Innovation Advisory Board
Our Innovation Advisory Board (IAB) was established in June of 2008 in order to provide strategic direction to the GBC Research Labs. The IAB is a multi-sectoral small to medium enterprise (SME), entrepreneurial, and academic stakeholder group that helps ensure responsiveness to industry research, innovation and commercialization needs, as well as facilitate networking. It also leads to the development of industry champions, specifically for SME-related applied research.
The board members are as follows:
Peter Catford, MBA
HI Next
Peter Catford has been involved in information systems consulting and management for thirty-five years, focusing on healthcare leadership and information technology. Peter is adjunct faculty at the University of Toronto and Co-chair of Ontario’s Health Infrastructure Council. He was the Vice President of Information Management at the Centre for Addiction and Mental Health from 1999-2007. In 1997 Peter formed HInext Inc. which provides consulting and management services to hospitals and homecare offices. Peter was a founder of the SIMS organization in Toronto, currently one of healthcare’s largest IT enterprises. Other significant contributions include a joint development with IBM and GE that implemented one of the first working PACS systems for radiological imaging. Uniquely Peter also spent three years assisting Air Canada with the implementation of their Systems Operations Control centre in Toronto implementing key systems for flight planning, operations control and weather monitoring.
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Andrew Fraser, Ph.D, MBA
George Brown College
Andrew Fraser has a Ph.D. from McGill University in molecular developmental neuroscience, with postdoctoral work at the Montreal Neurological
Institute, in the Centre for Neuronal Survival. His MBA is from Universiteit Nyenrode, in the Netherlands. Andrew put his skills and keen
interest in business into action working in Venture Capital in Canada and Europe. There he gained over eight years of experience working
closely with technology companies to help them plan strategy and develop and commercialize their technologies. He specialized in evaluating
and assessing new technologies, market opportunities, and competitive advantage, and negotiating financing terms. Now, Andrew facilitates
applied research activities here at GBC. As Industry Liaison and Technology Transfer Manager, he works with the Research & Innovation
team and other stakeholders in refining applied research strategy. Andrew’s main focus is to identify, negotiate and arrange new applied
research partnership opportunities for GBC faculty and students.
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Gordon Gow
Gordon W. Gow & Associates Inc.
Gordon Gow is a seasoned business leader who has achieved management successes in large, medium and start-up companies, as well
as government. Gordon is president of Gordon W. Gow & Associates, which advises companies on high-technology projects, mentors young companies and secures capital for new enterprises. A former “Marketer of the Year” (American Marketing Association, 1984), Gordon has launched and led innovative companies that have played a key role in the development of Canada’s biotech, biomedical and computer sectors. Gordon served as Deputy Minister of Industry, Trade & Technology, Assistant Deputy Minister of Trade & Investment and President & CEO of Ontario International Incorporated (a Crown Corporation) for the Government of Ontario. He has served on the Boards of Ottawa-Carleton Economic Development Corporation; Ottawa Carleton Research Institute (OCRI); Children’ s
Hospital of the Eastern Ontario Board and Foundation; and the Science Council of Canada. He currently sits on the Board of Governors of George
Brown College, is Chairman of the Ontario Health Research Alliance; and on the Board of ITAC and Chairs the Health Sub committee. Gordon graduated
from the Eastern Ontario Institute of Technology in 1960 and holds an Honorary Doctorate from the University of Ottawa (1983).
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Mukesh Gupta
Tata Consultancy Services
Mukesh Gupta is the Director of Strategic Relations for Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a leading global IT services, business solutions and outsourcing organization. A leader in actively promoting and fostering Indo-Canadian relations and trade, he was recognized in the House of Commons during Her Majesty’s Golden Jubilee with a medal for his exemplary service to Canada. Mukesh has served on the Board of Canada-India Business Council and was the founding Chair of the Ottawa council of the Indo Canada Chamber of Commerce (ICCC). Mukesh is a member of the Ontario Premier’s advisory council, and is a facilitator for India-Canada relationships at the Focus India group of departments of Foreign Affairs and International Trade. In addition to serving on the Presidential India advisory council at Simon Fraser University and Dean’s advisory board at Telfer School of Management at Ottawa University, he has an advisory role with the student bodies at the business schools of Schulich, Rotman, Ivey, Telfer, Carleton and Queen’s. An active promoter of social entrepreneurship, Mukesh mentors many student groups in Canada, and is actively involved in volunteering, supporting & assisting in fundraising efforts for many local and national charities.
