote addresses on digital media at Banff, NextMedia, the Canadian Director’s Guild, iMix, the Edinburgh Television Festival, MILIA, the UK Television Show, Periodical Publishers Association, Financial Times Conferences, the Rotterdam Film Festival and the World Summit on Programming for Children. Billinger is also listed in Business Age magazine’s Hall of Fame for his contribution to the U.K. digital market sector. He was also part of the Department of Culture’s Future Media Inquiry Group established by the U.K. Secretary of State.
Session: From Great Ideas to Companies and Jobs: Commercialization Models that Work
Mark Pecen serves as Senior Vice President, R&D for Research In Motion Limited (RIM), makers of the BlackBerry wireless devices, systems and services. He reports directly to RIM CEO Thorsten Heins and is responsible for RIM’s Advanced Technology Research Center and broad-based R&D strategy.
Pecen established RIM’s Research Center in 2005. The center’s focus is wireless communication research, including all aspects from radio frequency hardware and antennas to core network technology and wireless-specific services. Topics include: signal processing, information theory, cryptography, audio/video codecs, data compression, radio system protocols, mobility control, electromagnetics, advanced services and application platforms, prototyping of hardware and software and new technology trials.
Pecen is an inventor of a number of technologies adopted by global standards bodies, including the Global System for Mobile Telecommunication (GSM), Universal Mobile Telecommunication System (UMTS), High-Speed Packet Access (HSPA+), 4th Generation Long-Term Evolution (LTE/LTE-Advanced) and others. A Distinguished Innovator with Motorola, Pecen also managed consultation work for firms in North America and Europe.
As a veteran of the wireless industry, he holds more than 100 fundamental patents in areas of mobile communication, networking and computing, and is a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, Wharton School of Business and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences.
Pecen serves as an advisor to the Canadian government on wireless communication and research. He holds board positions on 4G Americas, École Polytechnique, Wilfred Laurier University School of Business, Quantum Works, Canadian Digital Media Network, the Communication Research Centre (CRC) of Industry Canada and others.
Board positions:
- Dean’s Board, School of Business and Economics of Wilfred Laurier University, Waterloo, Canada
- Chair, Board of Directors, QuantumWorks, pan-Canadian academic network for quantum information research
- Board of Directors, École Polytechnique Centre de Recherche En Électronique Radiofréquence (CREER), Montréal, Canada
- Board of Advisors, Communication Research Centre (CRC), a Canadian government agency of Industry Canada, and Chair of CRC Terrestrial Wireless Board Sub-Committee
- Board of Governors, 4G Americas
- Board of Advisors, Canadian Digital Media Network (CDMN)
- ICT Advisory Board, Ontario Centres of Excellence (OCE)
- Vice Chair, Kitchener-Waterloo Symphony Orchestra, Kitchener, Ontario
Session: Ubiquitous broadband: The right technology and the right financing model
Deborah is responsible for all marketing, distribution and digital initiatives at the National Film Board of Canada (NFB). A veteran of over 25 years in the Canadian film and television industry, with extensive experience in distribution, international co-production and strategic business development, she has been responsible for pushing the agency into the digital era of distribution, with its award winning <NFB.ca> platform and mobile expansion.
Named Director General of Accessibility and Digital Enterprises in 2009, Deborah has been at the NFB since 2006, previously responsible for Strategic Planning and Government Relations.
Her 15 years of experience at Telefilm Canada contributed to her expertise in international co-production and financing, and her solid knowledge of public policy priorities and strategic measures for corporate development. As Vice-President of Acquisitions and Co-Productions for Sextant Entertainment, she gained first hand knowledge of the challenges facing Canada’s production and distribution companies which complemented her experience in the public sector. Between 2001 and 2006, Deborah managed Drisdell Consulting, providing strategic information and services to Canadian and foreign cultural industries. She enjoys a strong reputation with producers from across the country and internationally and is recognized for her integrity, leadership skills and strategic knowledge.
Session: In 2012, the Content, not the Medium, is the Message
Following the recent launch of a new joint industry initiative by the Textiles Human Resources Council (THRC) and Excellence in Manufacturing Consortium (EMC) in early 2012, David Kelly became the Co-CEO of the Canadian Manufacturing Network. With the Textiles Human Resources Council since 1998, David stepped into the role of Executive Director of THRC three years ago after leading the development and implementation of numerous award-winning workplace performance enhancement initiatives as Chief Learning Officer. David has over 20 years of domestic and international experience in corporate business, manufacturing, and international development.
Session: Delivering Digital Innovation to Develop Talent: Lessons Learned to Enable Lifelong Learning
Jeff Leiper is the Chief Policy Advisor for the Information and Communications Technology Council. Mr. Leiper leads ICTC’s policy development initiatives. His work helps establish a strong foundation for policy discussions and advancement of the digital economy agenda in Canada.
Jeff has held successively senior positions in the ICT industry, including Editor-in-Chief at Decima/Evert Communications, Director of the Yankee research group in Canada, and more recently as the Acting Director General, Convergence Policy at the CRTC.
Jeff brings a wealth of knowledge and experience in policy elaboration and advocacy, economic and technology research and business relations. He has also published several authoritative industry research reports and policy submissions to the Government of Canada including: A Competitive Balance for the Communications Industry – Red Wilson review, Navigating Convergence I/II, Copyright Policy, Spectrum Auction, others.
Jeff holds a Bachelor of Arts in History and English, respectively.
Session: Delivering Talent for Digital Innovation in Canada: Setting the Stage
Session: In 2012, the Content, Not the Medium, is the Message