Big Data and Analytics

Tarun Rihal, MBA, MSc, SSBB is a data science manager in Ontario's public service with more than 10 years of experience growing capacity for data science, management and analytics. He specializes in helping organizations develop data-science strategies that maximize return on investment by targeting high-value insight generation. Tarun has received extensive recognition for his work in the development and deployment of novel machine-learning approaches to solving critical business problems in the public service. Most recently, his team at the Ministry of the Attorney General received the National Centre for State Courts’ 2019 G. Thomas Munsterman Award for building key spatial prediction algorithms used to transform Ontario's jury rolls to be more representative of Ontarians. He has also developed enterprise-wide policy for data and analytics for Ontario's and Canada's Treasury Board Secretariats. Tarun also has a deep personal interest in data science and the open source community and is a heavy contributor to R library codebases and Stack Overflow/Cross Validated. When not using analytics to improve public services, he enjoys competing in Kaggle competitions, where he is ranked as a Master.

Coaching and Collaboration, Sales, Strategic Leadership

Dr. Tatiana Astray is a sought-after facilitator and executive coach who specializes in negotiations, sales, leadership, persuasion, stakeholder management, and body language. With over a decade of experience, she has partnered with leading organizations in finance, technology, aerospace, mining, government, and education to deliver transformative, evidence-based training programs that drive measurable results. Her workshops consistently receive a satisfaction rate of over 90%, reflecting her ability to create engaging and impactful learning experiences. Tatiana’s psychology-driven methodology equips professionals with the tools to enhance leadership, negotiation, and communication skills while fostering trust and collaboration. Her interactive sessions encourage practical application, constructive feedback, and meaningful growth, earning her praise for combining strategic insights with real-world relevance. An award-winning educator, Tatiana has taught at the Executive, MBA, and undergraduate levels at top Canadian universities. She holds a Ph.D. in Organization Studies, an M.Sc. in Marketing and Consumer Studies, and a B.Sc. in Psychology. Beyond her work with executives, Tatiana serves on the board of Jumpstart, an NGO empowering Canadian refugees, and leads workshops to help female immigrant entrepreneurs master negotiation strategies. Her dedication to fostering resilience, confidence, and practical skills makes her a trusted partner for organizations and professionals alike.

General Management

Thomas Medcof is associate director of the International MBA program at the Schulich School of Business at York University. He earned his MBA from the Anderson School of Management at the University of New Mexico and his PhD in Management from the Schulich. His research has been presented at conferences across North America and Europe and won the award for Best Paper in International Business from the Administrative Sciences Association of Canada in 2006. He currently teaches in the BBA and MBA programs at Schulich, where he won the Seymour Schulich Award for Teaching Excellence in 2011 (BBA) and 2014 (MBA) and the John Peace Teaching Award in 2017. Medcof currently serves as a director of PCI Geomatics and is a member of the governance and compensation committee. He has been a board member since 2014.

Tom is an educator, strategist, and digital transformation advocate with expertise in generative AI, cybersecurity, and data science. He develops and teaches courses, and supports businesses in adopting and utilizing generative AI, data, and cybersecurity solutions. His passion lies in helping businesses and institutions with workforce reskilling and upskilling, while making advanced technologies accessible through teaching, public speaking, and volunteer STEM mentorship.

General Management

Tracey Levison started her career in the field of experiential learning focusing on team building and leadership development. After years of experience working with teams and leaders she honed her expertise in the field of organizational development and culture change. Tracey creates people management solutions for companies that focus on finding dormant opportunities, refocusing them and putting them into action. Tracey is a trained psychotherapist and has expertise in Psychometric Profiles and Emotional Intelligence.

Lean Six Sigma

Travis Ratnam is lead instructor for Schulich ExecEd’s Master Certificate in Lean Six Sigma, Black Belt program. Travis has coached hundreds of participants and business leaders in Continuous Improvement, Lean Six Sigma Deployment and Strategic Planning in virtually every industry sector ranging from manufacturing, service, government and others. He is highly regarded as a passionate, knowledgeable and inspiring leader who eliminates fear of the learning and development journey, bringing the very best in individual and team capability. Travis has successfully applied the Lean Six Sigma methodology in both operational and service environments.

Coaching and Collaboration, Communication

Top Career Coach and Professor, Trevor Cape offers leadership, empowerment, and transformation programs to help you advance your career. With extensive experience helping people understand and leverage their brilliance, Trevor has managed thousands of coaching programs, independently and through top business schools, leading HR firms and organizations, partnering closely with clients to help them advance their careers, developing options and perspectives, strategic messaging, and engagement strategies that work. Trevor created the Early-in-Career Program for the Schulich ExecEd and works with a portfolio of clients delivering regular career support workshops and coaching. Trevor has coached leaders from across all industries, including Canada’s top banks, educational institutions, and advertising companies. Prior to building his reputation as a successful career coach, Trevor Cape worked for 14 years at Interbrand, the world’s leading brand consultancy, providing local and global leadership to HR, Marketing and Knowledge Management.

