Reunite 2019 Schedule
Rotman's Homecoming Weekend
Plans are underway for Reunite at Rotman 2020! New dates! Save the date for Oct 2-3, 2020.
Your homecoming weekend includes Friday and Saturday programming; see below for the 2019 schedule as an example of what you can expect. For more information, contact alumni@rotman.utoronto.ca.
Friday, October 4, 2019
4:00 to 5:00pm–Fireside Chats
Join us for sessions with alumni from a breadth of industries, programs and years.
3:30 to 3:55pm–Registration (Desautels Hall)
4:00 to 5:00pm–Fireside Chats (various rooms - tba)
Hear from alumni who have built extraordinary careers in a wide variety of fields! Choose from an exciting lineup of senior leaders who will share their personal and career journeys and insights they’ve gained along the way. Click on each of our speakers to read more about them. More speakers to be announced shortly.
Fireside Chat Speakers
Ryan Baker, FT MBA '04
Partner, KPS Capital Partners, LP
Ryan Baker is a Partner of KPS Capital Partners, LP. KPS Capital Partners, LP is the manager of KPS Special Situations Funds, a family of private equity funds with approximately $5.1 billion of assets under management focused on making controlling equity investments in manufacturing and industrial companies across a diverse array of industries, including basic materials, branded consumer, healthcare and luxury products, automotive parts, capital equipment and general manufacturing.
Mr. Baker and the Partners of KPS have successfully developed and executed a proprietary investment strategy of creating new companies to acquire assets or businesses from large corporations, businesses owned by families or entrepreneurs, and businesses presented for sale in connection with financial restructurings, including companies owned by former creditor groups. KPS then transforms these businesses into independent, world-class, industry-leading enterprises by structurally improving their strategic position, competitiveness and profitability.
The KPS Funds’ portfolio companies have aggregate annual revenues of approximately $5.8 billion, operate 99 manufacturing facilities in 27 countries, and have nearly 21,000 employees, directly and through joint ventures worldwide.
Prior to joining KPS in 2007, Mr. Baker was an associate at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison in their Mergers & Acquisitions Group. Mr. Baker graduated from the University of Toronto’s Joseph L. Rotman School of Management with an M.B.A and the Faculty of Law with a J.D. Mr. Baker graduated from the University of Western Ontario with a B.S. in computer science and statistical sciences
Soumak Chatterjee, FT MBA '10
Partner, Deloitte
Soumak is a partner within Deloitte’s Financial Services team in Toronto and leads the firm’s Canadian payments and blockchain practice. He has over a decade of consulting experience assisting clients drive business value through new disruptive products, services and partnerships leveraging his deep expertise at the intersection of innovation, business and technology from strategy to execution.
Soumak’s experience in payments spans credit cards, debit/Interac, prepaid, e/m-commerce, P2P transfers, mobile payments, transit payments and cross-border FX money movement. He has experience driving projects and relationships across the Canadian payments ecosystem with issuers, acquirers, processors, mobile wallet providers and transit organizations supporting strategy formulation, new product development, technology architecture, operating model definition and program execution. He has significant experience driving strategic high-profile industry programs involving all of Canada’s large banks and networks on payments modernization and real-time payments.
He is an M.B.A. (Bregman Scholar) from the Rotman School of Management at the University of Toronto.
Leslie Cleland, FT MBA '93
Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary-General for Human Resources Management
United Nations
Ms. Leslie Cleland is the Special Assistant to the Assistant Secretary-General (ASG) for Human Resources in the Department of Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance in the United Nations Secretariat.
