Melissa Carvalho, RBC Global Cyber Security Vice-President, leads the Cyber Security Planning office and the bank’s Global Identity and Access Management group, providing cyber solutions and services for RBC’s 86,000 employees and 17 million clients.

Throughout her career, Melissa has developed and implemented identity strategies to promote organizational growth and improve operational efficiency, including implementing Identity Programs at Canada’s five major banks and consulting on over 50 IAM programs across North America.

Melissa is also the Canadian Ambassador for Women in Identity, a global non-profit organization focused on breaking bias to create a world where “Digital identity solutions built for everyone are built by everyone”. With Women in Identity, Melissa combines her two passions, advancing people and advancing technology. Melissa looks to bring people together and create new opportunities for a future without biases.

Melissa is an advocate for diversity and inclusion. In addition to her Women in Identity role, she is also the RBC Technology and Operations Co-lead for the LGBTQ+ leadership team. Melissa continues to promote an environment of equality for all and one where everyone is comfortable to bring their ‘true self’ to work.

Melissa is a focal point in Cyber Security and is frequently a keynote speaker/panelist for various security focused events across the globe. Recently she was the winner of the IT World Canada Top 20 Women in Cyber Security 2021 and has been featured on TheFutureEconomy.ca and IT Media Group CIO roundtable. She holds various Directorships like the CyberArk Enterprise Customer Advisory Board and the IT Media Group CIO Advisory board to help CIOs across Canada better understand Cyber Security.

Nancy is Chief Human Resources Officer at OMERS and joined the organization in April 2020. In her role, she leads all aspects of human resources for 3,000+ team members globally, including the company’s People strategy. She is a member of OMERS Executive Leadership Team.

Fueled by her passion to empower each one of us, Nancy’s ambition has been to anchor the employee experience at OMERS by nurturing everyone’s sense of belonging, growth, and wellbeing. Through this, she has led the company to achieve Great Place to Work® certification, and a place on the Greater Toronto’s Top 100 employers list. Nancy has redefined the role the human resources department plays for the enterprise, elevating the opportunities for her team to have real impact along the way. With the ambition to break down silos and encourage collaboration at every opportunity, Nancy has managed to foster strong connections by empowering leaders and sustained an active and engaged employee base.

A seasoned HR leader with a passion for people, Nancy brings over 20 years of experience in employee experience transformation in large organizations, across multiple industries. Prior to joining OMERS, she was Senior Vice President, Organization Development with Rogers Communications where she played an instrumental role in leading the company through successful transformation by focusing on key areas of employee experience. During her tenure at TD Bank, Nancy led several executive roles within HR. Nancy also spent nearly a decade at Bell Canada where she implemented several award-winning programs that focused on talent strategies and HR employee experience transformation.

She is a values-driven leader and a certified coach who provides ongoing coaching and mentoring for leaders across the organizations where she has worked.

Paul Draffin is Chief Supply Chain Officer, Canadian Tire Corporation, Limited (CTC). In this role, he leads the supply chain and procurement functions for all CTC banners with end-to-end accountability from the factory to the customer’s door. He also oversees CTC’s $4 billion Consumer Brands Division, including brand management, assortment planning, product design, development and engineering, costing, sourcing and vendor management.

Paul joined CTC in 2014 and previously led Canadian Tire’s sourcing, procurement and product quality functions where he implemented best practice approaches to delivering sustainable productivity improvements and executed a diversified global sourcing strategy. He also oversaw the formation of CTC’s technical office in Shenzhen, representative offices in Bangladesh, and wholly foreign-owned enterprise offices in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

Prior to joining CTC, Paul was stationed in Hong Kong, China, where he led Spin Master’s Global Procurement organization and supplier development strategy. He has a keen understanding of global business cultures spanning North America, Europe and Asia and is highly effective at developing and leading globally dispersed and connected talent organizations that deliver strong results.

Over the course of his career, Paul has held progressively senior roles at several companies including Spin Master Ltd., News America Marketing and Cara Operations.

He holds a Bachelor of Commerce from the University of Guelph and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from York University, Schulich School of Business.

Shazia is an accomplished multilingual senior executive with domestic and international experience in highly transformative, multi-stakeholder complex technology driven projects. She is results oriented, people centric, decisive leader with proven success in creating systemic change while spearheading operational excellence and driving efficiency and optimization of resources. She excels in dynamic, demanding environments that focus on capturing the synergies between doing well in business and doing good in our communities.

In Shazia’s 16 years with TELUS, she has held a variety of leadership roles across wireline and wireless businesses. In her current role as Vice President Customer Network Implementation, she is focused on accelerating fast and high quality broadband connectivity to boost community based economic and social outcomes with an intention to minimize the digital divide. She is honoured to support TELUS’ Indigenous Reconciliation Action Plan which centers around leveraging TELUS’ world-leading networks, advanced technologies and innovative social solutions, to support the goals of Indigenous peoples. She is passionate to build a team and culture that fosters innovation, risk taking and perseverance.