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Andrew Jenkins, BFA, MBA
Volterra Consulting
Andrew Jenkins is Principal and Owner of Volterra Consulting, a strategy consulting firm specializing in emerging technology. Andrew
has spent over 15 years in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) spanning social media, wireless, telecommunications, e-business,
Internet, software, and hardware solutions. Andrew has worked with a diverse list of companies in North America and Europe, including Britain’s
National Endowment for Science, Technology, and the Arts (NESTA); the World Bank; Rogers Wireless; Bell Canada; InfoSpace; Compaq; HP; IBM;
and Microsoft. He is a Member of the Institute of Corporate Directors and an Advisory Board Member of wireless firm, Ooloo Media. He holds
a BA in Economics from Laurentian University, a BFA in Film Production from York University, and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management
at the University of Toronto.
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Dr. Robert Luke, Ph.D
Assistant Vice President, Applied and Institutional Research
George Brown College
Dr. Robert Luke is Director of Research and Innovation for George Brown College. He has over 12 years of academic and industrial research
experience and joined George Brown College in 2007 to initiate and run the Research Office. Dr. Luke provides college-wide leadership
and consultation in furthering the College’s strategic directions and priorities in applied/academic research, develops and implements
policies and procedures to support applied research initiatives, encourages innovation in teaching and learning, new program development
and knowledge management strategies, and develops research facilities and innovative approaches to program development and delivery. Concurrent
with his Directorial responsibilities, Dr. Luke maintains an active research program in education and health informatics, new technology
development and human-centred design principles for new technology development and workflow adaptation. Dr. Luke’s skills and experience
with large, multi-institutional grants will provide a solid foundation for the management of the present grant and research projects and
program commensurate with industry needs. Dr. Luke has conducted funded research and development for CANARIE, the Ontario Innovation Trust,
Canada Foundation for Innovation, Office of Learning Technologies, Heritage Canada, the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of
Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Inukshuk Learning Plan, Health Canada, the Change Foundation, the Canadian Breast
Cancer Research Alliance, the Canadian Council on Learning, Human Resource Development Canada, the Office of the Privacy Commissioner of
Canada, and numerous institutional grants. His experience includes industry-partnered research and development and several commercial technologies
and numerous prototypes and spinoffs.
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Dan McGillivray, Ph.D.
Ontario Centres of Excellence
Dr. Dan McGillivray brings over 30 years of experience to OCE’s Centre for Energy having worked as an environmental consultant, university professor, physical oceanographer and President and CEO of Environmental Software Consultants Inc. Dan received his Ph.D. in 1988 from the University of Toronto, specializing in Earth and Environmental Sciences. He was elected to the Board of Directors of the Ontario Environment Industry Association in November 2001 and served until July 2008. Dan is Co-Chair of OCE’s Research Investment Committee and became Managing Director of OCE’s Centre for Energy in July 2007.
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Carlos Paz-Soldan, BSc, MBA
Tenet Computer Group Inc.
Carlos is President and founder of Tenet Computer Group Inc. (est. 1984), a Toronto-based I.T. company. Carlos has been involved in I.T.
since the mid ‘70s, and has worked for and with companies large and small, in South America, Africa and North America. His education includes a Master of Business Administration from University of Toronto, and a BSc in Industrial & Systems Engineering from Perú’s Universidad Nacional de Ingeniería.
Carlos is a member of several advisory boards for technology associations, including TechSelect Canada, and is a business partner of key
I.T. manufacturers such as RIM/BlackBerry, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, Novell, IBM, among others. Most recently, Carlos has been involved
in the creation of an I.T. toolkit to assist organizations, particularly hospitals, to prepare for, deal with, and recover from a Pandemic
event.