Leslie has worked for the United Nations System since 1993 and has over twenty years of experience in a variety of international and non-governmental organizations in the areas of budget, finance, human resources and project/program management. She has lived and worked in Khartoum, Kabul, Phnom Penh, Kigali, The Hague, Geneva and New York. Leslie worked previously as an Executive Officer with the Economic Commission for Europe, a Senior Budget Officer in the International Trade Centre, a Budget Officer in the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, a Finance and Procurement Officer with the United Nations Development Programme, the Canadian International Development Agency and several non-governmental organizations including The Halo Trust, a demining NGO. Leslie received her Honors Bachelor of Arts in Social Sciences from the University of Waterloo and her MBA from Rotman before starting her international career. In her spare time, she can be found at the Roosevelt Island swimming pool where she is a member of the Masters Swimming Club or exploring new restaurants in New York City.
Rebecca Harvey, PT MBA '92
Vice President, Ontario Renal Network, Cancer Care Ontario
Rebecca Harvey brings more than 20 years of senior management experience in health care to her role as Vice President, ORN. Her work spans clinical program delivery, healthcare system and governance restructuring, provincial tertiary services, hospital and community operations, strategic planning and policy development across the health care continuum.
Prior to joining the ORN, Rebecca was the executive director for mental health at Vancouver Island Health Authority, leading the strategic and regional planning for tertiary, community hospitals and the community sector.
As the executive director, from 2001 to 2006, for the Health Authorities Division at the Ministry of Health, British Columbia, she directed the management of the Provincial Renal Agency, providing oversight on key renal projects including pre-dialysis clinics, provincial contracts for pharmaceuticals and for in-hospital, community and in-home hemodialysis.
Rebecca has an Honours B.A. and Nursing Diploma, and holds a master of science degree from the University of Saskatchewan as well as a master of business administration from the University of Toronto.
Andre Lewis, MFIN '14
Managing Director, Portfolio Management, Central 1 Credit Union
At Central 1 Credit Union (“Central 1”), Andre is responsible for formulating and executing fixed-income investment strategies for its liquidity portfolios of ~$13 billion.
Prior to joining Central 1, Andre held a number of senior Treasury roles in the public and private sector at the Region of Peel, George Weston Limited, and Manulife Financial.
Most recently, at the Region of Peel, Andre was a Portfolio Manager and at George Weston Limited, Andre was a Senior Director holding the dual-role of Assistant Treasurer, George Weston Limited and Treasurer, President’s Choice Financial.
During his personal time, Andre relishes time with his wife and two young children, enjoys watching and playing basketball, and has a passion for mentoring youth to reach their full potential. Andre sits on the Board of the Laidlaw Foundation, a youth-focused advocacy organization, as the Chair of the Finance and Audit Committee and Vice-Chair of the Investment Committee.
Ayal Twik, FT MBA '04
Co-President, Mooseknuckles
Ayal Twik is the Co-CEO of Moose Knuckles Canada. Moose Knuckles is a premium and luxury Canadian sportswear brand, by and for the True North Strong & Free. Creating time-honoured garments tailored for contemporary living, Moose Knuckles builds Canadian attitude and grit into every fibre, stitch and zipper. Moose Knuckles uses the best materials in the world to build its products, which are sold only in the finest luxury retailers in Canada, Europe, the USA, South America, and Asia.
Ayal and Co-CEO Noah Stern, founded the company in 2007, and have since catapulted the Moose Knuckles brand into the forefront of the fashion world through their forward-thinking approach, edgy designs, and controversial ad campaigns. Moose Knuckles’ impeccable tailoring, luxury materials, hardware, attention to detail, and wild attitude have earned praise from the very best luxury retailers worldwide.
Melanin Kim, MBA '16
Research Associate and Coordinator, Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman (BEAR)
Melanie is a Research Associate at Coordinator at Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman (BEAR), where she helps organizations apply insights from the field of behavioural economics to tackle business and public policy challenges. She has co-authored white paper reports that look at consumer privacy and online financial behaviour from a behavioural lens. She also teaches Marketing and Behavioural Economics at the University of Toronto. She has a joint MBA/Master of Global Affairs degree at the University of Toronto, and a BA in International Development Studies from McGill.