Outside of work, Shazia shares her passion for coaching and mentoring at the Calgary Immigrant Women's Association and University of Calgary where she is involved with regular adult learning programs, helping aspiring professionals make their dreams come true. She sits on the board of Women in Communication and Technology and is an advisor to TELUS Diversity & Inclusion council and Calgary Community Board.
She lives in Calgary, Canada with her husband and 16-year-old son who always has interesting stories about robotics and video games to share with her.

Tsering Yangki is the Head of Real Estate Finance & Development, for three public entities-Dream Unlimited Corp., Dream Impact Trust, & Dream Office REIT. Her portfolio spans a diverse range of asset classes-condominium, purpose built rental, office, retail, and other income-producing assets across Canada and the US. With over 17 years of experience in the real estate industry, Tsering has worked with developers in both the private and public markets. She has partnered with private, public, governmental, and non-governmental stakeholders to successfully develop and implement business, capital, impact, and risk management strategies, and design innovative debt solutions. Tsering views the values of interdependence & interconnectedness to be integral in real estate & the built environment. She believes that real estate/built environment is a key stakeholder to address social determinants of health, social cohesion, food security, climate change & foster fair & inclusive economy.

Joining LifeLabs in May 2020, as Chief Financial Officer, Kelly is a key advisor to the CEO and the Executive Team on strategic and financial matters, working closely with LifeLabs’ Board of Directors and Audit Committee. Since joining LifeLabs, Kelly has removed barriers and ensured liquidity to support agility in operations and growth for the Company. Acting as a change agent, Kelly is building LifeLabs’ commercial acumen by developing sound financial plans, implementing accountability frameworks, and simplifying operating policies and procedures. Her mandate is to evolve the financial operations of LifeLabs beyond debits and credits utilizing financial and operational data to drive a culture of continuous improvement within the organization and she plays a critical role in increasing LifeLabs’ ability to further leverage its core lab services capabilities while fueling innovation and capitalizing on growth opportunities to continue to diversify its service offerings.

Kelly brings a balanced approach to finances and growth, believing that finance can’t always be about cutting costs – growth requires investment. She is a human-centric leader who advocates for people. She believes the secret to facing any challenge is to surround yourself with a strong, diverse team. With that foundation and collaborative work ethic, Kelly has proven time and time again that she and her team can overcome any obstacle by showing up as role models for resiliency and determination. She is a passionate and supportive leader cultivating her team to grow and develop themselves in a way that supports their own career pathing. She seeks to mentor and inspire female leaders into senior roles in Finance by coaching them to build confidence, strength, and resiliency, while building succession plans for future development. This is her passion and the legacy she hopes to leave behind in her career.

Kelly has over 25 years of organizational and C-Suite leadership experience, with an emphasis in the HealthCare sector. Kelly is a Chartered Professional Accountant and received a Bachelor of Commerce degree from the University of Toronto.

As Global Vice President of Employee Experience, Linda is responsible for spearheading employee growth and performance, talent acquisition, and establishing operational objectives for the development and continuous improvement of the employee experience.

Linda joined Copperleaf in 2020 and brings a wealth of knowledge in strategic human resources (HR), change management, organizational development, and leadership development. She most recently served as Executive Vice President, Commercial Services, for the Provincial Health Services Authority (PHSA), and previously held the position of Chief Human Resources Officer at PHSA. Throughout her seven years there, she had executive oversight of various portfolios including decision analytics, BC Emergency Health Services, and other corporate services.

Linda has over 30 years of experience in executive HR positions with biotech company, QLT, and international software firm, MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates. She holds a Bachelor of Psychology from the University of British Columbia and enjoys cooking, gardening, and cycling.

Stephen Burmaster is the Vice President of Sales for Partake Brewing.  Steve has over 20 years of progressive leadership experience in consumer-packaged goods with Maple Leaf Foods and Unilever in sales, trade marketing and strategy.   In 2019, Steve took a leap from large CPG to nascent startup moving from Unilever to Partake Brewing as head of sales and marketing at the pioneering non-alcoholic brewer.   Steve adapted quickly to life in a startup, rolled up his sleeves, and got to work setting the foundation for sales growth of over 250% during COVID and accelerating Partake into the #1 craft non-alcoholic beer market share position in Canada. Steve was also pivotal in building Partake's team in the U.S. and went on to secure national distribution and major retail partnerships over the past year.  Steve has a BA Economics and BSCH Biology from Queens University. 

Dawn is the editor of Report on Business magazine, handling long-form features, packages and oversight of the publication. She also writes the magazine's back-page column, "Last Word," along with the occasional feature.

Pauline is an accomplished executive with extensive experience in transforming businesses through creative marketing, branding strategies and team management. She has specialized knowledge in the transportation and logistics sectors in the air, maritime, and customs industries. Pauline is a values-driven and decisive leader with proven success in crafting and executing meaningful brand stories, public engagement, and market presence. Her people-first style cultivates relationships ensuring inclusivity among all stakeholders, clients, suppliers, and employees.