Healthcare

Tyson brings with him over 25 years of experience from within a variety of different complex business environment such as: healthcare, technology, consumer product, high-tech manufacturing, and management consulting. Before joining Nova Networks as the VP Digital Health he was with IBM’s National Healthcare practice, Tyson served as, the Head of Social Innovation and IoT at Hitachi Vantara, as well as, VP & CIO at the Hospital for Sick Children and Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario, where he also served as the Chief Privacy Officer. His innovative and practical approach along with his leadership style have enable both large and small organizations to successfully deliver on their digital transformation projects. Tyson believes strongly in sharing knowledge and giving back. He continues as a volleyball coach and mentor, as well as, being an instructor at Algonquin College within the Digital Health Program . He is a Certified Information Privacy Technologist (CIPT) and has been active participant on several Boards and Committees such as: The Winchester District Memorial Hospital, The Ontario Caregivers Organization and the Health Information Management System Society (HIMSS). Before becoming an Instructor within the program, Tyson was also the past Chair of the Digital Health Program Advisory Committee at Algonquin College, which is designed to foster the next generation of health IT professionals.

Marketing

Vafa Akhavan is an executive leader with global experience across seven industries and 16 countries. His career is made up of organizational leadership roles and management consulting at marquee brands within their respective industries. Customer experience, employee engagement and owner returns have been a constant throughout his career. Vafa is currently Chief Executive Officer at World Pediatric Project.  Previously he was President & Senior Adviser at NueBridge, a unique consultancy of operating executives serving corporate clients focused primarily on CE and CEM.

General Management, Municipal Sector

Vania Sakelaris is a seasoned executive and the founder of VAS & Associates Inc. a management consulting firm that provides customized advisory, coaching and training services to corporate executives, their boards and their teams building on her 25+ year career. Vania's portfolio includes a decade as CEO of large healthcare organizations in the for-profit and not-for-profit sectors. It advanced to a decade of executive leadership within a $5B provincial crown agency. Vania's lifelong passion for capacity building inspired her coaching work and the launch of her business venture. Vania holds an MBA from the Ivey Business School and is a Certified Executive and Business Coach. She is a member of the Harvard Institute of Coaching, the International Coach Federation, and the Worldwide Association of Business Coaches.

Healthcare

Venita Indewey is an insightful adviser and instructor on the topics of leadership and teams. An experienced leader of direct reports, project teams and cross functional teams for more than 30 years, she has applied theory to practice and shares this experience in the classroom as well as when mentoring and coaching. Venita has led initiatives and teams for several national Canadian corporations, for clients as a consulting manager with Ernst & Young, globally in Chile and Mexico with Scotiabank, and for the last 14 years in Healthcare with Public Health Ontario, CAHO groups, and for several academic teaching hospitals. Most recently she served as the senior director of organization development at the University Health Network. This experience enables Venita to hold a broad perspective of the healthcare system and understand the diversity of experiences of physician, administration and clinical-care teams and leaders.

Vern has over 20 years of experience in the field of strategy development, strategy implementation and deployment, KPI systems development and deployment, and organizational process improvement. He has consulted with various industries and sectors: agriculture, food processing, healthcare, non-profit, manufacturing, human resources/payroll, electric utilities, packaging, education, and regulatory bodies, to name but a few. The breadth and scope of the engagements have varied but include Strategy Planning and deployment, cultural transformations, KPI systems, Executive training and coaching, leadership and supervisor development and coaching, strategic project selection and execution, Lean Six Sigma training and coaching, basic data analysis, interpretation and problem-solving. The objective of any consulting engagement is to transfer the knowledge and skills to the client organization so that they may strive for and realize self-sufficiency. Prior to becoming a professional trainer and consultant, Vern spent twenty years at Manitoba Hydro and Northern Blower in General Management and Financial Planning and leading their Strategic Planning and Quality Improvement Initiatives. Vern is a Professional Engineer (APEGM), earning his Bachelor of Science Degree in Mechanical Engineering, with Distinction, from the University of Manitoba. He was awarded the Gold Medal from the Canadian Society for Mechanical Engineering and went on to attain his Master Degree in Business Administration from the University of Western Ontario. Vern is an Associate Professor and Engineer in Residence with the Faculty of Engineering at the University of Manitoba, teaching 4th year and graduate level in Operational Excellence. Vern is also an MBA sessional lecturer in Lean Management at the Asper School of Business and guest lectures at the University of Miami’s School of Business Administration and the Stern School of Business at New York University, New York.