Katherine Rivington, BCOM '01, MBA '07
Head, North American Retail Credit & Chief Risk Officer, Canadian P&C Banking and Wealth Management
Katherine Rivington was appointed Head, North American Retail Credit and Chief Risk Officer (CRO), Canadian P&C and Wealth Management on February 1st, 2018. She is accountable for providing continued transparency and insight into the bank's risk appetite and enabling the business to understand and optimize risk return within enterprise risk tolerances. Katherine is responsible for the integration of all risk types for Canadian P&C and Wealth Management.
Katherine joined BMO in 2008 and has held a number of senior management roles. In 2013, Katherine joined the Canadian Consumer Credit Risk team and was appointed to Vice President, Canadian Consumer Credit in 2014. In this role, she was responsible for leading both the Transactional Credit teams supporting Canadian Personal Banking and the Consumer Headquarters Risk Management team.
Prior to joining the Bank, Katherine worked as a private equity investment professional at EdgeStone Capital Partners and as a management consultant at Cap
Gemini. Katherine holds a Bachelor of Commerce (2001) and JD/MBA (2007) from the University of Toronto.
Alex Yeo, MBA '14
President, Canadian Retail, The North West Company
Alex Yeo joined The North West Company Inc. in 2018 as President, Canadian Retail. In this role he is responsible for over $1 billion in revenue and a workforce of over 3,000 people, looking after the entire value chain from procurement and marketing to logistics and store operations. Prior to joining North West, Alex has had a progressive and varied career spending seven years with the Government of Singapore (where he was born and raised) in progressively senior roles in the Ministries of Defense, Education and Community Development. From there, he joined McDonald’s Corporation, taking over as the Managing Director of McDonald’s Singapore at the age of 31 before taking on the position of Chief Restaurant Officer for China. Most recently he spent four years with international consulting firm McKinsey & Company working on operations and digital transformation projects for various financial service and retail companies. Alex has a Bachelor and Masters’ Degree in Political Science from the University of Michigan and an MBA from the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto.
Amy Bi, MBA '15
Global Brand Director, Nike Running
Amy is the Global Brand Director for Nike Running, based out of Nike World Headquarters in Portland, Oregon. She leads the global running brand strategy for all key initiatives at Nike and has worked on campaigns such as Breaking2, Crazy Dreams, and Women’s World Cup 2019.
Post-Rotman, Amy was in Nike’s Global Marketing Development Program, an elite rotational program designed to build brand leaders at Nike. She worked on scaling Nike’s e-commerce business across 25 new countries.
Before her career at Nike, Amy worked at Honeywell in Shanghai, China where she was the Asia Pacific marketing leader for all B2B marketing programs. She was also previously an Account Manager at Canadian digital agency, Noise Digital where she led omni-channel strategy for clients such as Sony, Tic Tac, and Johnson & Johnson brands.
Amy’s proudest accomplishment at Rotman was creating the viral-sensation blog account, Rotvegas, which chronicled the life of an MBA student. In her spare time, Amy enjoys stand-up comedy, golf, and is currently training for this year’s Chicago Marathon.
5:00 to 6:30pm–Dean's Reception
Relive your Rotman days – minus the exams. Meet Dean Tiff Macklem, catch up with friends and faculty, and network with fellow alumni across grad years, programs and industries.
6:30 to 10:00pm–Reunion Year Celebrations
Celebrate
Celebrate your class reunion and rediscover what made your time together at Rotman so special. Events will be held at various locations around the Rotman School. This year, we are celebrating grad years ending in ‘4’ or ‘9’ plus 2018. If you would like to know what is being planned for your reunion, please contact Sarah Tron at 416-978-4234 or sarah.tron@rotman.utoronto.ca.
Learn more about how your class is celebrating >>.
Support your Class Reunion
We also hope you will consider supporting the next generation of leaders at Rotman. Your investment truly makes a difference by providing resources for student scholarships, experiential learning and other innovative initiatives that make Rotman a leading business school. Make your gift today.