In her current role of Chief Corporate Officer with Cargojet, Pauline provides leadership for all corporate functions for Canada’s top cargo air services provider with 1100 employees. She determines strategic directions for marketing, branding, public and media relations, and government relations. She also leads long-range business planning by engaging industry thought leaders, key stakeholders, and internal teams. Pauline craft the company’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) policies and cascades them down into functional plans, and oversees the human resources function including recruitment, training, retention and development of frontline and middle management talent across the organization. She oversees project planning and implementation in marketing, branding and communications, and also provide cross-functional management and lead a management team of 10 direct reports and over 1100 employees indirectly.

 Dayo Kefentse is a content strategist with Globe Content Studio. She uses her journalistic skills, client savvy and her creative excellence to ideate and execute on editorial, sponsor and branded content programs for our partners. Dayo is an established writer, editor, broadcaster and communications director who has been reporting on stories, hosting events and consulting for major organizations for many years. Having started her career as a journalist on CBC’s ‘Metro Morning’ and ‘Here and Now’ radio programs, Dayo founded DAYO Media & Communications. Her team of experts consult with and create content for businesses and brands across public, private and non-profit sectors including the Toronto District School Board, School Mental Health Ontario, Artscape and Parents of Black Children. She recently completed her Master of Arts in Communications and Culture at Ryerson University.

Jason Mullins is the President & CEO of goeasy Ltd, one of Canada’s leading non-prime consumer lenders. Jason leads a team of over 2,200 employees across Canada, shaping the organization’s strategy and nurturing its culture. Since joining goeasy in 2010, he has helped the company scale to over $2 billion in market capitalization, earning the company a spot on the TSX30 and Canada’s Top Growing Companies lists. During his tenure, goeasy has also been the proud recipient of 11 awards for culture and performance. Jason attained his Executive MBA from the Ivey Business School at Western University and was named one of Canada’s Top 40 under 40 in 2020. He also serves as Vice Chair for the Canadian Lenders Association, is a Team Leader for Habitat for Humanity Global Village, and is a Trustee for the BGC Canada Foundation.

As program manager, Fiona is responsible for the research and project management of Report on Business magazine’s ranking programs, including Canada’s Top Growing Companies, Women Lead Here and CEO of the Year. Fiona has more than a decade of experience in journalism and reporting on the wealth management industry.

Tim Kiladze is a reporter and columnist for The Globe and Mail. Previously he worked in equity capital markets at National Bank Financial, and in fixed-income sales and trading at RBC Dominion Securities.

Tim graduated from Columbia University's Graduate School of Journalism and also earned a Bachelor in Commerce in finance from McGill University.

P Fordham is a host of exceptional ability. Studies show that a vast majority of guests attending events by P have been known to leave more elated than visitors to Santa's Workshop, The Lost of Continent of Atlantis, and the Fountain of Youth.

majority of guests attending events by P have been known to leave more elated than visitors to Santa's Workshop, The Lost of Continent of Atlantis, and the Fountain of Youth.

Dawn Calleja is Editor of Report on Business magazine. She has more than 20 years of experience as a long-form editor and has written for a variety of publications, including The Globe and Mail, Cottage Life, Today's Parent, enRoute and Reader's Digest. She has taught feature writing at Ryerson University's School of Journalism, where she sits on the advisory board, and leads the Canadian arm of the Society for Advancing Business Editing and Writing, which hands out the annual Best in Business Canada Awards.

majority of guests attending events by P have been known to leave more elated than visitors to Santa's Workshop, The Lost of Continent of Atlantis, and the Fountain of Youth.

As program manager, Fiona is responsible for the research and project management of Report on Business magazine’s ranking programs, including Canada’s Top Growing Companies, Women Lead Here and CEO of the Year. Fiona has more than a decade of experience in journalism and reporting on the wealth management industry.

Vanmala Subramaniam has been a journalist for more than a decade, with a career spanning television, print and online media. She began her career as a producer at the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, working on various news and current-affairs programs, including the investigative show the fifth estate.

In 2016, she joined VICE News, leading the formation of a new business-focused vertical, VICE Money. Vanmala spent much of her time at VICE, and subsequently at The Financial Post, reporting on the nascent legal cannabis industry, investigating and breaking stories on some of the biggest names in the cannabis industry.

Vanmala joined The Globe and Mail in 2021. She’s broken several stories since joining The Globe, including her reporting on MindGeek that revealed various bidders, including a former cannabis entrepreneur, were vying to buy the controversial owner of Pornhub in the summer of 2021. As the Globe's designated Future of Work reporter, Vanmala will explore a host of workplace issues, including the growing chasm between employers and employees, the rise of unions, and how technological change and immigration trends will reshape the Canadian labour force.

Vanmala hails from Malaysia, and speaks three languages. She is a graduate of the University of Toronto, majoring in economics and political science, and has called Canada her home for over 15 years.