FRANÇOIS COUILLARD

François is a seasoned executive, with more than twenty years of international experience spanning R&D, operations, general management, strategic assessment, sales and marketing.  Most of his career has been spent in Health and Life Sciences with firms such as Johnson and Johnson and MDS. François acts currently as Chief Operating Officer of a large humanitarian organization. He holds an MBA in Marketing and International Business from McGill University, and a Bachelor of Engineering (Chemical) from l’Université de Sherbrooke. 

François volunteers with national and international non-profit organizations including CBBF and serves on Canada’s Advisory Council on National Security.  François has been a frequent guest speaker on topics such as of Ethics in Business, International Business and Socially Responsible Enterprise Restructuring. Current areas of interest include International health and climate change.

DAVID G. PATTERSON, Northwater Group of Companies

David G. Patterson founded and is the Chair & Chief Executive Officer of the Northwater Group of Companies, which includes the main operating company, Northwater Capital Management Inc. (Northwater). Northwater currently has $9 billion assets under management.

Since Northwater’s inception in 1989, Mr. Patterson has led the successful establishment and growth of the firm toward its present stature as an internationally recognized leader in innovative “alpha + beta” investment strategies, specifically market-neutral funds of hedge funds and synthetic index products for sophisticated institutional pension plans and endowment funds.

Mr. Patterson is widely respected at the executive-level of many of the largest pension plans in the world for his clarity regarding the fiduciary responsibilities of Board members, his appreciation for the significance of governance, his adeptness in creating solutions to seemingly intractable problems, his ability to communicate complex information understandably, his attention to risk and risk management, his record of “thinking two steps ahead,” and his unfailing fair treatment of clients and high ethical standards.

In addition to his many professional and executive roles in the investment industry, Mr. Patterson also supports and is directly involved in many community and education-oriented endeavours, particularly Trent University and children’s camping.

Mr. Patterson holds a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) degree from Trent University (Peterborough, Ontario) and a Master of Business Administration degree from the University of Toronto (Canada).

MAUREEN MCKENNA, SuMo Experience

After a rewarding and varied career of 23 years at Xerox Canada, Maureen launched her own consulting company - mentoring with MOmentum Ltd. During my time at Xerox, she was fortunate to have had the opportunity to work in IT, distribution, manufacturing, call centres, human resources, marketing and the quality office.  It was in Maureen’s final role at Xerox as Organizational Effectiveness Manager, working with the President and supporting her headquarters that she found her passion - being part of a leading edge international learning community. Maureen discovered the profession she loved.

Maureen has been fortunate to have clients in many sectors - corporations (small and large), education, not-for-profit, municipal, provincial and federal government.   As a volunteer she has been honoured to be on the Boards of both Progress Career Planning Institute and Communities in Schools. Today Maureen is a mentor to a Toronto youth organization called iDREAM.   

Maureen is currently an associate of the TAOS Institute - a community of scholars and practitioners concerned with the social processes essential for the construction of reason, knowledge, and human value.

VALERIE J. DAVIS, Lysistrata Incorporated

Valerie is a respected and published leader coach who specializes in working with senior level executives. Her expertise lies in helping leaders to step down from life’s treadmill and offers a lens and tools to gain a critical perspective on their goals, vision and effectiveness. By helping them to reframe their circumstances, Valerie creates a safe environment where clients can elevate themselves above obstacles and attain an objective view of choices and options - especially when they see none. Realistic evaluation, self assessment and motivation to act form the foundation of the process. Vision, transformation, and focus are the result.   

Valerie currently holds the position of Head Coach at the Niagara Institute and is founder and Principal of Lysistrata Inc., a firm specializing in executive and team coaching, and leadership coach education. She also associates with a number of international consulting consortiums.

Valerie holds a Masters of Science in Organization Development from the American University/National Training Labs in Washington, D.C., is a certified Professional Coach from the Hudson Institute of Santa Barbara, and is currently a Ph.D. student at the Fielding Graduate University focusing on leadership.