Saturday, October 5, 2019
8:15 to 9:15 am: Breakfast, Registration and Welcome Remarks
8:15 to 9:00 am - Breakfast and Registration
9:00 to 9:15 am - Welcome remarks
Tiff Macklem
Dean, Rotman School of Management and Director, Scotiabank
Tiff Macklem served as senior deputy governor of the Bank of Canada, sharing responsibility with the governor and four deputy governors for monetary policy and the Bank’s role in promoting financial stability. In that role, he was also the Bank’s chief operating officer and a member of its board of directors, overseeing strategic planning and coordinating the Bank’s operations. Macklem has also played a leading role in efforts to ensure stable financial systems worldwide through the Financial Stability Board.
Gavinder Bhatia, EMBA '15
Vice President & General Manager, Pies, Weston Foods
Gavinder is a cross-functional leader with over eighteen years of experience in the consumer packaged goods (CPG) industry working at companies such as Estee Lauder, Kraft and now Weston Foods where she leads the North American Pie Category. Gavinder’s passions at work are people, process and strategy – and she believes in Family First. She’s a mother to two kids and has been happily married for fifteen years. She hopes to continue to develop talent and inspire people to believe in themselves, constantly learn, and have fun in all aspects of their lives. Gavinder has her BSc. in Engineering from the University of Calgary and is a graduate from Rotman’s Executive MBA program.
Bryn Knox, BCOM '04
Head of Finance, BenchSci
A biotech start-up backed by Google’s AI fund, Gradient Ventures, and built by life scientists for life scientists, BenchSci is the world leader in AI-assisted antibody selection with the mission of empowering scientists to run more successful experiments to accelerate drug discovery. BenchSci was founded at the University of Toronto and graduated from the Creative Destruction Lab. Bryn has been a member of the Rotman Commerce Alumni Steering Committee since 2012 and received a University of Toronto Arbor Award for his exemplary volunteer service to the Rotman Commerce community through his participation in networking receptions, alumni events and socials.
9:15 to 10:30 am–Opening Keynote
Innovation + Equality: How to Create a Future That Is More Star Trek Than Terminator
Is economic inequality the price we pay for innovation? The amazing technological advances of the last two decades—in such areas as artificial intelligence, genetics and materials — have benefited society collectively and rewarded innovators handsomely: we get cool smartphones and technology moguls become billionaires. This contributes to a growing wealth gap: in the United States, the wealth controlled by the top 0.1 percent of households equals that of the bottom ninety percent. Is this the inevitable cost of an innovation-driven economy? Joshua Gans and his research partner, Andrew Leigh, make the case that pursuing innovation does not mean giving up on equality. Precisely the opposite. In this talk Prof. Gans outlines ways that society can become both more entrepreneurial and more egalitarian. All innovation entails uncertainty; there’s no way to predict what new technologies will catch on. Therefore, Gans and Leigh argue, rather than betting on the future of particular professions, we should consider policies that embrace uncertainty and insure people against unfavorable outcomes. To this end, they suggest policies that promote both innovation and equality. If we encourage innovation in the right way, our future can look more like the cheerful techno-utopia of Star Trek than the dark techno-dystopia of Terminator.
Joshua Gans
Jeffrey S. Skoll Chair of Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship;
Professor of Strategic Management;
Area Coordinator of Strategic Management
Joshua Gans holds the Jeffrey S. Skoll Chair in Technical Innovation and Entrepreneurship and is a Professor, and Area Coordinator of Strategic Management at Rotman (with a cross-appointment in the Department of Economics). His research is primarily focused on understanding the economic drivers of innovation and scientific progress, and has core interests in digital strategy and antitrust policy. Joshua is the department editor (Strategy) of Management Science, managing director of the Core Research consultancy and writes regularly for HBR and Digitopoly.
10:50 am to 12:00 pm–Two Concurrent Faculty Sessions
Concurrent sessions; attendees to choose one session.
SESSION A: The Death of Cash, the Growth of Debt? How Shifts in Financial Technology Affect Our Spending (and Why it Isn’t all Bad!)"