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Peter Pennefather, BSc, PhD
University of Toronto
Peter is academic director of the Laboratory for Collaborative Diagnostics (LCD; www.lcd.utoronto.ca) and has been a professor at the Leslie Dan Faculty of Pharmacy University of Toronto since 1984 in. He is cross appointed to the Departments of Physiology, Pharmacology, and the Institute of Medical Science. His expertise is in neuroscience, cellular biophysics, and theoretical cell biology and has contributed over 75 peer reviewed publications in those fields. His current research focuses on new ways of imaging, monitoring, interpreting and communicating biodiagnostic data using commodity consumer electronic technologies that are globally accessible. The LCD works with several researchers, developers, institutions, and companies to create new procedures for aggregating, annotating, and simplifying distributed, digital, diagnostic, data. The aim is to design, develop and deploy new and sustainable ways of utilizing digital diagnostic and analytical information in comprehensive healthcare decision support anywhere. He is the president of G-DIAL Inc, created to commercialize LCD innovations.
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Elizabeth Speers, BSc, MSc, Bed, Med, EdD
George Brown College
Elizabeth has over 20 years of experience in education and business. This experience includes teaching in university, college and high school programs as well as senior management roles in industry in process reengineering, supply chain and strategic change management, and human resources. Elizabeth is currently the Director, Centre for Business.
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Dr. Kevin Stolarick, PhD
Martin Prosperity Institute
Dubbed the “Official Statistician of the Creative Class”, Kevin Stolarick combines a depth of knowledge with an appreciation of the importance of finding and sharing the knowledge or “pearls of wisdom” gained from his comprehensive understanding of the Creative Class and the Creative Economy. He is the Research Director at The Martin Prosperity Institute at the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. He has held faculty positions at the College of Humanities and Social Sciences and the H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy and Management, Carnegie Mellon University, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA and for over a decade worked with technology in the insurance industry as a manager of strategic projects. He holds a PhD in Business Administration and an MBA from the Tepper School of Management, Carnegie Mellon University and a BS in Honors in Applied Computer Science from Illinois State University. Kevin’s research interests include the relationship between firm performance and information technology and the impacts of technology, tolerance, talent, and quality of place on regional growth and prosperity.
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Niall Wallace
Infonaut, Inc.
Niall Wallace is co-founder and CEO of Infonaut Inc, a privately held Canadian company dedicated to helping governments and health-related organizations address infectious disease outbreaks. Through his expertise in data warehousing and management reporting, Niall has created a company that helps health organizations make sense of previously overwhelming amounts of information that can help save lives. Niall has previously worked in the Financial Sector with Scotiabank and Manulife Financial before starting to work in the healthcare sector in 2001. Niall spent five years building a successful consulting practice in the healthcare sector that focused on information strategy, data warehousing and management-level reporting before founding Infonaut Inc. As CEO, Niall oversees Infonaut's aggressive growth strategy, business development, and application research & development. Infonaut is involved in a number of large-scale projects with a focus on healthcare planning and management. He has led Infonaut’s active involvement with many healthcare and pandemic planning projects with clients including Ontario’s Ministry of Health and Long Term Care, Public Health Division; SARS Expert Panel; Emergency Management Unit; various hospitals and others.
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Julie Gaudet
RN, BScN, MN (Admin.)
Julie Gaudet is a professor in the Division of Health Sciences and Community Services, currently teaching in
the Collaborative Nursing Degree Program, at George Brown College. Concurrently, Julie also teaches at the Chang School for Continuing Studies
(Ryerson) in the post-diploma nursing program on a sessional basis. Julie has special interests in nursing research, statistical literacy,
e-learning, health informatics and interprofessional education (IPE). Julie is a graduate of the University of Toronto with a Master of Nursing
degree. Julie is engaged
in a number of research projects at the College and has published in the area of interprofessional education. In addition to her academic
position at GBC, Julie is also a health management consultant specializing in operational management and reengineering, accreditation review
and quality improvement, as well as program and curriculum development. Prior to joining George Brown College in an academic capacity, Julie
held a wide variety of senior and middle management positions in the private and public sectors. Her background includes clinical and leadership
positions in a major academic health sciences center in multidisciplinary specialty areas including emergency services, psychiatry and adolescent
medicine, and telehealth.
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Return to: Research and Innovation at George Brown College
Revised:
June 11, 2010
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