Over the last 30 years, we have seen a rapid shift in how consumers pay for goods. From cash and cheques to cards and digital wallets, the physical act of spending has never been quicker, easier, and more convenient than ever before. But is this a good thing? This faculty session will discuss how shifting payment forms can influence the pain we experience when paying, and subsequently the way we spend and think about our money. We will also discuss ways that we can use this information and financial technology in order to bolster our savings and take back financial control.
SESSION B: Living with China
Prof. Dobson’s talk will be based on her upcoming book “Living with China” (UT Press 2019) where she encourages Canadians to up their game with a China strategy that takes place in an environment of rising tensions over trade and technology, evident in negotiating the ‘new NAFTA’ with Americans and doing business with Huawei, the China-based telecommunication giant.
Avni Shah
Assistant Professor of Marketing,
University of Toronto
Research Fellow, Behavioural Economics in Action
Rotman School of Management
Avni Shah is an Assistant Professor of Marketing in the Department of Management at the University of Toronto Scarborough with a cross-appointment to the Marketing area at the Rotman School of Management and the Munk School of Global Affairs. Using a multi-method approach combining field and lab experiments as well as empirical modeling, she investigates what motivates consumer decision-making, spending and well-being in household financial settings. Her research focuses on how financial technology (e.g., payment method, mobile payment, SMS reminders for savings) as well as cultural and social forces (e.g., thinking about one’s family, word-of-mouth) influences short-term spending decisions such as buying a product or choosing a healthy versus unhealthy menu item as well as more consequential, long-term financial decision-making (i.e., saving for retirement, choosing a mortgage lender or whether to refinance). Her work has been published in the Journal of Consumer Research, Journal of Marketing Research, and Psychological Science. Shah is a research fellow at the Behavioural Economics in Action at Rotman research cluster as well as a research affiliate at Ideas42, a non-profit design organization that uses behavioural insights to address complex social problems. Shah pursued her doctorate in Marketing at Duke University’s Fuqua School of Business and earned her bachelor’s degree from Dartmouth College, double majoring in Psychological and Brain Sciences and Religion. Prior to beginning her career in academia, she worked as a research assistant at Dartmouth College’s Tuck School of Business, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center, and was a research fellow at the National Institutes of Health.
Wendy K. Dobson
Co-Director, Rotman Institute for International Business
Professor Emerita of Economic Analysis and Policy
Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto
Wendy Dobson joined the Rotman School in 1990. She is a former Associate Deputy Minister of Finance in the Canadian government and a former President of the C.D. Howe Institute, Canada's leading independent economic think tank and a non-executive director of Canadian companies in finance and energy. She is also a director of the Canadian Ditchley Foundation, Senior Fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation and member of the Advisory Committee of the Peterson Institute of International Economics. She participates actively in a number of international networks, including the Pacific Trade and Development Network (PAFTAD). Her course offerings include International Business in the World Economy and a Capstone Course for the School of Public Policy and Governance.
1:05 to 2:05 pm–Closing Keynote
Running Away with the Circus
Join Pierre-Luc Bisaillon, MBA ’01 as he takes the audience on Cirque du Soleil’s journey which began with a troupe of street performers in Quebec to become one of the most recognizable and profitable entertainment brands in the world. Pierre-Luc’s keynote will discuss Cirque du Soleil globetrotting journey to become a global multi-brand entertainment company, and the role IT and technology can play.
Pierre-Luc Bisaillon
Chef de la direction, Technologies de l'information / Chief Information Officer
Cirque du Soleil
Pierre-Luc Bisaillon is a seasoned executive with more than twenty years of experience in the technology industry. He leads the global IT organization at Cirque du Soleil, headquartered in Montreal. His background is a unique combination of strategy, consulting, entrepreneurship and technology, enabling him to provide sharp insights and impactful recommendations. Prior to joining Cirque du Soleil, he worked at BRP, CloudOps and McKinsey. Pierre-Luc has his MBA from the Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto and a B. Eng. from McGill University.